Dimensional U.S. Core Equity 2 ETF

Dimensional U.S. Core Equity 2 ETF (DFAC) is an actively managed fund holding thousands of U.S. stocks of every size, with extra weight in smaller, lower-priced and more profitable companies. It is also managed to limit taxable capital gains. Its 0.17% expense ratio is higher than the 0.10% average of similar funds, and it trailed the Russell 3000 Index over 1, 5 and 10 years through December 31, 2025.

• Over the year to Nov 2, 2026, DFAC returned +15.9%, 3rd of 9 among similar funds.
• Its 5-year annualized return was +10.8%.
• Its worst full calendar year was 2022 (-14.9%); its best was 2023 (+21.9%).
• The deepest fall in its price history was 23.1% (Jan 4, 2022 to Sep 30, 2022), recovered by Dec 13, 2023.

As of Jul 31, 2026, the fund held 2,549 securities; the ten largest made up 25.81% of assets, and 2.38% sat in cash and money-market holdings.

By sector

• Over the three months to Jul 31, 2026, investors added a net $1.21B (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
• Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: +4.14%, +0.73%, +0.21%.

DFAC is actively managed and does not track an index. Its manager, Dimensional Fund Advisors, starts with U.S.-listed operating companies weighted by market value, so bigger companies count for more. It holds companies of every size but gives meaningfully more weight to smaller companies, lower-priced "value" stocks (judged mainly by a low price relative to book value, an accounting measure of net worth) and highly profitable companies. It does this mostly by holding less of large, expensive or less profitable firms. As of July 31, 2026, the largest positions were still NVIDIA (5.3%), Apple (5.1%) and Microsoft (4.4%).

With no index, changes follow the manager's judgment, not an index schedule. The manager can also add, trim or exclude stocks based on shorter-term signals such as price momentum (recent price trends), and trades flexibly to hold down costs. The prospectus reports portfolio turnover of 4%. Turnover is the share of holdings replaced in a year. The fund may use stock-index futures to manage cash flowing in and out, and it may lend securities for extra income.

Taxes shape trading too. The manager aims to delay and limit realized capital gains, for example by selling losing stocks to offset gains. It also aims to favor long-term gains, which are taxed at lower rates. So holdings and returns may differ from those of funds that are not tax-managed.

• DFAC charges 0.17% a year, versus an average of 0.1% for the similar funds below (8th of 9, cheapest first).
• Of that, 0.16% is the management fee; the rest covers other fund expenses.
• Using the prospectus's standard example, $10,000 invested would cost about $17 in the first year and $217 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).

With 2,549 holdings of every size as of July 31, 2026, it could serve as a portfolio's main U.S. stock fund, tilted toward smaller, value and profitable companies.

The fund's record does not reach back to 2008. Its prospectus shows a 25.4% loss in the first quarter of 2020, though the fund ended that year up 15.8%. In 2022 it fell 23.1% between January 4 and September 30 and finished the year down 14.94%, its worst calendar year. It regained its old high on December 13, 2023, about 14 months after the low. A retiree drawing cash from it then would have been selling shares at lower prices for well over a year.

Income is small. The trailing 12-month yield (the past year's dividends divided by the price) was 0.88% as of October 27, 2026, paid quarterly. Under the SEC's standard example, the 0.17% expense ratio costs about $17 in the first year on $10,000. Past results don't predict future ones, and a sound plan looks at the whole portfolio, not one fund.

Matched by holdings overlap from the latest N-PORT reports.