Fund Evaluator:
Heartland Value Plus Investor (HRVIX)
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
Heartland Value Plus Investor Overview
Heartland Value Plus Investor (HRVIX) is an actively managed U.S. Equity Small Value fund. Heartland launched the fund in 1993.
The investment seeks long-term capital appreciation and modest current income. The fund invests primarily in a limited number (generally 40 to 70) of small-capitalization common stocks selected on a value basis. A majority of its assets are generally invested in dividend-paying common stocks. The fund invests a majority of its assets in companies with market capitalizations consistent with the capitalization range of the Russell 2000® Value Index.
About Heartland Value Plus Investor (HRVIX)
There are 3 members of the management team with an average tenure of 4.25 years: Andrew Fleming (2016), Michael Warecki (2025), Jacob S. Westphal (2025). 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 2000 Value TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. Heartland Value Plus Investor has 57 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 30.1% 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.
Heartland Value Plus Investor is part of the Equity global asset class and is within the U.S. Equity fund group. Heartland Value Plus Investor has 3.8% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 96.0%. There is 3.8% 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). Heartland Value Plus Investor has 0.2% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $186 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.
HRVIX 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 Heartland Value Plus Investor expense ratio is high compared to funds in the Small Value category. Heartland Value Plus Investor has an expense ratio of 1.22%, which is 5% 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. Heartland Value Plus Investor has a portfolio turnover rate of 67%, 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, Heartland Value Plus Investor returned 6.3%, which earned it a grade of B, 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.
Heartland Value Plus Investor has a trailing yield of 0.50%, 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.
Heartland Value Plus Investor Grades
Year to date, the fund has returned 25.1%, 4.5 percentage points better than the category, which translates into a grade of A. The fund has returned 35.3% over the past year (grade of C), 8.6% over the past three years (grade of F) and 4.1% per year over the past five years (grade of F) and 10.0% per year over the past 10 years (grade of D).
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 Heartland Value Plus Investor, including its riskiness, submit your email to unlock the rest of the article.
Gain access to exclusive AAII member-only content.
HRVIX 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 |
|
| HRVIX Return (NAV) | 6.3% | 19.2% | 35.3% | 8.6% | 4.1% | 10.0% |
| HRVIX Grade | B | B | C | F | F | D |
| +/- Category | 0.6% | 2.7% | 2.3% | -7.1% | -4.6% | -0.5% |
| Small Value Avg | 5.7% | 16.5% | 33.0% | 15.7% | 8.7% | 10.5% |
| HRVIX Tax Cost Ratio | na | na | 0.3% | 0.5% | 1.6% | 1.0% |
HRVIX Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 6/30/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| HRVIX Return (NAV) | 25.1% | 1.1% | -0.3% | 1.8% | -5.0% | 24.8% | 12.6% | 26.0% | -13.1% | 9.8% | 26.8% |
| HRVIX Grade | A | F | F | F | A | F | A | B | B | C | B |
| +/- Category | 4.5% | -5.6% | -10.0% | -14.0% | 5.4% | -5.5% | 8.5% | 3.1% | 1.6% | -0.4% | 2.0% |
| 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: | 18.6% |
| Total Risk Index: | 1.53 - High |
| Category Risk Index: | 1.02 - Average |
| Category Risk Grade: | C (58% Rank) |
| Beta: | 0.96 |
| R-Squared: | 45% |
| Leveraged Fund: | No |
| Inverse Fund: | No |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Equity Investment Style: | Small-Cap Blend |
| Bond Investment Style: | na |
| Yield: | 0.5% |
| Dividend Distribution: | Annually |
| Cap Gains Distribution: | Annually |
| Total Assets: | $330 Mil |
| Fund Total Assets: | $ 186 Mil |
| Share Class Type: | Inv |
| Portfolio Turnover: | 67% |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 3 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 10.4 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 4.2 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Fleming Andrew (2016), Warecki Michael (2025), Westphal Jacob S. (2025) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 5/31/26)
| # of Holdings: | 57 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 30.1% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | No |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 3.8% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 96.0% |
| Foreign Stock: | 3.8% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.0% |
| Domestic Bond: | 0.0% |
| Foreign Bond: | 0.0% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 0.0% |
| Cash: | 0.2% |
Purchase Information
| Fund Family: | Heartland |
| Phone Number: | 800-432-7856 |
| Website: | www.heartlandfunds.com |
| Status: | Open |
| Inception Date: | October 26, 1993 |
| Min. Initial Purchase: | $1,000 |
| Min. Initial IRA Purchase: | $ 500 |
| True No-Load: | Yes |
| Front Load Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Deferred Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Redemption Charge Maximum: | 2.00% |
| 12b-1 Fee: | 0.25% |
Expenses and Fees | |
| Expense Ratio (%): | 1.22% ( Rating : High ) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 1.17% |
| Share Class: | Heartland Value Plus Investor |
| Min. Subsequent Purchase: | $ 100 |
| Min. Subsequent IRA Purchase: | $ 100 |
