Canal Capital Management Establishes Major Stake in Akre Focus ETF Through Exchange Traded Shares

The Investment Move

On January 6, Canal Capital Management, LLC revealed its entry into the Akre Focus ETF (NYSE:AKRE) with a substantial commitment. The firm acquired 175,232 exchange traded shares during the fourth quarter, establishing a position valued at approximately $11.5 million. This stake represented 1.6% of the firm’s total 13F reportable assets under management, signaling meaningful conviction in the exchange traded fund strategy.

Portfolio Details and Current Positioning

Following this filing, Canal Capital Management’s major holdings reflect a concentrated investment approach:

• ODFL (NASDAQ): $58.79 million representing 8.3% of AUM
• AAPL (NASDAQ): $34.81 million representing 4.9% of AUM
• MSFT (NASDAQ): $26.07 million representing 3.7% of AUM
• LQD (NYSEMKT): $20.15 million representing 2.9% of AUM
• AVGO (NASDAQ): $19.06 million representing 2.7% of AUM

The Akre Focus ETF itself maintains a highly concentrated portfolio structure, with its 10 largest equity holdings accounting for over 81% of total assets. Key positions within the exchange traded fund include major names like Mastercard (NYSE: MA), Brookfield (NYSE: BN), and KKR (NYSE: KKR).

Understanding the Akre Focus Approach

The Akre Focus ETF employs a disciplined, research-intensive investment methodology. The fund targets companies demonstrating high returns on capital, substantial reinvestment opportunities, and management teams aligned with shareholder interests. Its practitioners acquire securities at reasonable valuations and maintain holdings through disciplined thesis monitoring, maintaining flexibility to invest across capital structures and international markets.

Fund Performance Context

As of January 6, 2026, AKRE shares traded at $66.59, reflecting a market capitalization of $9.96 billion within the asset management sector. The actively managed exchange traded fund carries an expense ratio of 0.98%, relatively competitive for its category.

Performance metrics reveal a challenging recent period. Throughout 2025, the Akre Focus ETF returned just 1.1%, significantly underperforming the S&P 500’s 17.9% gain. Over a longer timeframe, the 10-year total return of 13.8% trailed the benchmark by more than 1 percentage point, highlighting the volatility inherent in concentrated, actively managed exchange traded strategies.

What This Means for Investors

Canal Capital Management’s decision to allocate meaningful capital to Akre Focus ETF reflects confidence in its disciplined approach despite recent underperformance. The institutional investor’s portfolio entry suggests conviction that the fund’s concentrated methodology and selective security selection may generate competitive returns over extended timeframes.

For investors considering exchange traded funds, this transaction underscores the importance of evaluating both active management quality and performance consistency. The Akre Focus ETF’s concentrated structure demands careful assessment—while focus can generate outsized returns during favorable market conditions, it also amplifies downside risk during periods when the fund’s thesis underperforms broader indices.