BCHP vs DFAC

BCHPCPrincipal Focused Blue Chip ETF

DFACADimensional US Core Equity 2 ETF

In short

BCHP Principal's stock-picker take on the blue chips: a focused, actively run basket of big US companies the manager thinks can keep compounding, priced below what the average active US equity ETF charges.

DFAC Dimensional's whole-market workhorse: roughly 2,600 US stocks in one ticker, run by managers who weigh federal tax consequences before they trade, at a fee closer to index funds than to active ones.

Stated mandate

BCHP The Fund seeks long-term growth of capital. It normally invests at least 80% of assets in large-capitalization equity securities that the adviser considers blue-chip companies, with an emphasis on capital-growth potential.

DFAC The fund seeks long-term capital appreciation while considering federal income-tax implications in its investment decisions.

Why people hold it

• BCHP Charges 0.58% a year, under the median for actively managed US equity ETFs. Active stock picking without the premium price tag that usually comes with it.
• The mandate is specific, not mush: normally at least 80% of assets in large-cap names the adviser considers blue chip, with the emphasis on capital-growth potential rather than income.
• Lands in the upper half of a peer group of a couple hundred active US equity ETFs, and the data behind that read is complete rather than patchy.
• Backed by Principal, a long-established fund manager, with the fund itself trading since 2023.

• DFAC 0.17% a year for an actively run fund, well under the median fee among active US equity ETFs.
• About 2,600 US stocks under one ticker, so it holds the market broadly rather than a narrow slice of it.
• Federal income-tax implications sit inside the stated objective, not in a footnote, so they factor into what managers buy and sell.
• A multi-billion-dollar fund with a track record running back to 2007 and one of the strongest implementations in its peer group.

Worth knowing

• BCHP Trading is light compared with the giants of the category, so bid-ask spreads can be wider and bigger orders can nudge the price.
• A focused book of large-cap growth names concentrates both the wins and the drawdowns. Expect a bumpier path than a whole-market index fund.
• You are paying up for the manager's judgment: broad-market rivals like DFAU (0.12%) and AVLC (0.15%) run at a fraction of the cost.

• DFAC Actively managed, so there's no published index to check it against. Holdings and tilts shift at the managers' discretion.
• Dimensional's own DFAU runs a US core equity mandate for 0.12%, a slightly lighter fee for a similar shelf.
• All stocks, all US: the mandate is capital appreciation from equities, so it takes the market's full swings, and cash arrives quarterly.

Full BCHP profile⁠

Full DFAC profile⁠