DFAU vs SURE: Grades, Fees and Holdings Compared

Dimensional US Core Equity Market ETF

DFAUANYSE Arca

AdvisorShares Insider Advantage ETF

SURECNYSE Arca

Overlap

8.9%by weight

Expense ratio

DFAU −0.78pt a year

DFAU0.12%SURE0.90%

Avg volume · 30D

DFAU 903.4×the volume

DFAU547KSURE606

5Y return · a year

DFAU +0.5pt

DFAU+11.0%SURE+10.5%

DFAU vs SURE Performance

Nov 9, 2021 – Nov 9, 2026

+68.6%DFAU+65.0%SURE

Expense ratio: DFAU 0.12%, better; SURE 0.90%
Fund size: DFAU $12.6B; SURE $58M
1Y total return: DFAU +14.5%; SURE +29.2%, better
Yield (12M): DFAU 0.91%, better; SURE 0.82%
Holdings: DFAU 2163; SURE 101
Avg volume (30D): DFAU 547K sh, better; SURE 606 sh
NAV per share: DFAU $50.91; SURE $153.58
52W range

ETF.net Grade

Pillar letters and Scores for DFAU, SURE, with each pillar’s weight
Pillar	DFAU	SURE
Cost30% weight	A97Higher	F23
Mission25% weight	A84Higher	A78
Risk15% weight	B63	B67Higher
Tradability15% weight	A87Higher	D36
Holdings10% weight	A84	A89Higher
Durability5% weight	A91Higher	B67

Rank among US Active Equity funds

How we build Categories ›

Same Category. DFAU and SURE are both graded against the same 121 US Active Equity funds, so their Grades compare head to head.

US Active Equity⁠

Category · 121 funds

See all 121 ›

DFAU ranks 2nd and SURE 70th of 121 funds in the US Active Equity Category.

Rank 1AAVLCAvantis U.S. Large Cap Equity ETFScore 87
Rank 2ADFAUDimensional US Core Equity Market ETFScore 86
Rank 3ADFACDimensional US Core Equity 2 ETFScore 85
Rank 67CHGROHedgeye Quality Growth ETFScore 47
Rank 70CSUREAdvisorShares Insider Advantage ETFScore 46
Rank 71CBEEZHoneytree U.S. Equity ETFScore 45

Our read on each fund

ETF.net Research

DFAUADimensional US Core Equity Market ETF

SURECAdvisorShares Insider Advantage ETF

In short

DFAU Active management priced like an index fund. Dimensional spreads across roughly 2,400 US stocks, then tilts the weights toward value, profitability and momentum instead of simply mirroring the Russell 3000.

SURE An actively managed, roughly 100-stock US portfolio that weights every holding the same and screens for profitability. A 2011-vintage boutique in a corner of the market now ruled by ultra-cheap quant giants.

Stated mandate

DFAU Seeks long-term capital appreciation. It uses an integrated research, portfolio-design, management, and trading process to build a broadly diversified portfolio of U.S. companies while balancing long-term return drivers, risk, shorter-term considerations, and trading costs.

SURE The Fund seeks long-term capital appreciation.

Why people hold it

DFAU Charges 0.12% a year, well under the 0.65% median for active US equity funds and the cheapest of the top-graded names in its group (AVLC, DFAC, FELC).
Holds roughly 2,400 US companies, so no single name steers the fund. Whole-market coverage, not a concentrated bet.
Active without the stock-picking drama: it leans weights toward value, profitability and momentum, using the Russell 3000 as its reference point rather than a rigid rulebook.
A multi-billion-dollar fund that trades actively, and one of the strongest overall implementations in its active US equity peer group.

SURE Equal weight across about 100 US names, so no single mega-cap dominates the portfolio, with profitability built into the selection screen rather than bolted on afterward.
Live since 2011, which means the strategy has run through real market cycles rather than arriving as a fresh backtest.
The stock book is the strongest part of the package: a diversified, all-US equity sleeve under a plain 1940 Act fund wrapper with a single mandate, long-term capital appreciation.

