Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
CALF vs VBR: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, CALF returned +33.4% to VBR's +17.6%; 11% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets: $3.8bn on Oct 27, 2026 for Pacer US Small Cap Cash Cows ETF, and $35.1bn on Sep 30, 2026 for Vanguard Morningstar Small-Cap Value ETF.
Pair scorecard
VBR costs 0.54 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 15.8 points.
| Measure | CALF | VBR |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +33.4% | +17.6% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 3.9%, high on Aug 14, 2026 | |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | Pacer US Small Cap Cash Cows Index | Morningstar US Small Cap Value Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.59% | 0.05% |
| Net assets, CALF as of Oct 27, 2026 and VBR as of Sep 30, 2026 | $3.8bn | $35.1bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 11% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 20.3% | 5.9% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Sep 30, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Jun 30, 2017 to Oct 23, 2026 · 486 weekly returnsCALF returned more: +157.0% to +136.9%. VBR swung less: 22.4% to 25.4%. VBR fell slightly less at its worst: −43.3% to −46.8%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | CALF | VBR | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +157.0% | +136.9% | CALF | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +10.6% | +9.7% | CALF (slight) | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +127.4% | +95.5% | CALF | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 25.4% | 22.4% | VBR | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 17.2% | 15.9% | VBR (slight) | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −46.8% | −43.3% | VBR (slight) | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.42 | 0.41 | CALF (slight) | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.62 | 0.58 | CALF (slight) | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.23 | 0.22 | Tie | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 486 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, CALF and VBR hold 11% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Sep 30, 2026.
half
11% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
CALF and VBR on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
CALF and VBR are built for the same job. How do they differ in cost, holdings and results?
- What each follows. CALF follows Pacer US Small Cap Cash Cows Index and VBR follows Morningstar US Small Cap Value Index.
- Holdings in common. 11% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Sep 30, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 CALF returned +33.4% and VBR +17.6% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 15.8 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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CALF
CALF tracks an index. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +33.4% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.59% a year. By its holdings filed for Jul 31, 2026, 24% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 198 positions, with the top ten at 20.3%.
VBR
VBR tracks an index of Small-Cap Value. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +17.6% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.05% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer as of Sep 30, 2026, 30% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 822 positions, with the top ten at 5.9%. It sat 3.9% below its high of Aug 14, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, CALF or VBR?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, CALF returned +33.4% and VBR +17.6%.
- Which is cheaper, CALF or VBR?
- VBR is cheaper, by 0.54 percentage points a year. That is about $54 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Links are sources, not endorsements. A comparison is not a recommendation.
How this is computed
Overlap adds up the smaller of the two weights for each security both funds hold.
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ETFIQ, CALF against VBR, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/calf-vs-vbr
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). CALF against VBR. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/calf-vs-vbr
[CALF against VBR (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/calf-vs-vbr)
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