GMOD vs MKAM

GMODAGMO Dynamic Allocation ETF

MKAMBMKAM ETF

In short

GMOD GMO's 7-year asset class forecasts, finally wrapped in an ETF. It tilts toward what the firm's valuation models call cheap and away from what they call expensive, shifting between stocks, bonds and alternatives inside one ticker.

MKAM A dimmer switch on the S&P 500. A trend-and-valuation model can dial US stock exposure from 100% down to zero, parking the rest in Treasuries and cash. Active management for 0.55%, no waiver.

Stated mandate

GMOD The Fund seeks positive total return. It allocates among asset classes using GMO's multi-year return forecasts and relative-risk assessments.

MKAM The Fund seeks to capture most equity-market returns while taking less volatility and downside risk than other equity investments.

Why people hold it

• GMOD 0.50% all-in, about half the typical fee in its tactical-allocation peer group, and a contractual waiver offsets the fees of the GMO funds it holds so costs are not stacked.sec.gov
• GMO's first multi-asset strategy in an ETF, run by the asset allocation team behind the firm's long-running 7-year asset class forecasts.gmo.com
• The equity dial can swing between 40% and 80% of assets under normal conditions, so the fund handles the reallocating rather than you selling positions to do it.gmo.com
• Sits in the upper tier of a crowded tactical multi-asset group on cost and process clarity.

• MKAM The mechanism is the product: when the model reads a falling trend or high valuations, equity exposure can fall toward zero, with the rest in Treasuries and money-market funds.sec.gov
• Two inputs, named in the prospectus: price trend and valuation. Rising trend plus reasonable valuations means more stocks; mixed signals mean a split portfolio.sec.gov
• At 0.55% with no waiver propping it up, it prices below the typical tactical allocation fund and under peers like PTBD (0.60%) and RISN (0.72%).
• Pays quarterly, and sits in the upper half of a crowded tactical allocation field.

Worth knowing

• GMOD New in 2025 and lightly traded so far, which can mean wider bid-ask spreads than the big allocation ETFs.
• It owns other GMO funds, and the single 0.50% rate leans on a contractual waiver with an expiration date rather than a permanent cap.sec.gov
• Cheaper tactical allocators exist (ENDW at 0.22%, ONOF at 0.39%), though each runs a different process.

• MKAM Small and thinly traded, so spreads and order size matter more here than the fee. Little funds also carry more closure risk than big ones.
• Trend models typically exit after a decline is underway and return after a rebound is underway. Whipsaw is the built-in cost of the design.sec.gov
• Non-diversified, with exposure often expressed through a handful of positions including other ETFs and money-market funds. You own a proprietary model, not an index.sec.govsec.gov 2

Full GMOD profile⁠

Full MKAM profile⁠