Worth knowing

DFAU Those tilts cut both ways: results can drift from a plain Russell 3000 fund for long stretches, in either direction.
No published index behind it. The trade-off for flexibility is that you're buying Dimensional's process, not a public set of rules you can check line by line.
Distributions land quarterly, not monthly, and the mandate is long-term capital appreciation rather than income.

SURE Cost is the trade-off: 1.00% a year against a 0.65% median for active US equity funds, while systematic rivals like DFAU (0.12%) and AVLC (0.15%) charge a sliver of that.
Thinly traded for its category, so limit orders matter and spreads can widen when markets get jumpy.
Distributions land once or twice a year, not monthly. The mandate is capital appreciation, not an income stream.

Full DFAU profile⁠

Full SURE profile⁠

DFAU vs SURE Holdings

How DFAU and SURE differ

Overlap by weight

8.9%

Shared holdings make up 99.0% of SURE and 21.7% of DFAU.

Level by level

Holdings99 in both8.9%
Sector11 Sectors81.2%
Countryby domicile99.3%
Asset classStocks100%

Sector

Sector weights in DFAU and SURE, widest gap first
Sector	Gap	DFAU	SURE
Technology	DFAU +7.5 points	34.7%	27.2%
Consumer Discretionary	SURE +6.8 points	10.2%	17.0%
Energy	SURE +5.9 points	4.5%	10.4%
Health Care	DFAU +5.0 points	10.3%	5.3%
Consumer Staples	DFAU +4.1 points	5.0%	0.9%
Industrials	SURE +3.7 points	9.3%	13.0%
Communication	SURE +1.9 points	7.8%	9.7%
Materials	DFAU +1.2 points	2.3%	1.1%
Utilities	DFAU +0.8 points	2.2%	1.4%
Real Estate	SURE +0.5 points	0.1%	0.6%
Financials	DFAU +0.1 points	13.6%	13.5%

Country, concentration and asset class

Country by domicile

Country weights in DFAU and SURE, widest gap first
Country	More in DFAUMore in SURE	Gap	DFAU	SURE
United States		SURE +0.7 points	99.3%	100.0%
Other countries (10)		DFAU +0.7 points	0.7%	0.0%

Concentration

Weight in the 10 largest Holdings

DFAU33.3%
SURE12.6%

Securities held

DFAU2,161
SURE100

Asset class

DFAU: Stocks
SURE: Stocks

Holdings

Only in DFAU2,062
In both99
Only in SURE1

Only in DFAU

2,062 securities, 78.1% of DFAU by weight

Microsoft Corp5.86%
Amazon.com Inc.3.49%
Alphabet Inc - Class A2.24%
Meta Platforms Inc1.82%
Broadcom Inc1.81%
Eli Lilly and Company1.49%
Berkshire Hathaway Cl-B1.27%
Tesla Inc1.26%
Micron Technology Inc.1.25%
JPMorgan Chase & Co1.23%
Visa Inc1.03%
Exxonmobil Holdings Corp1.01%
Advanced Micro Devices0.84%
Johnson & Johnson0.82%
Walmart Inc.0.74%
AbbVie Inc.0.63%
Procter & Gamble Co/The0.56%
Merck & Company Inc0.56%
Chevron Corp.0.54%
Costco Wholesale Corp.0.53%
Home Depot Inc0.50%
Coca Cola Co.0.49%
Cisco Systems Inc.0.49%
General Electric Company0.41%
UnitedHealth Group Inc.0.40%
Bank of America Corp0.40%
Amgen Inc0.37%
Philip Morris Intl0.37%
International Business Ma0.35%
Wells Fargo & Co.0.35%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc.0.34%
Palantir Technologies Inc0.34%
Oracle Corp.0.33%
Texas Instruments Inc.0.33%
Verizon Communications0.33%
New Linde PLC0.32%
Applied Materials Inc.0.32%
Caterpillar Inc.0.32%
Gilead Sciences Inc0.31%
Rtx Corp0.31%
Intel Corp0.31%
Lam Research Corp0.29%
Morgan Stanley0.29%
Qualcomm Inc.0.27%
Pepsico Inc.0.27%
Conocophillips0.27%
American Express Co.0.27%
Union Pac Corp.0.25%
Kla Corp0.25%
Citigroup Inc.0.24%

Only in SURE

1 security, 1.0% of SURE by weight

Conocophillips0.98%

Weight gaps

All 99 Holdings in both funds, largest gap first.

