How PRFZ Uses Fundamental Indexing in Today’s SMID-Cap Market

In Research Affiliates’ mid-year recap webinar, Chief Investment Officer Jim Mesterzo pointed out a tactical shift: While the S&P 500 delivered strong trailing returns over the past year, small-cap equities experienced a significant resurgence as the Russell 2000 climbed over 40%. For those looking to capture this momentum without falling into the valuation traps of traditional market-cap benchmarks, the Invesco RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid ETF (PRFZ B+) is a compelling solution. Investors can participate in the current market upside in small-caps while investing in midcaps that are further along in their business maturation cycle.

• PRFZ provides investors with a strategic path to capture small- and midcap market upside while mitigating the high valuation risks of mega-cap-concentrated benchmarks.
• By tracking the FTSE RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid Index, the fund selects and sizes holdings based on auditing measures of real economic footprint — such as sales, book value, cash flow, and shareholder yield — rather than market capitalization.
• This fundamentally weighted approach enforces a disciplined, counter-cyclical rebalancing mechanism that systematically filters out unprofitable companies, automatically trimming overextended stocks and accumulating underpriced quality assets.

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A central theme from Research Affiliates’ mid-year outlook is that U.S. large-cap equities are currently priced at demanding valuation levels. Mesterzo noted that the U.S. Shiller CAPE ratio has climbed past 40, approaching the historic peaks that were last seen during the tech bubble. High valuation multiples, particularly in mega-cap equities, act as a forward-looking headwind, which lowers projected 10-year returns for cap-weighted benchmarks like the S&P 500.

In contrast, small- and mid-cap equities offer a different return profile. Over the past year, small-cap stocks demonstrated exceptional market strength, outperforming many traditional large-cap benchmarks as investors searched for broader market participation. However, broad small-cap indexes like the Russell 2000 can carry a hidden drawback: a high concentration of unprofitable or over-leveraged companies that can add a performance drag on total returns.

How can investors participate in small-cap upside without exposing themselves to the drawdown risk of these unprofitable companies?

PRFZ addresses this quality gap by tracking the FTSE RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid Index. Rather than weighting holdings by market capitalization, which simply allocates more capital to stocks as their prices rise, PRFZ uses a fundamentally weighted approach. The fund sizes SMID-cap U.S. companies based on their actual economic footprint by looking at four core fundamental accounting measures:

• Adjusted sales: a firm’s true share of total economic activity;
• Book value: a company’s net assets on its balance sheet that are independent of market price;
• Operating cash flow: real, liquid cash generation rather than paper accounting profits; and
• Dividends and buybacks: direct capital returned to shareholders.

By selecting and weighting companies according to these audited metrics, PRFZ systematically avoids overvalued, speculative names that lack earnings support.

Another key takeaway from Research Affiliates’ market analysis is the importance of dynamic rebalancing during periods of high valuation volatility. Small-caps can be particularly prone to extreme speculation, and a market-cap index will automatically increase a stock’s weight during a price surge, exposing investors to significant downside when valuation multiples contract or prices revert to their mean. In effect, investors end up buying expensive stocks that lack sound underlying fundamentals.

PRFZ’s fundamental indexing rules introduce a built-in counter-cyclical mechanism. During a periodic rebalancing, if a company’s stock price has outpaced its economic footprint, the index systematically trims that holding. Conversely, when a fundamentally sound company suffers a temporary price drop, PRFZ increases its weight. The result is the fund effectively buying low and selling high.

As Research Affiliates’ expected return forecasts indicate lower long-term annualized returns for overvalued large-caps, SMID-cap equities provide a vital growth engine for core portfolios in today’s market. PRFZ delivers a disciplined, rules-based way to access small-to-mid market upside, combining the cost efficiency of an ETF with a quality-focused fundamental filter.

Ultimately, PRFZ offers a compelling avenue for investors looking to diversify away from concentrated mega-caps without sacrificing long-term return potential.

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VettaFi LLC (“VettaFi”) is the index provider for PRFZ, for which it receives an index licensing fee. However, PRFZ is not issued, sponsored, endorsed, or sold by VettaFi, and VettaFi has no obligation or liability in connection with the issuance, administration, marketing, or trading of PRFZ.