Fund Evaluator:
DFA Social Fixed Income Institutional (DSFIX)
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Fund Details
DFA Social Fixed Income Institutional Overview
DFA Social Fixed Income Institutional (DSFIX) is an actively managed Taxable Bond Intermediate Core Bond fund. Dimensional Fund Advisors launched the fund in 2016.
The investment seeks to maximize total returns. The fund seeks to achieve its investment objective through exposure to a broad portfolio of investment grade debt securities of U.S. and non-U.S. corporate and government issuers while excluding securities of corporate and certain non-sovereign government issuers based upon the Portfolio’s social issue screens. It will invest at least 80% of the fund's net assets in fixed income securities considered to be investment grade quality. The fund's investments may include foreign securities denominated in foreign currencies.
About DFA Social Fixed Income Institutional (DSFIX)
There are 3 members of the management team with an average tenure of 7.69 years: David Plecha (2016), Lacey Huebel (2024), Joseph Kolerich (2016). Management tenure is more important for actively managed funds than passive index funds.
The fund has 1 primary benchmark: Bloomberg US Agg Bond TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. DFA Social Fixed Income Institutional has 433 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 16.1% 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.
DFA Social Fixed Income Institutional is part of the Fixed Income global asset class and is within the Taxable Bond fund group. DFA Social Fixed Income Institutional has 13.3% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 0.0%. 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 81.8% (68.5% domestic bond, 13.3% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). DFA Social Fixed Income Institutional has 18.2% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $751 million in total assets, which is below the $3 billion average for the Intermediate Core Bond 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.
DSFIX 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 DFA Social Fixed Income Institutional expense ratio is below average compared to funds in the Intermediate Core Bond category. DFA Social Fixed Income Institutional has an expense ratio of 0.22%, which is 61% lower than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a A. 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. DFA Social Fixed Income Institutional has a portfolio turnover rate of 30%, indicating that holds its assets around 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 151% for the Intermediate Core Bond category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, DFA Social Fixed Income Institutional returned -1.4%, which earned it a grade of F, as the Intermediate Core Bond category had an average return of -1.3%. 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.
DFA Social Fixed Income Institutional has a trailing yield of 4.38%, which is above the 4.04% category average. The fund normally distributes its income monthly 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.
DFA Social Fixed Income Institutional Grades
Year to date, the fund has returned -0.5%, 0.2 percentage points better than the category, which translates into a grade of A. The fund has returned 2.4% over the past year (grade of D), 4.1% over the past three years (grade of A) and -0.2% per year over the past five years (grade of A) and 1.6% per year over the past 10 years (grade of B).
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DSFIX Trailing NAV Total Returns Data as of 7/31/26
| Last Month |
Last Quarter |
Ann'l. 1Yr |
Ann'l. 3Yr |
Ann'l. 5Yr |
Ann'l. 10Yr |
|
| DSFIX Return (NAV) | -1.4% | -0.6% | 2.4% | 4.1% | -0.2% | 1.6% |
| DSFIX Grade | F | A | D | A | A | B |
| +/- Category | -0.1% | 0.2% | -0.1% | 0.4% | 0.3% | 0.3% |
| Intermediate Core Bond Avg | -1.3% | -0.8% | 2.5% | 3.7% | -0.5% | 1.4% |
| DSFIX Tax Cost Ratio | na | na | 1.7% | 1.6% | 1.4% | 1.1% |
DSFIX Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| DSFIX Return (NAV) | -0.5% | 7.1% | 1.8% | 7.2% | -13.1% | -2.2% | 9.3% | 9.8% | -0.3% | 3.4% | na |
| DSFIX Grade | A | C | B | A | B | F | B | A | C | C | na |
| +/- Category | 0.2% | 0.0% | 0.2% | 1.5% | 0.1% | -0.7% | 1.2% | 1.4% | 0.1% | -0.2% | na |
| Intermediate Core Bond Avg | -0.7% | 7.0% | 1.6% | 5.6% | -13.2% | -1.5% | 8.1% | 8.5% | -0.4% | 3.6% | 2.8% |
| Risk Measures | |
| Standard Deviation: | 5.2% |
| Total Risk Index: | 0.42 - Low |
| Category Risk Index: | 0.92 - Low |
| Category Risk Grade: | A (10% Rank) |
| Beta: | 0.91 |
| R-Squared: | 98% |
| Leveraged Fund: | No |
| Inverse Fund: | No |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Equity Investment Style: | na |
| Bond Investment Style: | High Quality Moderate Sensitivity |
| Yield: | 4.4% |
| Dividend Distribution: | Monthly |
| Cap Gains Distribution: | Annually |
| Total Assets: | $751 Mil |
| Fund Total Assets: | $ 752 Mil |
| Share Class Type: | Inst |
| Portfolio Turnover: | 30% |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 3 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 10.3 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 7.7 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Plecha David (2016), Kolerich Joseph (2016), Huebel Lacey (2024) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 6/30/26)
| # of Holdings: | 433 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 16.1% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | No |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 13.3% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 0.0% |
| Foreign Stock: | 0.0% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.0% |
| Domestic Bond: | 68.5% |
| Foreign Bond: | 13.3% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 0.0% |
| Cash: | 18.2% |
Purchase Information
| Fund Family: | Dimensional Fund Advisors |
| Phone Number: | 855-576-1167 |
| Website: | www.dimensional.com |
| Status: | Open |
| Inception Date: | April 5, 2016 |
| Min. Initial Purchase: | $ 0 |
| Min. Initial IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
| True No-Load: | Yes |
| Front Load Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Deferred Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Redemption Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| 12b-1 Fee: | na |
Expenses and Fees | |
| Expense Ratio (%): | 0.22% ( Rating : Below Avg ) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 0.57% |
| Share Class: | DFA Social Fixed Income Institutional |
| Min. Subsequent Purchase: | $ 0 |
| Min. Subsequent IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