Holding weights in DFAU and SURE, widest gap first
Holding	Gap	DFAU	SURE
Apple Inc.AAPL	DFAU +6.29 points	7.27%	0.98%
NVIDIA CorpNVDA	DFAU +5.39 points	6.20%	0.81%
Stagwell IncSTGW	SURE +1.54 points	<0.01%	1.55%
Everquote IncEVER	SURE +1.46 points	<0.01%	1.46%
Crocs IncCROX	SURE +1.32 points	0.01%	1.33%
Exelixis IncEXEL	SURE +1.20 points	0.04%	1.24%
Hasbro IncHAS	SURE +1.20 points	0.02%	1.22%
Trex Company Inc.TREX	SURE +1.18 points	<0.01%	1.19%
Frontdoor IncFTDR	SURE +1.15 points	0.01%	1.16%
Manhattan Associates IncMANH	SURE +1.15 points	0.02%	1.17%
Etsy IncETSY	SURE +1.14 points	0.01%	1.15%
Exlservice Holdings Inc.EXLS	SURE +1.11 points	<0.01%	1.12%
Alphabet IncGOOG	DFAU +1.10 points	1.85%	0.75%
Science Applications InteSAIC	SURE +1.09 points	0.01%	1.10%
Tradeweb Markets IncTW	SURE +1.09 points	0.02%	1.11%
Paylocity Holding CorpPCTY	SURE +1.08 points	0.01%	1.09%
Evertec IncEVTC	SURE +1.07 points	<0.01%	1.07%
Carlisle Cos IncCSL	SURE +1.06 points	0.03%	1.09%
Freshworks IncFRSH	SURE +1.06 points	<0.01%	1.06%
Charles River LaboratorieCRL	SURE +1.05 points	0.03%	1.08%
Ulta Beauty IncULTA	SURE +1.04 points	0.06%	1.10%
Signet Jewelers LtdSIG	SURE +1.05 points	0.01%	1.06%
Cboe Global Markets IncCBOE	SURE +1.04 points	0.07%	1.11%
Toll Brothers IncTOL	SURE +1.03 points	0.03%	1.06%
Bj's Wholesale Club HoldiBJ	SURE +1.03 points	0.03%	1.06%
Docusign IncDOCU	SURE +1.03 points	0.02%	1.05%
Magnite IncMGNI	SURE +1.02 points	<0.01%	1.03%
Dropbox IncDBX	SURE +1.02 points	<0.01%	1.03%
Elf Beauty IncELF	SURE +1.02 points	0.01%	1.03%
Toro CoTTC	SURE +1.02 points	0.02%	1.04%
Abercrombie & Fitch CoANF	SURE +1.01 points	0.01%	1.02%
Dollar Tree IncDLTR	SURE +1.02 points	0.05%	1.07%
Victory Capital HoldingsVCTR	SURE +1.00 points	0.01%	1.01%
Cardinal Health Inc.CAH	SURE +1.00 points	0.10%	1.10%
Nasdaq IncNDAQ	SURE +1.00 points	0.10%	1.10%
Cognizant Tech SolutionsCTSH	SURE +0.99 points	0.06%	1.05%
Tenet Healthcare Corp.THC	SURE +0.99 points	0.05%	1.04%
Paycom Software IncPAYC	SURE +0.99 points	<0.01%	1.00%
Renaissancere Holdings LtRNR	SURE +0.99 points	0.03%	1.02%
Bread Financial HoldingsBFH	SURE +0.98 points	<0.01%	0.99%
Jacobs Solutions IncJ	SURE +0.98 points	0.04%	1.02%
Carnival Corp LtdCCL	SURE +0.98 points	0.10%	1.08%
Wyndham Hotels & ResortsWH	SURE +0.97 points	0.01%	0.98%
Murphy USD IncMUSA	SURE +0.96 points	0.02%	0.98%
Universal Health ServicesUHS	SURE +0.97 points	0.02%	0.99%
Allison Transmission HoldALSN	SURE +0.96 points	0.02%	0.98%
Cargurus IncCARG	SURE +0.95 points	<0.01%	0.96%
Veeva Systems IncVEEV	SURE +0.95 points	0.06%	1.01%
Marathon Petroleum Corp.MPC	SURE +0.95 points	0.17%	1.12%
