ETF Evaluator: Alpha Architect Tail Risk ETF () Follow This ETF

Alpha Architect Tail Risk ETF Overview

Alpha Architect Tail Risk ETF (CAOS) is an actively managed Nontraditional Equity Equity Hedged exchange-traded fund (ETF). Alpha Architect launched the ETF in 2013.

The investment seeks to maximize total return through a combination of capital appreciation and current income. The fund is an actively managed exchange-traded fund (“ETF”). The fund will invest, under normal circumstances, in a portfolio of options contracts on securities that are linked to the performance of an index whose value is based on companies with market capitalizations that qualify them as “large cap” companies.

About Alpha Architect Tail Risk ETF (CAOS)

There are 3 members of the management team with an average tenure of 8.81 years: Lawrence Lempert (2013), Joseph DeSipio (2013) and Ryan Bailey (2026). Management tenure is more important for actively managed ETFs than passive index ETFs.

The ETF has 1 primary benchmark: S&P 500 (TR) (1970) index with a weighting of 100%. Alpha Architect Tail Risk ETF has 14 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 248.4% of the ETF’s assets. The ETF meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a diversified fund. The ETF is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.

Alpha Architect Tail Risk ETF is part of the Equity global asset class and is within the Nontraditional Equity ETF group. Alpha Architect Tail Risk ETF has 1.1% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 198.3% There is 1.1% allocated to foreign stock, and 0.0% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 0.0% (0.0% domestic bond, 0.0% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). Alpha Architect Tail Risk ETF has -99.4% of the portfolio in cash.

Assets Under Management

The fund has $719 million in total assets, which is above the $294 million average for the Equity Hedged category. Normally, lower assets under management translates to higher average expense ratios, and greater total assets are desired. However, for some investment categories, such as small-cap investing, it may be difficult for the manager to fully employ the desired active strategy if assets grow too large or too quickly.

CAOS Performance and Fees

The expense ratio measures how much of a fund’s assets are used for administrative expenses and operating expenses, including adviser fees and fees for the transfer agent and custodial services. The Alpha Architect Tail Risk ETF expense ratio is above average compared to funds in the Equity Hedged category. Alpha Architect Tail Risk ETF has an expense ratio of 0.63%, which is 18% lower than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a B. While it is difficult to predict returns, it is known that high annual expense ratios reduce your rate of return, and excessive fees are difficult to overcome. Active management normally comes with higher expense ratios than passive index management. Certain investment categories such as small company and foreign also normally have higher expense ratios. It is best to compare fund expense ratios against the category averages for meaningful assessments.

High portfolio turnover can translate to higher expenses and lower aftertax returns. Alpha Architect Tail Risk ETF has a portfolio turnover rate of 90%, which indicates that it holds its assets around / 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 97% for the Equity Hedged category.

Recently, in the month of July 2026, Alpha Architect Tail Risk ETF returned 0.2%, which earned it a grade of C, as the Equity Hedged category had an average return of -1.4%. The letter grades of A, B, C, D and F are based upon relative rankings within the investment category. A grade of A, for example, would indicate that the return is in the highest 20% for that time period compared to all ETFs in that category.

Alpha Architect Tail Risk ETF has a trailing yield of 0.00%, which is below the 3.45% category average. The fund normally distributes its income annually and its capital gains annually.

It’s natural to seek the best-performing investments, but you must consider the relationship between risk and return and the impact of costs and taxes on your realized returns.

Alpha Architect Tail Risk ETF Grades

Year to date, the ETF has returned 0.9%, 6.2 percentage points worse than the category, which translates into a grade of F. The fund has returned 1.9% over the past year (grade of F), 3.5% over the past three years (grade of F) and 1.3% per year over the past five years (grade of F) and 3.0% per year over the past 10 years (grade of F).

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