ILCV vs SMLF

ILCVAiShares Morningstar Value ETF

SMLFAiShares U.S. Small-Cap Equity Factor ETF

In short

ILCV Value done the thorough way: roughly 400 large- and mid-cap US stocks screened on five separate value measures, not just cheap book value. Running since 2004 at four basis points, it's one of the cheapest tickets into the value factor.

SMLF Four factors (value, quality, momentum, low volatility) applied to roughly 900 U.S. small caps for 0.15% a year. Small-cap factor investing at a plain-index price, from the biggest ETF shop on the street.

Stated mandate

ILCV The fund seeks to track an index of U.S. large- and mid-cap stocks selected with value-oriented measures including forward earnings, book value, sales, cash flow, and dividend yield.

SMLF The Fund tracks an index of U.S. small-cap stocks selected for favorable exposure to style factors under constraints. Its rules-based index targets momentum, quality, value, and low volatility while controlling industry exposure, turnover, and risk relative to the parent index.

Why people hold it

• ILCV Charges 0.04% a year against a 0.32% median for its factor peer group. Undercuts well-regarded rivals like VONV (0.06%) and FNDX (0.25%).
• Value gets defined five ways: forward earnings, book value, sales, cash flow and dividend yield. Wider lens than a single price-to-book screen.ishares.com
• Spreads the bet across about 400 large- and mid-cap names and distributes quarterly.
• Trading since 2004 and now a multi-billion-dollar fund, it ranks among the strongest implementations in its factor cohort.

• SMLF 0.15% a year, less than half the typical fee in its multifactor peer group. The tilts aren't being eaten by the price of admission.
• Roughly 900 small caps picked on value, quality, momentum and low volatility, with industry weights, turnover and risk held close to the parent index. Tilts, not bets.ishares.com
• Trading since 2015 and now a billion-dollar-plus fund: one of the strongest implementations in a multifactor field that leans heavily large-cap.
• Rules-based and index-tracked, so the portfolio follows a published methodology rather than a manager's mood. Pays out quarterly.

Worth knowing

• ILCV One of the quieter tickers in its category. Thin volume means spreads matter more here than on a mega-cap index fund, and limit orders are the usual tool.
• Value-only by design. It skips the market's priciest growth leaders, so it moves differently from a total-market fund in both directions.ishares.com
• Large and mid caps only. Small-cap value sits outside the mandate.

• SMLF Small caps swing harder than blue chips. The low-volatility screen softens the ride; it doesn't flatten it.
• Stacking four factors means the holdings rarely look like a plain small-cap index, so results can drift from it in either direction for long stretches.
• Moderately traded rather than a tape heavyweight, so spreads deserve a glance before you hit the button.

Full ILCV profile⁠

Full SMLF profile⁠