EFIV vs ISMD

EFIVAState Street SPDR S&P 500 ESG ETF

ISMDCInspire Small/Mid Cap ETF

In short

EFIV A screened S&P 500 that still looks like one. EFIV trims to about 300 names on ESG criteria but holds industry-group weights close to the parent index, for 0.10% a year.

ISMD A values screen most investors meet in large-cap form, aimed instead at US small and mid caps. Running since 2017, it tracks an index built on Inspire's own Impact Score, so the screening is rules-based rather than a manager's judgment call.

Stated mandate

EFIV The Fund seeks to track an index of securities selected using environmental, social, and governance sustainability criteria while retaining industry-group weights broadly similar to the S&P 500 Index.

ISMD The Fund seeks to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Inspire Small/Mid Cap Impact Index.

Why people hold it

• EFIV Charges 0.10% a year, well under the 0.25% typical of its values-screened peer group.
• Keeps industry-group weights broadly similar to the S&P 500, so the screen changes which names you own more than which sectors.
• Tracks its declared index very tightly, one of the cleaner implementations in its cohort.
• Straightforward 1940 Act index fund from SPDR, running since 2020, distributing quarterly.

• ISMD The values filter is codified. It tracks the Inspire Small/Mid Cap Impact Index, screened by the Inspire Impact Score, so exclusions follow published rules instead of a manager's discretion.
• Screening doesn't hollow out the portfolio. Holdings construction and diversification are the fund's strongest measured trait, well ahead of where its overall standing sits.
• No mandate drift. It stays what the prospectus says it is: a US equity fund in the small and mid cap range, tracking its stated index rather than wandering into large caps.
• Live since 2017 and now in the $250M to $1B range, with quarterly distributions. That's past the fragile startup stage for a niche screened strategy.

Worth knowing

• EFIV About 300 stocks, not 500. The screens remove names, so results can diverge from the headline S&P 500.
• Cheaper shelf-mates exist: XVV at 0.08% and ESGV at 0.09% undercut it on fee.
• Mid-size asset base and moderate trading volume, which can mean wider spreads than the mega-cap index giants.

• ISMD The screen carries a price. At 0.53%, it costs meaningfully more than the plain broad-market trackers in its peer group, such as ILCB and GUSA.
• It's thinly traded, so bid-ask spreads can be wider than on the giant index funds it sits beside.
• Small and mid caps swing harder than large caps, and the screen narrows the pool further. Expect a bumpier ride than a total-market fund.

Full EFIV profile⁠

Full ISMD profile⁠