The ETF Underdogs, Part 3: Three More ETFs Under $50 Million AUM to Watch

Sparkline Intangible Value ETF

ITAN

-0.3%

Ever since the Cold War ended, the U.S. economy has shifted away from making things to creating things. Another way to put it: we moved from a tangible asset-driven economy to one dominated by intangibles.

As much as President Trump and his tariffs might like to bring manufacturing back, the economic strength of the U.S. for some time now has come from exporting high-margin, specialized tech and services, not making widgets.

That’s what ITAN aims to capture. The ETF uses a value investing framework built around what Sparkline calls the four pillars of intangible assets: intellectual property, brand equity, human capital, and network effects.

Instead of focusing on book value or physical assets, ITAN screens for companies whose real worth lies in ideas, knowledge, and relationships that don’t show up cleanly on a balance sheet.

The fund charges a 0.5% expense ratio and has an international counterpart in the Sparkline International Intangible Value ETF

Harbor Disciplined Bond ETF

AGGS

-0.44%

A quiet trend has been building within the ETF industry, largely overlooked amid the noise around spot crypto launches and the push to bring private assets into ETF wrappers: a growing wave of low-cost, actively managed fixed income ETFs.

The ETF structure is a natural fit for bond strategies. It offers daily liquidity, tax efficiency, and transparency. What we’re seeing now is a version of the fee compression wave that reshaped equities over the past decade, only this time it’s hitting the active side of the bond market.

AGGS is a standout example. It charges just 0.35%, undercutting many older active bond mutual funds while still offering fully active management.

The fund doesn’t hug an index. It uses a fundamental, bond-by-bond selection process, with an exclusive focus on cash bonds, meaning it doesn’t rely on derivatives or leverage.

The strategy targets intermediate-term opportunities in government, investment-grade, and high-yield credit, making it a core plus approach designed for total return.

With a 30-day SEC yield of 5.11%, AGGS offers a clear pickup over traditional Bloomberg Aggregate style funds. And performance has backed it up.

Since inception, the fund has returned 7.38% net of fees, edging out the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index’s 7.24%, which doesn’t even face expense ratio drag.

AdvisorShares Insider Advantage ETF

SURE

-0.29%

In recent years, we’ve seen more ETFs using what you could call a “meta-gaming” strategy, building portfolios not just based on fundamentals, but on how insiders, institutions, or regulators behave. Examples include ETFs that track congressional trading disclosures or hedge fund 13F filings.

You could argue these belong to a broader category: special situations ETFs. These are funds designed to profit from specific corporate actions, like M&A targets in merger arbitrage strategies.

SURE fits into that camp. The ETF screens for companies with two signals that often precede a rise in share price: insider buying and high buyback yield. Both actions reduce the public float, which can amplify price movements and indicate management confidence.

It also applies a quantitative screen focused on shrinking leverage, growing free cash flow, and dividend yield. The final portfolio is equally weighted and reconstituted monthly to keep exposure fresh and signal-driven.

Please note that this article reflects the author’s personal views and does not represent the opinions of the publication or its affiliates. It is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. It is essential to seek guidance from a registered financial professional before making any investment decisions.