D.r. Horton Inc.DHI	SURE +0.95 points	0.08%	1.03%
Williams-Sonoma IncWSM	SURE +0.95 points	0.05%	1.00%
Tapestry IncTPR	SURE +0.95 points	0.04%	0.99%
Wr Berkley CorpWRB	SURE +0.94 points	0.06%	1.00%
Mckesson Corp.MCK	SURE +0.94 points	0.15%	1.09%
Ebay Inc.EBAY	SURE +0.94 points	0.10%	1.04%
Polo Ralph Lauren CorpRL	SURE +0.94 points	0.03%	0.97%
Hca Healthcare IncHCA	SURE +0.94 points	0.10%	1.04%
Insight Enterprises IncNSIT	SURE +0.93 points	<0.01%	0.94%
Verisign Inc.VRSN	SURE +0.92 points	0.05%	0.97%
Hci Group IncHCI	SURE +0.91 points	<0.01%	0.92%
Hilton Worldwide HoldHLT	SURE +0.91 points	0.14%	1.05%
Match Group IncMTCH	SURE +0.92 points	0.01%	0.93%
Essent Group LtdESNT	SURE +0.92 points	0.01%	0.93%
Synchrony FinancialSYF	SURE +0.92 points	0.05%	0.97%
Expeditors Intl Wash IncEXPD	SURE +0.91 points	0.05%	0.96%
Auto DeskADSK	SURE +0.91 points	0.10%	1.01%
Smith (A.o.) CorpAOS	SURE +0.91 points	0.01%	0.92%
Cintas Corp.CTAS	SURE +0.91 points	0.15%	1.06%
Qualys IncQLYS	SURE +0.90 points	<0.01%	0.91%
New York Times CoNYT	SURE +0.90 points	0.02%	0.92%
Chord Energy CorpCHRD	SURE +0.89 points	0.02%	0.91%
Wabtec CorpWAB	SURE +0.89 points	0.07%	0.96%
Affiliated Managers GroupAMG	SURE +0.88 points	0.02%	0.90%
Halozyme Therapeutics IncHALO	SURE +0.89 points	0.02%	0.91%
Ecolab IncECL	SURE +0.88 points	0.15%	1.03%
Enova International IncENVA	SURE +0.88 points	<0.01%	0.89%
Chipotle Mexican GrillCMG	SURE +0.85 points	0.06%	0.91%
Hartford Insurance GroupHIG	SURE +0.85 points	0.09%	0.94%
O'reilly Automotive Inc.ORLY	SURE +0.85 points	0.12%	0.97%
Moody's CorporationMCO	SURE +0.85 points	0.14%	0.99%
Danaher Corp.DHR	SURE +0.84 points	0.17%	1.01%
Cheniere Energy IncLNG	SURE +0.83 points	0.12%	0.95%
Technipfmc PLCFTI	SURE +0.80 points	0.05%	0.85%
Walt Disney Co/TheDIS	SURE +0.80 points	0.24%	1.04%
Cadence Design SystemsCDNS	SURE +0.79 points	0.09%	0.88%
Adobe IncADBE	SURE +0.79 points	0.11%	0.90%
Illinois Tool Works Inc.ITW	SURE +0.78 points	0.15%	0.93%
Old Dominion FreightODFL	SURE +0.77 points	0.06%	0.83%
Zebra Technologies CorpZBRA	SURE +0.77 points	0.03%	0.80%
Thermo Fisher Scientific.TMO	SURE +0.74 points	0.28%	1.02%
Booking Holdings IncBKNG	SURE +0.73 points	0.14%	0.87%
Valero Energy CorpVLO	SURE +0.72 points	0.16%	0.88%
Fortinet IncFTNT	SURE +0.70 points	0.11%	0.81%
Keysight Technologies IncKEYS	SURE +0.60 points	0.09%	0.69%
Ge Vernova LlcGEV	SURE +0.56 points	0.18%	0.74%
Netflix.com Inc.NFLX	SURE +0.48 points	0.26%	0.74%
Sterling InfrastructureSTRL	SURE +0.46 points	0.01%	0.47%
Dell Technologies IncDELL	SURE +0.44 points	0.12%	0.56%
Mastercard Inc - AMA	SURE +0.33 points	0.74%	1.07%

