Value-focused strategies have been gaining momentum across the broader market throughout 2026, but that doesn’t mean growth has simply fallen by the wayside. True secular growth is still there. It is driven by multiyear demand trends rather than the business cycle, but it takes a more discerning methodology to find. The (GFLW ) is designed to find that growth by screening for free cash flow (FCF).
To capture exposure to companies with high growth prospects, a screening process cannot rely on size and index weight alone, because a large name’s price can run ahead of its underlying fundamentals. Investors may want to look past index weight and consider objective fundamental metrics, such as FCF, for that reason. FCF is the remaining cash a company has after covering all expenses and capital expenditures. That cash can be reinvested in the business, paid out as dividends or used to pay down debt.
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GFLW tracks the Victory Free Cash Flow Growth Index (the Index), which uses a multistage screening process. The Index provides targeted exposure to large-cap growth companies through a rules-based methodology built on cash generation and capital efficiency.
Each stage of that process is designed to isolate companies that generate high levels of sustained free cash flow. The screen starts with the 1,000 large-cap domestic equities in the VettaFi US Equity Large/Mid-Cap 1000 Index. Financials and real estate investment trusts (REITs) are excluded. From there, the Index narrows the field to 400 companies by requiring positive FCF growth over the preceding five-year period.
Of those 400 qualifying stocks, the Index then selects 150 with the strongest FCF return on invested capital (FCF ROIC). FCF ROIC divides expected FCF by invested capital. Expected FCF averages trailing 12-month and 12-month forward FCF. That forward-looking construction is what differentiates the screen from purely backward-looking quality measures.
Finally, a dedicated growth filter removes the slowest-growing businesses, leaving a portfolio of 100 constituents whose growth is defined by cash generation rather than by price momentum or market headlines.
To preserve fundamental integrity, the Victory Free Cash Flow Growth Index reconstitutes and rebalances quarterly, removing from the portfolio any company that generates negative FCF. By prioritizing companies with consistent cash generation, the Index anchors selection to fundamentals rather than to price momentum or market headlines.
As of August 31, 2026, GFLW had $1 billion in assets under management, following its inception in December 2024. The Index re-tests that definition of growth every quarter, even as value-focused strategies have drawn more attention in 2026.
For more news, information, and analysis, visit the Free Cash Flow Content Hub
VettaFi LLC (“VettaFi”) is the index provider for GFLW, for which it receives an index licensing fee. However GFLW is not issued, sponsored, endorsed, or sold by VettaFi, and VettaFi has no obligation or liability in connection with the issuance, administration, marketing, or trading of GFLW.
Disclosure Information
Carefully consider a fund’s investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses before investing. To obtain a prospectus or summary prospectus containing this and other important information, visit http://www.vcm.com/prospectus. Read it carefully before investing.
All investing involves risk, including the potential loss of principal. The Fund has the same risks as the underlying securities traded on the exchange throughout the day. ETFs may trade at a premium or discount to their net asset value. The market prices of securities may go up or down, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably, due to general market conditions, such as real or perceived adverse economic, political, or regulatory conditions, recessions, inflation, or changes in interest or currency rates. Investing in companies with high free cash flows could lead to underperformance when such investments are unpopular or during periods of industry disruptions. The Fund could also be affected by company-specific factors that could jeopardize the generation of free cash flow. Index Funds invest in securities included in, or representative of securities included in, the Index, regardless of their investment merits. The performance of the Fund may diverge from that of the Index. Large shareholders, including other funds advised by the Adviser, may own a substantial amount of the Fund’s shares. The actions of large shareholders, including large inflows or outflows of cash, may adversely affect other shareholders, including potentially increasing capital gains. Investments concentrated in an industry or group of industries may face more risks and exhibit higher volatility than investments that are more broadly diversified over industries or sectors. Investments in companies in the industrials sector, including producers of durable goods and companies that process raw materials, may be adversely affected by changes in supply and demand for products and services, governmental regulation and changes in spending policies, world events and economic conditions. Derivatives may not work as intended and may result in losses. The value of your investment is also subject to geopolitical risks such as wars, terrorism, trade disputes, environmental disasters, and public health crises; the risk of technology malfunctions or disruptions; and the responses to such events by governments and/or individual companies.
The Victory Free Cash Flow Growth Index focuses on high-quality profitable companies that display a positive free cash flow trend. It selects larger cap companies with the highest free cash flow relative to invested capital that also exhibit higher growth.
VettaFi US Equity Large/Mid-Cap 1000 Index represents the 1,000 largest U.S. stocks.
Indexes are unmanaged; their returns include reinvestment of dividends and other income but do not reflect management fees, transaction costs or expenses. It is not possible to invest directly in an index. Past performance does not guarantee future results.
Distributed by Victory Capital Services, Inc.
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