AVTM vs BDVL

AVTMAAvantis Total Equity Markets ETF 1

BDVLAiShares Disciplined Volatility Equity Active ETF

In short

AVTM Avantis' one-ticket world stock market: roughly 1,700 holdings, U.S. names owned directly and the overseas sleeves held through sister Avantis funds, all tilted toward cheaper, more profitable companies.

BDVL A global low-volatility fund with an active engine: a quant model picks roughly 500 stocks on low vol, quality and value, scored against MSCI's ACWI Minimum Volatility Index. Fee: 0.39% net of a waiver through June 30, 2028.

Stated mandate

AVTM Seeks long-term capital appreciation through a broadly diversified total-market equity allocation, using individual securities and Avantis ETFs while emphasizing securities expected to offer higher returns or better risk characteristics than a passive market-capitalization-weighted index.

BDVL The Fund seeks risk-adjusted total return through active management of equity exposure, with a focus on managing volatility relative to the broad equity market.

Why people hold it

• AVTM Costs 0.22% net of a fee waiver (0.23% gross), a notch under stablemate AVGE at 0.23% and below the typical fee in its category.
• Owns U.S. companies directly rather than only stacking funds, then uses Avantis ETFs for developed and emerging markets abroad. One ticket, all market caps.sec.gov
• Benchmarked to 85% Russell 3000 and 15% MSCI ACWI ex-US IMI: a deliberately U.S.-heavy world portfolio, not a global cap-weight split.avantisinvestors.com
• One of the stronger builds in a crowded field of actively managed global equity funds.

• BDVL Costs 0.39% net of a waiver through June 30, 2028, below the median fee among global active equity peers and under sibling fund BFLX at 0.40%.
• Roughly 500 holdings worldwide, so no single stock runs the show. Its holdings build and risk profile rank among the strongest in its peer group.
• Built to hold core equity exposure while leaning toward stocks that have shown smaller price swings than the broad market.ishares.com
• Trading since 2017, a long life for an active equity ETF, and it has gathered billions from investors along the way.

Worth knowing

• AVTM Avantis flags that much of the starting portfolio sits on a low tax basis, so the fund may realize and distribute more capital gains than other ETFs.avantisinvestors.com
• Trades thinly next to the index giants in its category, so spreads and order size matter more here.
• Launched January 2026, so the history is short, and with no index to follow the portfolio reflects Avantis' own valuation and profitability tilts.sec.gov

• BDVL A model, not an index, picks the names. Active discretion cuts both ways against the MSCI minimum-volatility benchmark it is measured by.
• The low-vol tilt means lighter exposure to the market's most volatile high-flyers, which shapes how it behaves when those names run.
• Cheaper active options sit in the same category: AVTM at 0.22% and AVGE at 0.23% deliver broad global equity without the volatility focus.

Full AVTM profile⁠

Full BDVL profile⁠