A $7.6-billion-AUM (as of July 12), 38-ETF shop led the small fund firm pack last month as small firms' marketshare climbed.

Sean Edward O'Hara Pacer ETFs Distributors / Pacer Financial President / Director

This article draws from Morningstar Direct data on July 2021 open-end mutual fund and ETF flows, excluding money-market funds and funds of funds. (Other asset management products, like CITs and SMAs, are also not included.) More specifically, this article focuses on the 166 firms (down from 168 in June 2021 but up from 153 in July 2020) with between $1 billion and $10 billion each in long-term fund AUM.

Small firms had $537 billion in total long-term fund AUM as of July 31, 2021, accounting for 2 percent of industry long-term fund. That's down from $545 billion and 2.05 percent on June 30, 2021, and from $498 billion and 2.4 percent on July 31, 2020.

101 of those small fund firms brought in net inflows last month, up from 98 in June 2021 and from 63 in July 2020.

Pacer took the lead last month, thanks to an estimated $507 million in net July 2021 inflows, up month-over-month from $184 million in June 2021 and up year-over-year from $51 million in July 2020 outflows. Other big July 2021 inflows winners included: Innovator, $219 million (up M/M from $121 million, up Y/Y from $13 million in net outflows); Clark Capital Management's Navigator Funds, $159 million (down M/M from $186 million, up Y/Y from $118 million); RBC GAM, $146 million (up M/M from $108 million, up Y/Y from $1 million in net outflows); and Credit Suisse, $144 million (up M/M from $47 million, up Y/Y from $829 million in net outflows).

Axonic took the lead proportionately last month, bringing in estimated net inflows equivalent to 6.4 percent of its long-term mutual fund AUM. Other big July 2021 inflows winners included: Pacer, 6.3 percent; Barings Funds, 5.4 percent; AdvisorShares, 4.5 percent; and Aptus Capital Advisors, 4.2 percent.

Callahan Financial Services' Trust for Credit Unions led the small fund firm pack year-to-date as of July 31, 2021, thanks to an estimated $1.727 billion in net inflows. Other big YTD inflows winners included: Pacer, $1.504 billion; and PT Asset Management, $1.376 billion.

Trust for Credit Unions also led the small fund firm pack for the 12-month period ending July 31, 2021, thanks to an estimated $2.592 billion in net inflows. Other big inflows winners included: PT, $2.228 billion; and ETFMG, $2.218 billion.

On the flip side, last month was another rough one for USCF, which suffered an estimated $371 million in net July 2021 outflows, again more than any other small fund firm. (That's down M/M from $530 million in June 2021 and down Y/Y from $769 million in July 2020.) Other big July 2021 outflows sufferers included: Ariel, $124 million (down M/M from $70 million in net inflows, up Y/Y from $25 million); CRM, $96 million (up M/M from $90 million, up Y/Y from $10 million); U.S. Global Investors, $75 million (up M/M from $41 million, down Y/Y from $71 million in net inflows); and EMQQ, $72 million (up M/M from negligible net outflows, down Y/Y from $53 million in net inflows).

CRM led the small fund firm outflows pack proportionately last month, thanks to estimated net July 2021 outflows equivalent to 8.4 percent of its AUM. Other big July outflows sufferers included: USCF, 8.4 percent; EMQQ, 5.3 percent; Ariel, 2.2 percent; and Milleis, 2 percent.

USCF also led the small fund firm outflows pack YTD as of July 31, 2021, thanks to an estimated $2.406 billion in net outflows. Other big YTD outflows sufferers included: Fiera Capital, $1.644 billion; and Causeway, $1.132 billion.

And USCF also led the small fund firm outflows pack for the 12-month period ending July 31, 2021, thanks to an estimated $3.582 billion in net outflows. Other big outflows sufferers included: Glenmede, $2.012 billion; and FMI, $1.944 billion.

As a group, small fund firms brought in an estimated $2.654 billion in net July 2021 inflows, equivalent to about 0.49 percent of their combined AUM and accounting for 3.44 percent of overall industry long-term inflows. That compares with $2.866 billion, 0.53 percent of AUM, and 2.72 percent of industry inflows in June 2021, and $3.5673 billion in net outflows and 0.72 percent of AUM in July 2020.

In the first seven months of 2021, small fund firms brought in an estimated $25.47 billion in net inflows. That's equivalent to 4.74 percent of their combined AUM and 3.18 percent of industry inflows.

For the 12-month period ending July 31, 2021, small fund firms brought in an estimated $26.077 billion in net inflows. That's equivalent to 4.85 percent of their combined AUM and 2.38 percent of industry inflows.

Across the entire industry, the 774 fund firms (up from 768 in June 2021 and 757 in July 2020) tracked by the M* team brought in a combined $77.077 billion in estimated net long-term inflows in July 2021, equivalent to 0.27 percent of industry AUM of $26.898 trillion. That compares with $105.503 billion and $26.534 trillion in June 2021 and $41.339 billion and $20.737 trillion in AUM.

Active funds brought in an estimated $14.693 billion in net July 2021 inflows, down M/M from $24.578 billion but up Y/Y from $12.052 billion. Passive funds brought in an estimated $57.431 billion in July 2021 inflows, down M/M from $80.917 billion but up Y/Y from $29.381 billion.

In the first seven months of 2021, long-term funds brought in an estimated $801.234 billion in net inflows, equivalent to 2.98 percent of long-term fund AUM. And in the 12 months ending July 31, 2021, long-term funds brought in $1.095194 trillion in net inflows, equivalent to 4.07 percent of their AUM. 

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