Fund Evaluator:
Dunham Small Cap Value A (DASVX)
Follow This Fund
Best Performing in Small Value Over the Last Year
| 56.2% | Bridgeway Ultra-Small Company Market (BRSIX) |
| 53.9% | Royce Small-Cap Opportunity Invmt (RYPNX) |
| 45.7% | Bridgeway Omni Small-Cap Value N (BOSVX) |
| 44.9% | Goldman Sachs Small Cp Val Insghts Inv (GTTTX) |
| 44.6% | Diamond Hill Small Cap Inv (DHSCX) |
Fund Details
Dunham Small Cap Value A Overview
Dunham Small Cap Value A (DASVX) is an actively managed U.S. Equity Small Value fund. Dunham Funds launched the fund in 2007.
The investment seeks to maximize total return from capital appreciation and income. The fund's sub-adviser seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing primarily in domestic, value-oriented, small-capitalization or "small cap" equity securities (common stock) of companies traded on U.S. stock exchanges or in the over-the-counter market. The fund normally invests at least 80% of its assets in small cap companies.
About Dunham Small Cap Value A (DASVX)
There are 3 members of the management team with an average tenure of 2.25 years: Eric Gandhi (2024), Richard Shuster (2024), Gregory Weiss (2024). Management tenure is more important for actively managed funds than passive index funds.
The fund has 2 primary benchmarks: S&P 500 (TR) (1970) index with a weighting of 100% and Russell 2000 Value TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. Dunham Small Cap Value A has 206 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 13.7% of the fund’s assets. The fund meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a diversified fund. The fund is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.
Dunham Small Cap Value A is part of the Equity global asset class and is within the U.S. Equity fund group. Dunham Small Cap Value A has 7.7% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 88.3%. There is 7.7% 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). Dunham Small Cap Value A has 4.0% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $6 million in total assets, which is below the $418 million average for the Small Value 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.
DASVX 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 Dunham Small Cap Value A expense ratio is high compared to funds in the Small Value category. Dunham Small Cap Value A has an expense ratio of 1.42%, which is 22% 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. Dunham Small Cap Value A has a portfolio turnover rate of 106%, indicating that holds its assets around 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 127% for the Small Value category.
Recently, in the month of June 2026, Dunham Small Cap Value A returned 5.7%, which earned it a grade of C, as the Small Value category had an average return of 5.7%. 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 funds in that category.
Dunham Small Cap Value A has a trailing yield of 0.17%, which is below the 0.77% 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.
Dunham Small Cap Value A Grades
Year to date, the fund has returned 25.0%, 4.3 percentage points better than the category, which translates into a grade of A. The fund has returned 41.5% over the past year (grade of A), 18.1% over the past three years (grade of B) and 9.5% per year over the past five years (grade of B) and 10.6% per year over the past 10 years (grade of C).
For more mutual fund grades, analysis and screening tools to help your investment discovery, join AAII for a $2, full-access trial. Learn more here: https://invest.aaii.com/membership.
Otherwise, for more information about Dunham Small Cap Value A, including its riskiness, submit your email to unlock the rest of the article.
Gain access to exclusive AAII member-only content.
DASVX Trailing NAV Total Returns Data as of 6/30/26
| Last Month |
Last Quarter |
Ann'l. 1Yr |
Ann'l. 3Yr |
Ann'l. 5Yr |
Ann'l. 10Yr |
|
| DASVX Return (NAV) | 5.7% | 19.1% | 41.5% | 18.1% | 9.5% | 10.6% |
| DASVX Grade | C | B | A | B | B | C |
| +/- Category | 0.0% | 2.6% | 8.4% | 2.4% | 0.8% | 0.1% |
| Small Value Avg | 5.7% | 16.5% | 33.0% | 15.7% | 8.7% | 10.5% |
| DASVX Tax Cost Ratio | na | na | 2.2% | 2.4% | 2.7% | 2.2% |
DASVX Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 6/30/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| DASVX Return (NAV) | 25.0% | 9.6% | 7.6% | 15.1% | -12.2% | 32.0% | -2.9% | 21.0% | -11.3% | 8.7% | 26.3% |
| DASVX Grade | A | B | D | C | C | C | F | D | A | D | C |
| +/- Category | 4.3% | 2.9% | -2.1% | -0.7% | -1.9% | 1.6% | -7.0% | -1.9% | 3.3% | -1.5% | 1.6% |
| Small Value Avg | 20.7% | 6.6% | 9.7% | 15.8% | -10.3% | 30.3% | 4.1% | 22.9% | -14.7% | 10.2% | 24.7% |
| Risk Measures | |
| Standard Deviation: | 18.8% |
| Total Risk Index: | 1.55 - High |
| Category Risk Index: | 1.03 - Above Average |
| Category Risk Grade: | D (66% Rank) |
| Beta: | 1.09 |
| R-Squared: | 57% |
| Leveraged Fund: | No |
| Inverse Fund: | No |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Equity Investment Style: | Small-Cap Value |
| Bond Investment Style: | na |
| Yield: | 0.2% |
| Dividend Distribution: | Annually |
| Cap Gains Distribution: | Annually |
| Total Assets: | $94 Mil |
| Fund Total Assets: | $ 6 Mil |
| Share Class Type: | A |
| Portfolio Turnover: | 106% |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 3 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 2.3 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 2.3 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Gandhi Eric (2024), Shuster Richard (2024), Weiss Gregory (2024) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 5/31/26)
| # of Holdings: | 206 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 13.7% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | No |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 7.7% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 88.3% |
| Foreign Stock: | 7.7% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.0% |
| Domestic Bond: | 0.0% |
| Foreign Bond: | 0.0% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 0.0% |
| Cash: | 4.0% |
Purchase Information
| Fund Family: | Dunham Funds |
| Phone Number: | 888-338-6426 |
| Website: | www.dunham.com |
| Status: | Open |
| Inception Date: | January 3, 2007 |
| Min. Initial Purchase: | $5,000 |
| Min. Initial IRA Purchase: | $2,000 |
| True No-Load: | No |
| Front Load Maximum: | 5.75% |
| Deferred Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Redemption Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| 12b-1 Fee: | 0.25% |
Expenses and Fees | |
| Expense Ratio (%): | 1.42% ( Rating : High ) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 1.17% |
| Share Class: | Dunham Small Cap Value N |
| Min. Subsequent Purchase: | $ 100 |
| Min. Subsequent IRA Purchase: | $ 100 |
