Fund Evaluator:
Driehaus Micro Cap Growth (DMCRX)
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Best Performing in Small Growth Over the Last Year
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Fund Details
Driehaus Micro Cap Growth Overview
Driehaus Micro Cap Growth (DMCRX) is an actively managed U.S. Equity Small Growth fund. Driehaus launched the fund in 2013.
The investment seeks to maximize capital appreciation. The fund uses a growth style of investment in equity securities, including common stocks and other equity securities of issuers. Under normal market conditions, it invests at least 80% of its net assets (plus the amount of borrowings for investment purposes) in the equity securities of U.S. micro-capitalization ("micro-cap") companies. For purposes of the fund, the investment adviser considers a company to be a micro-cap company if it is within the same market capitalization range at the time of investment as those included in the Russell Microcap® Growth Index.
About Driehaus Micro Cap Growth (DMCRX)
There are 3 members of the management team with an average tenure of 10.57 years: Jeffrey James (2013), Michael Buck (2013), Prakash Vijayan (2020). Management tenure is more important for actively managed funds than passive index funds.
The fund has 2 primary benchmarks: Russell 3000 TR USD index with a weighting of 100% and Russell Micro Cap Growth TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. Driehaus Micro Cap Growth has 132 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 18.8% 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.
Driehaus Micro Cap Growth is part of the Equity global asset class and is within the U.S. Equity fund group. Driehaus Micro Cap Growth has 6.1% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 92.5%. There is 6.1% 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). Driehaus Micro Cap Growth has 1.3% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $596 million in total assets, which is above the $454 million 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.
DMCRX 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 Driehaus Micro Cap Growth expense ratio is high compared to funds in the Small Growth category. Driehaus Micro Cap Growth has an expense ratio of 1.34%, which is 14% 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. Driehaus Micro Cap Growth has a portfolio turnover rate of 142%, indicating that holds its assets around 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 76% for the Small Growth category.
Recently, in the month of June 2026, Driehaus Micro Cap Growth returned 7.1%, which earned it a grade of B, as the Small Growth category had an average return of 6.5%. 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 funds in that category.
Driehaus Micro Cap Growth has a trailing yield of 0.19%, which is above the 0.07% 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.
Driehaus Micro Cap Growth Grades
Year to date, the fund has returned 34.0%, 11.9 percentage points better than the category, which translates into a grade of A. The fund has returned 81.6% over the past year (grade of A), 31.9% over the past three years (grade of A) and 11.8% per year over the past five years (grade of A) and 23.5% per year over the past 10 years (grade of A).
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DMCRX 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 |
|
| DMCRX Return (NAV) | 7.1% | 31.1% | 81.6% | 31.9% | 11.8% | 23.5% |
| DMCRX Grade | B | A | A | A | A | A |
| +/- Category | 0.7% | 6.4% | 47.9% | 15.5% | 7.2% | 11.0% |
| Small Growth Avg | 6.5% | 24.7% | 33.7% | 16.4% | 4.6% | 12.5% |
| DMCRX Tax Cost Ratio | na | na | 3.0% | 1.6% | 3.5% | 3.5% |
DMCRX Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 6/30/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| DMCRX Return (NAV) | 34.0% | 30.9% | 30.6% | 11.4% | -33.5% | 24.7% | 85.6% | 33.9% | 3.9% | 24.3% | 17.8% |
| DMCRX Grade | A | A | A | F | F | A | A | B | A | C | A |
| +/- Category | 11.9% | 22.9% | 15.1% | -5.3% | -5.6% | 14.2% | 43.8% | 4.0% | 8.0% | 0.2% | 7.6% |
| Small Growth Avg | 22.1% | 8.0% | 15.5% | 16.7% | -27.9% | 10.5% | 41.8% | 29.9% | -4.1% | 24.1% | 10.2% |
| Risk Measures | |
| Standard Deviation: | 23.9% |
| Total Risk Index: | 1.97 - High |
| Category Risk Index: | 1.20 - High |
| Category Risk Grade: | F (95% Rank) |
| Beta: | 1.52 |
| R-Squared: | 68% |
| Leveraged Fund: | No |
| Inverse Fund: | No |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Equity Investment Style: | Small-Cap Growth |
| Bond Investment Style: | na |
| Yield: | 0.2% |
| Dividend Distribution: | Annually |
| Cap Gains Distribution: | Annually |
| Total Assets: | $596 Mil |
| Fund Total Assets: | $ 597 Mil |
| Share Class Type: | Other |
| Portfolio Turnover: | 142% |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 3 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 12.6 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 10.6 years | |||
| Managers (Year): James Jeffrey (2013), Buck Michael (2013), Vijayan Prakash (2020) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 4/30/26)
| # of Holdings: | 132 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 18.8% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | No |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 6.1% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 92.5% |
| Foreign Stock: | 6.1% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.0% |
| Domestic Bond: | 0.0% |
| Foreign Bond: | 0.0% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 0.0% |
| Cash: | 1.3% |
Purchase Information
| Fund Family: | Driehaus |
| Phone Number: | 800-560-6111 |
| Website: | www.driehaus.com |
| Status: | Closed |
| Inception Date: | November 18, 2013 |
| Min. Initial Purchase: | $10,000 |
| Min. Initial IRA Purchase: | $2,000 |
| True No-Load: | Yes |
| Front Load Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Deferred Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Redemption Charge Maximum: | 2.00% |
| 12b-1 Fee: | na |
Expenses and Fees | |
| Expense Ratio (%): | 1.34% ( Rating : High ) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 1.18% |
| Share Class: | Driehaus Micro Cap Growth |
| Min. Subsequent Purchase: | $2,000 |
| Min. Subsequent IRA Purchase: | $ 500 |
