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Is First Trust NASDAQ Oil & Gas ETF (FTXN) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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Making its debut on 09/20/2016, smart beta exchange traded fund First Trust NASDAQ Oil & Gas ETF (FTXN - Free Report) provides investors broad exposure to the Energy ETFs category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
For a long time now, the ETF industry has been flooded with products based on market capitalization weighted indexes, which are designed to represent the broader market or a particular market segment.
Because market cap weighted indexes provide a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, they work well for investors who believe in market efficiency.
There are some investors, though, who think it's possible to beat the market with great stock selection; this group likely invests in another class of funds known as smart beta, which track non-cap weighted strategies.
By attempting to pick stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, non-cap weighted indexes are based on certain fundamental characteristics, or a combination of such.
Methodologies like equal-weighting, one of the simplest options out there, fundamental weighting, and volatility/momentum based weighting are all choices offered to investors in this space, but not all of them can deliver superior returns.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is managed by First Trust Advisors. FTXN has been able to amass assets over $255.26 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs in the Energy ETFs. This particular fund, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the Nasdaq US Smart Oil & Gas Index.
The Nasdaq US Smart Oil & Gas Index is a modified factor weighted index, designed to provide exposure to US companies within the oil and gas industry.
Cost & Other Expenses
Expense ratios are an important factor in the return of an ETF and in the long-term, cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive cousins, other things remaining the same.
With on par with most peer products in the space, this ETF has annual operating expenses of 0.60%.
It's 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 3.33%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
While ETFs offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, a deep look into a fund's holdings is a valuable exercise. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Energy sector - about 100% of the portfolio.
Taking into account individual holdings, Chevron Corporation (CVX - Free Report) accounts for about 8.50% of the fund's total assets, followed by Conocophillips (COP - Free Report) and Marathon Petroleum Corporation (MPC - Free Report) .
Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 57.65% of FTXN's total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
Year-to-date, the First Trust NASDAQ Oil & Gas ETF return is roughly 3.54% so far, and is down about -4.08% over the last 12 months (as of 11/13/2023). FTXN has traded between $24.83 and $31.59 in this past 52-week period.
The ETF has a beta of 1.40 and standard deviation of 35.61% for the trailing three-year period. With about 43 holdings, it has more concentrated exposure than peers.
Alternatives
First Trust NASDAQ Oil & Gas ETF is not a suitable option for investors seeking to outperform the Energy ETFs segment of the market. Instead, there are other ETFs in the space which investors should consider.
Vanguard Energy ETF (VDE - Free Report) tracks MSCI US Investable Market Energy 25/50 Index and the Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE - Free Report) tracks Energy Select Sector Index. Vanguard Energy ETF has $7.84 billion in assets, Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF has $37.19 billion. VDE has an expense ratio of 0.10% and XLE charges 0.10%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Energy ETFs.
Bottom Line
To learn more about this product and other ETFs, screen for products that match your investment objectives and read articles on latest developments in the ETF investing universe, please visit Zacks ETF Center.
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Is First Trust NASDAQ Oil & Gas ETF (FTXN) a Strong ETF Right Now?
Making its debut on 09/20/2016, smart beta exchange traded fund First Trust NASDAQ Oil & Gas ETF (FTXN - Free Report) provides investors broad exposure to the Energy ETFs category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
For a long time now, the ETF industry has been flooded with products based on market capitalization weighted indexes, which are designed to represent the broader market or a particular market segment.
Because market cap weighted indexes provide a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, they work well for investors who believe in market efficiency.
There are some investors, though, who think it's possible to beat the market with great stock selection; this group likely invests in another class of funds known as smart beta, which track non-cap weighted strategies.
By attempting to pick stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, non-cap weighted indexes are based on certain fundamental characteristics, or a combination of such.
Methodologies like equal-weighting, one of the simplest options out there, fundamental weighting, and volatility/momentum based weighting are all choices offered to investors in this space, but not all of them can deliver superior returns.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is managed by First Trust Advisors. FTXN has been able to amass assets over $255.26 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs in the Energy ETFs. This particular fund, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the Nasdaq US Smart Oil & Gas Index.
The Nasdaq US Smart Oil & Gas Index is a modified factor weighted index, designed to provide exposure to US companies within the oil and gas industry.
Cost & Other Expenses
Expense ratios are an important factor in the return of an ETF and in the long-term, cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive cousins, other things remaining the same.
With on par with most peer products in the space, this ETF has annual operating expenses of 0.60%.
It's 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 3.33%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
While ETFs offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, a deep look into a fund's holdings is a valuable exercise. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Energy sector - about 100% of the portfolio.
Taking into account individual holdings, Chevron Corporation (CVX - Free Report) accounts for about 8.50% of the fund's total assets, followed by Conocophillips (COP - Free Report) and Marathon Petroleum Corporation (MPC - Free Report) .
Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 57.65% of FTXN's total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
Year-to-date, the First Trust NASDAQ Oil & Gas ETF return is roughly 3.54% so far, and is down about -4.08% over the last 12 months (as of 11/13/2023). FTXN has traded between $24.83 and $31.59 in this past 52-week period.
The ETF has a beta of 1.40 and standard deviation of 35.61% for the trailing three-year period. With about 43 holdings, it has more concentrated exposure than peers.
Alternatives
First Trust NASDAQ Oil & Gas ETF is not a suitable option for investors seeking to outperform the Energy ETFs segment of the market. Instead, there are other ETFs in the space which investors should consider.
Vanguard Energy ETF (VDE - Free Report) tracks MSCI US Investable Market Energy 25/50 Index and the Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE - Free Report) tracks Energy Select Sector Index. Vanguard Energy ETF has $7.84 billion in assets, Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF has $37.19 billion. VDE has an expense ratio of 0.10% and XLE charges 0.10%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Energy ETFs.
Bottom Line
To learn more about this product and other ETFs, screen for products that match your investment objectives and read articles on latest developments in the ETF investing universe, please visit Zacks ETF Center.