AVUV vs VBR: Returns, Drawdowns and Dividends Since 2019
AVUV (Avantis U.S. Small Cap Value ETF) and VBR (Vanguard Morningstar Small-Cap Value ETF) moved almost in lockstep: their daily returns had a correlation of 0.973, where 1 would mean identical. AVUV came out ahead, returning 15.5% a year with dividends reinvested from September 2019 to November 2026, against 12.0% for VBR.
Bought on any day and held five years, AVUV finished ahead 100% of the time. The extra return came with deeper falls: AVUV dropped 49.4% at its worst, VBR 45.3%.
| Measure | AVUV | VBR |
|---|---|---|
| Annual return | 15.5% | 12.0% |
| $10,000 grew to | $27,786 | $22,331 |
| Worst decline | −49.4%Mar 2020 | −45.3%Mar 2020 |
| Volatility Volatility How much the fund's daily returns swing: their standard deviation over this period, annualized with the square root of 252 trading days. | 27.6% | 24.1% |
| Sharpe ratio Sharpe ratio Return above T-bills for each unit of risk: daily returns minus the T-bill ETF BIL, averaged, divided by their standard deviation and annualized. Higher is better. T-bill funds show none. Sharpe ratio calculator | 0.56 | 0.48 |
| 12-month yield 12-month yield Cash dividends with ex-dividend dates in the past 12 months, divided by the latest closing price. | 1.2% | 1.8% |
| Best year | +42.2%2021 | +28.1%2021 |
| Worst year | −4.9%2022 | −9.4%2022 |
| Correlation between them Correlation How closely the two funds' daily returns moved together over this period: 1 means identical every day, 0 means no relation. | 0.973 | |
AVUV: Avantis U.S. Small Cap Value ETFVBR: Vanguard Morningstar Small-Cap Value ETF
Sep 26, 2019 to Nov 4, 2026, dividends reinvested.
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Worst declines
AVUV fell 49.4% from Dec 18, 2019 to Mar 23, 2020 and was back at its high on Nov 23, 2020. VBR fell 45.3% from Jan 16, 2020 to Mar 23, 2020 and was back at its high on Nov 24, 2020.
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Year by year
AVUV was ahead in 6 of the 8 calendar years.
| Year | AVUV | VBR | Ahead (pts) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 (to Nov 4) | +23.4% | +19.4% | AVUV+4.0 |
| 2025 | +7.4% | +9.1% | VBR+1.6 |
| 2024 | +9.3% | +12.4% | VBR+3.1 |
| 2023 | +22.8% | +16.0% | AVUV+6.8 |
| 2022 | −4.9% | −9.4% | AVUV+4.5 |
| 2021 | +42.2% | +28.1% | AVUV+14.2 |
| 2020 | +6.4% | +5.9% | AVUV+0.5 |
| 2019 (from Sep 26) | +8.5% | +7.0% | AVUV+1.5 |
Held for 1, 3 or 5 years: which came out ahead
Buy on any trading day from Sep 26, 2019, hold for a set time, and see which fund ended higher. The periods overlap, so they show how much the start date mattered, not separate results.
| Hold | Days tested | Ahead more often | Median lead (pts) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 year | 1,535 | AVUV74% | +4.3 |
| 3 years | 1,031 | AVUV92% | +11.5 |
| 5 years | 527 | AVUV100% | +33.1 |
Median lead is the typical gap in total return across all start dates, in percentage points. The latest 5-year hold starts on Oct 27, 2021.
Dividends
Over the past 12 months AVUV paid 1.2% of its price in dividends and VBR 1.8%. The returns above already include them, reinvested on each ex-dividend date.
Dividends per share by year
| Year | AVUV | VBR |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 (to Nov 4) | $1.14 3 payments | $3.36 3 payments |
| 2025 | $1.61 4 payments | $4.14 4 payments |
| 2024 | $1.56 4 payments | $3.92 4 payments |
| 2023 | $1.48 4 payments | $3.81 4 payments |
| 2022 | $1.30 4 payments | $3.23 4 payments |
| 2021 | $1.02 4 payments | $3.13 4 payments |
| 2020 | $0.69 4 payments | $2.39 4 payments |
| 2019 (from Sep 26) | $0.21 1 payment | $1.02 1 payment |
Per share in today's shares (earlier amounts are restated for share splits), by ex-dividend date.
The two funds
- AVUV
- Avantis U.S. Small Cap Value ETF, an ETF launched Sep 26, 2019. FinLab prices start Sep 26, 2019.
- AVUV price and signal backtests
- VBR
- Vanguard Morningstar Small-Cap Value ETF, an ETF launched Jan 30, 2004. FinLab prices start Jan 4, 2016.
More comparisons
Source: FinLab U.S. fund prices, Sep 26, 2019 to Nov 4, 2026, the days both funds traded. Returns use prices adjusted for dividends and splits, before taxes; annual return is compounded.
For research and education. Past returns do not guarantee future results, and this is not investment advice.