DFAC vs HGRO

DFACADimensional US Core Equity 2 ETF

HGROCHedgeye Quality Growth ETF

In short

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.

HGRO Hedgeye built its name selling macro research to traders. HGRO is that research in a ticker: an active, concentrated book of US large- and mid-cap growth names picked off the firm's growth-and-inflation regime maps.

Stated mandate

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

HGRO The fund aims to achieve long-term growth of capital and income.

Why people hold it

• 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.

• HGRO The macro call is the product: holdings come off a framework that maps growth and inflation data into themes, then screens companies on fundamentals.stockanalysis.com
• Genuinely active. It runs a non-diversified book of US-listed stocks and REITs, with at least 80% of net assets in US-listed equities, rather than hugging a broad index.yahoo.com
• Moderately traded despite a 2025 launch, so getting a position on or off is not a scavenger hunt.

Worth knowing

• 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.

• HGRO 0.70% a year is full active pricing, above the typical active US equity ETF and many times core rivals like DFAU (0.12%) and FELC (0.18%).
• Launched June 2025, so the record is short and the process has not been tested across a full market cycle.
• Non-diversified means fewer, larger positions, and up to 20% of total assets can sit in foreign companies, including depositary receipts.yahoo.com

Full DFAC profile⁠

Full HGRO profile⁠