ETF Evaluator: AAM Sawgrass U.S. Sm Cp Qual Gr ETF () Follow This ETF

AAM Sawgrass U.S. Sm Cp Qual Gr ETF Overview

AAM Sawgrass U.S. Sm Cp Qual Gr ETF (SAWS) is an actively managed U.S. Equity Small Growth exchange-traded fund (ETF). AAM launched the ETF in 2024.

The investment seeks risk-adjusted returns, upside participation, downside protection, low standard deviation and long-term capital appreciation. The fund is an actively managed exchange-traded fund (“ETF”) that invests in U.S.-listed equity securities of small-capitalization companies. Under normal circumstances, the fund will invest at least 80% of its net assets (plus any borrowings for investment purposes) in U.S.-listed small-capitalization companies.

About AAM Sawgrass U.S. Sm Cp Qual Gr ETF (SAWS)

There are 5 members of the management team with an average tenure of 1.68 years: Rafael Zayas (2024), Austin Wen (2024), Devin Ryder (2026), Dean McQuiddy (2024) and Patrick Riley (2024). Management tenure is more important for actively managed ETFs than passive index ETFs.

The ETF has 2 primary benchmarks: S&P 500 (TR) (1970) index with a weighting of 100% and Russell 2000 Growth TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. AAM Sawgrass U.S. Sm Cp Qual Gr ETF has 74 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 29.3% 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.

AAM Sawgrass U.S. Sm Cp Qual Gr ETF is part of the Equity global asset class and is within the U.S. Equity ETF group. AAM Sawgrass U.S. Sm Cp Qual Gr ETF has 0.0% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 99.3% There is 0.0% 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). AAM Sawgrass U.S. Sm Cp Qual Gr ETF has 0.7% of the portfolio in cash.

Assets Under Management

The fund has $7 million in total assets, which is below the $2 billion average for the Small Growth 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.

SAWS 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 AAM Sawgrass U.S. Sm Cp Qual Gr ETF expense ratio is average compared to funds in the Small Growth category. AAM Sawgrass U.S. Sm Cp Qual Gr ETF has an expense ratio of 0.55%, which is 27% higher than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a D. 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. AAM Sawgrass U.S. Sm Cp Qual Gr ETF has a portfolio turnover rate of 80%, which indicates that it holds its assets around / 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 74% for the Small Growth category.

Recently, in the month of July 2026, AAM Sawgrass U.S. Sm Cp Qual Gr ETF returned -6.1%, which earned it a grade of D, as the Small Growth category had an average return of -5.5%. 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.

AAM Sawgrass U.S. Sm Cp Qual Gr ETF has a trailing yield of 0.02%, which is below the 0.44% 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.

AAM Sawgrass U.S. Sm Cp Qual Gr ETF Grades

Year to date, the ETF has returned 15.8%, 0.9 percentage points worse than the category, which translates into a grade of C. The fund has returned 24.9% over the past year (grade of D).

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