Is Small Cap Value Worth It? Ben Felix Explains the Truth About AVUV & Factor Investing

BiggerPockets Money Podcast

BiggerPockets

Investing, Education, Business

4.5 • 3K Ratings

🗓️ 5 May 2026

⏱️ 53 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

On this episode of the BiggerPockets Money Podcast, hosts Mindy Jensen and Scott Trench sit down with Ben Felix to break down one of the most debated topics in long-term investing: small cap value investing. Ben explains the research behind factor investing, the Fama-French multi-factor model, and why investors continue to look at small cap value ETFs like AVUV and Dimensional funds as potential upgrades to traditional index fund portfolios. If you've ever wondered whether AVUV, Dimensional ETFs, or small cap value funds can outperform broad market index funds like VTI over the long run, this episode gives you a deep evidence-based framework for deciding. Connect with Ben Felix! Website: https://www.pwlcapital.com/?ki-cf-botcl=1 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BenFelixCSI Podcast: https://rationalreminder.ca/podcast Resources from today's episode: https://zbib.org/669127c48e994c818f42b4354a84ed21 To go beyond the podcast: Kick start your financial independence journey with our FREE financial resources - https://biggerpocketsmoney.com/ Subscribe on YouTube for even more content- www.youtube.com/biggerpocketsmoney Connect with us on social media to join the other BiggerPockets Money listeners - https://www.facebook.com/groups/BPMoney We believe financial independence is attainable for anyone no matter when or where you’re starting. Let’s get your financial house in order! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Mindy and I are so grateful for the following sponsors who make Bigger Pockets Money possible.
0:06.6	In the past year, we've been talking a lot about portfolio theory on the podcast,
0:11.9	which means you've heard guests like Frank Vasquez share this advice, add small cap value
0:17.8	to your portfolio. But what does it actually mean? What is small cap value investing?
0:22.9	And does it really outperform the market over the long term? And more importantly, is AVUV actually
0:29.1	the best way to invest in it? If you've ever felt confused about small cap value funds,
0:33.9	factor investing, or whether this strategy belongs in your portfolio, this episode
0:38.7	will break it all down.
0:44.8	Hello, hello, hello, hello, and welcome to the Bigger Pockets Money podcast.
0:48.2	My name is Mindy Jensen, and with me as always is my Where's All the Caps co-host, Scott
0:52.8	Trench.
0:53.3	Thanks, Mindy.
0:53.9	I'll factor that intro in and think about bringing a cap next time.
0:57.8	All right, today we're joined by Ben Felix.
0:59.5	Ben is a portfolio manager and the chief investment officer at PWL Capital.
1:03.9	He's going to help explain what small cap value investing actually is,
1:08.1	why it matters for building towards financial independence
1:10.1	and whether funds like
1:11.2	AVUV live up to the hype. As a reminder, this episode, as always, is not investment advice
1:16.8	and is for entertainment purposes only. Ben, welcome to bigger pockets money. Thank you so much for
1:20.9	having me. Man, you guys bring energy. Holy smokes. My podcast is like Nat time compared to this.
1:26.9	I think you're going to bring a lot of
	...

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