All 2,381 DFAU holdings⁠All 101 SURE holdings⁠

How we measure overlap

Each holding counts at its smaller weight in the two funds, summed over the full Holdings. Sector, country and asset class use the same rule on each fund’s split. Cash, FX and derivative lines stay out of the counts. Two bond funds get no overlap figure.

DFAU vs SURE Cost

Overpaying SURE vs DFAU

$14,520

On $10,000 over 30 years. 7% growth a year before fees, expense ratio only.

DFAU 0.12%
$2,520
SURE 0.90%
$17,040

Amount$10,000

Years30 years

Cost over time

DFAU 0.12%
SURE 0.90%
Overpaying

Year by year

Year	DFAU	SURE	Overpaying
10	$220	$1,593	$1,373
20	$859	$6,015	$5,156
30	$2,520	$17,040	$14,520

Expense ratio

0.12%DFAU, cheaper
0.90%SURE

DFAU0.12%SURE0.90%

0.00%2.89%

Middle half of US Active Equity funds
Median 0.68%

DFAU 4th cheapest of 121 funds

SURE 94th cheapest of 121 funds

DFAU vs SURE Dividends

Last 12 months to Nov 9, 2026

Yield (12M): DFAU 0.91%, better; SURE 0.82%
Payout (12M): DFAU $0.47; SURE $1.29
Last payment: DFAU $0.12; SURE $1.29
Ex-dividend: DFAU Sep 22, 2026; SURE Dec 22, 2025
Paid on: DFAU Sep 24, 2026; SURE Dec 29, 2025
Frequency: DFAU Quarterly; SURE Annual

Distribution history

Per share, 2017 to 2026, same scale for both

DFAUQuarterly · 24 paymentsAll DFAU payments⁠

SUREAnnual · 9 paymentsAll SURE payments⁠

DFAU vs SURE Risk

Fall from peak · 5 years

DFAU
SURE

Risk facts

VolatilityStd dev, 3 years: DFAU 12.4%, betterSURE 13.9%
Return per unit of riskSharpe ratio, 3 years: DFAU 1.38, betterSURE 1.09
Worst fallMax drawdown, 5 years: DFAU −23.6%, betterSURE −23.7%
Market sensitivityBeta, 5 years: DFAU 1.01SURE 0.92; Market = 1

Popular comparisons

DFAUAvsDFACA
Dimensional US Core Equity Market ETF · Dimensional US Core Equity 2 ETF
Expense ratio
0.12% · 0.17%
Category
SURECvsAVLCA
AdvisorShares Insider Advantage ETF · Avantis U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF
Expense ratio
0.90% · 0.15%
Category
DFAUAvsAVLCA
Dimensional US Core Equity Market ETF · Avantis U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF
Expense ratio
0.12% · 0.15%
Category
SURECvsDFACA
AdvisorShares Insider Advantage ETF · Dimensional US Core Equity 2 ETF
Expense ratio
0.90% · 0.17%
Category
DFAUAvsDYNFA
Dimensional US Core Equity Market ETF · iShares U.S. Equity Factor Rotation Active ETF
Expense ratio
0.12% · 0.26%
Category
SURECvsDYNFA
AdvisorShares Insider Advantage ETF · iShares U.S. Equity Factor Rotation Active ETF
Expense ratio
0.90% · 0.26%
Category