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Is First Trust Small Cap Core AlphaDEX ETF (FYX) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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Making its debut on 05/08/2007, smart beta exchange traded fund First Trust Small Cap Core AlphaDEX ETF (FYX - Free Report) provides investors broad exposure to the Style Box - Small Cap Blend 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.
Market cap weighted indexes work great for investors who believe in market efficiency. They provide a low-cost, convenient and transparent way of replicating market returns.
If you're the kind of investor who would rather try and beat the market through good stock selection, then smart beta funds are your best choice; this fund class is known for tracking non-cap weighted strategies.
These indexes attempt to select stocks that have better chances of risk-return performance, based on certain fundamental characteristics or a combination of such characteristics.
Even though this space provides many choices to investors--think one of the simplest methodologies like equal-weighting and more complicated ones like fundamental and volatility/momentum based weighting--not all have been able to deliver first-rate results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
Managed by First Trust Advisors, FYX has amassed assets over $890.68 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs in the Style Box - Small Cap Blend. FYX seeks to match the performance of the Nasdaq AlphaDEX Small Cap Core Index before fees and expenses.
The NASDAQ AlphaDEX Small Cap Core Index is an enhanced index which employs the AlphaDEX stock selection methodology to select stocks from the NASDAQ US 700 Small Cap Index.
Cost & Other Expenses
When considering an ETF's total return, expense ratios are an important factor. And, cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive cousins in the long term if all other factors remain equal.
Annual operating expenses for FYX are 0.61%, which makes it one of the more expensive products in the space.
It's 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 0.90%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure which minimizes single stock risk, it is still important to look into a fund's holdings before investing. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
Representing 18.3% of the portfolio, the fund has heaviest allocation to the Industrials sector; Financials and Healthcare round out the top three.
When you look at individual holdings, Microvast Holdings, Inc. (MVST) accounts for about 0.51% of the fund's total assets, followed by Cleanspark, Inc. (CLSK) and Eos Energy Enterprises, Inc. (EOSE).
Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 4.31% of FYX's total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has added about 7.42% and is up about 10.89% so far this year and in the past one year (as of 11/05/2025), respectively. FYX has traded between $79.22 and $112.13 during this last 52-week period.
The ETF has a beta of 1.15 and standard deviation of 21.44% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 526 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .
Alternatives
First Trust Small Cap Core AlphaDEX ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Small Cap Blend segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
Vanguard Small-Cap ETF (VB) tracks CRSP US Small Cap Index and the iShares Core S&P Small-Cap ETF (IJR) tracks S&P SmallCap 600 Index. Vanguard Small-Cap ETF has $67.57 billion in assets, iShares Core S&P Small-Cap ETF has $84.5 billion. VB has an expense ratio of 0.05% and IJR changes 0.06%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Style Box - Small Cap Blend
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 Small Cap Core AlphaDEX ETF (FYX) a Strong ETF Right Now?
Making its debut on 05/08/2007, smart beta exchange traded fund First Trust Small Cap Core AlphaDEX ETF (FYX - Free Report) provides investors broad exposure to the Style Box - Small Cap Blend 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.
Market cap weighted indexes work great for investors who believe in market efficiency. They provide a low-cost, convenient and transparent way of replicating market returns.
If you're the kind of investor who would rather try and beat the market through good stock selection, then smart beta funds are your best choice; this fund class is known for tracking non-cap weighted strategies.
These indexes attempt to select stocks that have better chances of risk-return performance, based on certain fundamental characteristics or a combination of such characteristics.
Even though this space provides many choices to investors--think one of the simplest methodologies like equal-weighting and more complicated ones like fundamental and volatility/momentum based weighting--not all have been able to deliver first-rate results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
Managed by First Trust Advisors, FYX has amassed assets over $890.68 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs in the Style Box - Small Cap Blend. FYX seeks to match the performance of the Nasdaq AlphaDEX Small Cap Core Index before fees and expenses.
The NASDAQ AlphaDEX Small Cap Core Index is an enhanced index which employs the AlphaDEX stock selection methodology to select stocks from the NASDAQ US 700 Small Cap Index.
Cost & Other Expenses
When considering an ETF's total return, expense ratios are an important factor. And, cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive cousins in the long term if all other factors remain equal.
Annual operating expenses for FYX are 0.61%, which makes it one of the more expensive products in the space.
It's 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 0.90%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure which minimizes single stock risk, it is still important to look into a fund's holdings before investing. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
Representing 18.3% of the portfolio, the fund has heaviest allocation to the Industrials sector; Financials and Healthcare round out the top three.
When you look at individual holdings, Microvast Holdings, Inc. (MVST) accounts for about 0.51% of the fund's total assets, followed by Cleanspark, Inc. (CLSK) and Eos Energy Enterprises, Inc. (EOSE).
Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 4.31% of FYX's total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has added about 7.42% and is up about 10.89% so far this year and in the past one year (as of 11/05/2025), respectively. FYX has traded between $79.22 and $112.13 during this last 52-week period.
The ETF has a beta of 1.15 and standard deviation of 21.44% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 526 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .
Alternatives
First Trust Small Cap Core AlphaDEX ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Small Cap Blend segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
Vanguard Small-Cap ETF (VB) tracks CRSP US Small Cap Index and the iShares Core S&P Small-Cap ETF (IJR) tracks S&P SmallCap 600 Index. Vanguard Small-Cap ETF has $67.57 billion in assets, iShares Core S&P Small-Cap ETF has $84.5 billion. VB has an expense ratio of 0.05% and IJR changes 0.06%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Style Box - Small Cap Blend
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.