AVLC vs ZECP

AVLCAAvantis U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF

ZECPBZacks Earnings Consistent Portfolio ETF

In short

AVLC Active management with index-fund manners: roughly 900 U.S. large caps, with the dial turned toward cheaper, more profitable companies. Avantis charges 0.15% a year to do it.

ZECP Zacks made its name on earnings estimates. Its first ETF, launched 2021, turns that lens inward: screen the largest 750 US stocks for the steadiest earnings, hold 50 to 120, charge 0.55% with no waiver.

Stated mandate

AVLC The fund seeks long-term capital appreciation. It invests broadly in U.S. large-capitalization companies while using active decisions to overweight lower valuations and higher profitability.

ZECP The Fund seeks long-term total returns while minimizing capital loss.

Why people hold it

• AVLC 0.15% a year against a 0.65% median for active U.S. equity funds. That is passive-style pricing on an actively run book.
• Holds about 900 names against the Russell 1000, so the value and profitability tilts sit on top of broad market exposure instead of a concentrated bet.avantisinvestors.com
• One of the stronger builds in the active U.S. equity group, priced in the same neighborhood as the Dimensional core funds (DFAU, DFAC) it competes with.
• A multi-billion-dollar fund that trades steadily, so spreads and liquidity are rarely the sticking point. Distributions are paid quarterly.

• ZECP The screen is literal: 15 years of EPS variability plus two years of forecast variability. Least wobbly earnings advance, then a manager vets filings, profitability and valuation.sec.gov
• 0.55% is below the median for actively managed US equity funds, and it is the real number: gross and net match, with no waiver due to roll off.
• A compact book of roughly 60 names with a defensive, low-volatility build, drawn from a mandate that pairs the quant screen with human review.sec.gov
• On our overall review it lands in the upper quartile of a large active US equity peer group, with risk behavior that holds up well against those rivals.

Worth knowing

• AVLC Launched in 2023. The tilt philosophy is well worn at Avantis, but this fund's own live record is still short.
• Active, not index-tracking. The Russell 1000 is a reference point, not a leash, so holdings and weights can drift from it.
• Leaning toward cheaper, higher-profitability companies means stretches where it moves differently from the plain cap-weighted market, in either direction.avantisinvestors.com

• ZECP Active costs more. DFAU charges 0.12% and AVLC 0.15% for broad US equity, so the earnings screen has to justify the gap.
• Steady earnings is not steady prices. The objective is long-term total return while minimizing capital loss, which sets no floor under a drawdown.
• A few hundred million in assets and light daily volume mean the spread can be a live cost, and distributions arrive only once or twice a year.

Full AVLC profile⁠

Full ZECP profile⁠