MFUS vs VONV

MFUSBPIMCO RAFI Dynamic Multi-Factor U.S. Equity ETF

VONVAVanguard Russell 1000 Value ETF

In short

MFUS One ticker, four factors. MFUS tracks a RAFI index that blends value, momentum, quality and low volatility across roughly 800 US stocks, so no single style has to carry the load.

VONV The plain-vanilla value trade, done cheap: about 900 large US value stocks, full replication of the Russell 1000 Value Index, 0.06% a year. No factor cocktail, no premium price tag, and one of the strongest implementations in its factor peer group.

Stated mandate

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

VONV The fund seeks to track the Russell 1000 Value Index, representing large-capitalization value stocks in the United States. It uses passive indexing and full replication to remain closely aligned with that benchmark.

Why people hold it

• MFUS Value, momentum, quality and low volatility ride in the same wrapper, so you are not stuck holding one style through its cold spell.
• At 0.30% a year, the fee sits just under the typical US multi-factor fund, unusual for a rules-based strategy with this much machinery under the hood.
• It has hugged its RAFI index tightly, with very little drift between fund and benchmark. One of the cleaner tracking records among US multi-factor peers.
• Roughly 800 holdings spread the bet wide across US equities, and the fund pays out quarterly.

• VONV 0.06% a year, a fraction of the typical fee among factor ETFs. On a rules-based value index there is little room for cleverness, so cost does most of the work.vanguard.com
• Full replication, not sampling: it owns the index's roughly 900 names and has stayed tightly aligned with the Russell 1000 Value benchmark since launching in 2010.
• Same Russell benchmark as pricier rivals for less: the Goldman MarketBeta version (GVUS) charges 0.12% to track the identical value index.
• A multi-billion-dollar fund that trades actively, among the easiest in its group to get in and out of, and it distributes quarterly.

Worth knowing

• MFUS Thinly traded next to the category's household names, so spreads can widen. That matters most on large or hurried orders.
• Plain-vanilla rivals cost a fraction: VONV at 0.06% and FNDX at 0.25%. The multi-factor engineering has to earn that gap.
• Mid-sized rather than a category giant, and a shifting factor mix can behave quite differently from a straight index over any given stretch.

• VONV One screen, one style. Value only, with no quality or momentum overlay, so the ride follows the value side of the market wherever it goes.vanguard.com
• This is the entire value bucket, not a best-ideas portfolio. About 900 holdings means results hug the large-cap value category rather than stray from it.
• Cheaper exists nearby: Vanguard's VYM charges 0.04%, but it screens for dividend yield, a different portfolio than a Russell value index.

Full MFUS profile⁠

Full VONV profile⁠