INTF vs MFDX

INTFAiShares International Equity Factor ETF

MFDXCPIMCO RAFI Dynamic Multi-Factor International Equity ETF

In short

INTF Five factors at once (value, quality, momentum, low volatility, low size) aimed at developed markets outside the US, for 0.16% a year. That is well under half what the typical international multifactor fund charges.

MFDX PIMCO's answer to the plain international index fund: one Research Affiliates multi-factor benchmark covering roughly 1,200 developed-market stocks outside the US, in a single ticker instead of four style funds bolted together.

Stated mandate

INTF The fund seeks to track an index of international developed-market stocks chosen using value, quality, momentum, low-volatility, and low-size factors.

MFDX The Fund seeks to track the investment results of the RAFI Dynamic Multi-Factor Developed Ex-U.S. Index.

Why people hold it

• INTF At 0.16% a year it undercuts the peer median of 0.38%, and also GSIE (0.25%), RODM (0.29%) and FDEV (0.18%).
• One basket of roughly 500 developed-market stocks does the work of separate value, quality, momentum, low-volatility and small-size sleeves.
• Live since 2015 and now a multi-billion-dollar iShares fund, giving it more history than much of the international multifactor shelf.
• Rates among the strongest implementations in its international multifactor peer group of 29 funds.

• MFDX Breadth is the standout. Roughly 1,200 developed-market names outside the US, one of the most broadly diversified portfolios in its multi-factor peer group.
• One wrapper, several factors. The RAFI Dynamic Multi-Factor Developed Ex-U.S. Index is the only benchmark, so the factor mix arrives without stacking separate style ETFs.
• Live since 2017, giving it a real multi-year record through several market moods rather than a backtest and a launch party.
• Distributions land quarterly, the standard rhythm for developed-market equity funds.

Worth knowing

• INTF Factor tilts are the whole point, so returns can wander from a plain cap-weighted international index in either direction, sometimes for long stretches.
• Developed markets only. No emerging-market exposure here, and returns move with foreign currencies as well as foreign stocks.
• Volume is moderate rather than heavy, so limit orders help. Distributions land once or twice a year, not quarterly.

• MFDX At 0.40% a year it runs slightly above the typical fund in this cohort, and noticeably above cheaper rivals like INTF at 0.16% and GSIE at 0.25%.
• It trades thinly next to the category's household names, which is where limit orders and avoiding the opening bell earn their keep.
• Factor tilts mean the portfolio can look and behave differently from a plain developed-markets tracker, in either direction.

Full INTF profile⁠

Full MFDX profile⁠