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Is First Trust NASDAQ Transportation ETF (FTXR) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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The First Trust NASDAQ Transportation ETF (FTXR - Free Report) was launched on 09/20/2016, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the Industrials ETFs category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
The ETF industry has traditionally been dominated by products based on market capitalization weighted indexes that are designed to represent the market or a particular segment of the market.
Market cap weighted indexes offer a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, and are a good option for investors who believe in market efficiency.
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.
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
FTXR is managed by First Trust Advisors, and this fund has amassed over $974.16 million, which makes it one of the larger ETFs in the Industrials ETFs. FTXR seeks to match the performance of the Nasdaq US Smart Transportation Index before fees and expenses.
The Nasdaq US Smart Transportation Index is a modified factor weighted index, designed to provide exposure to US companies within the transportation industry.
Cost & Other Expenses
Investors should also pay attention to an ETF's expense ratio. Lower cost products will produce better results than those with a higher cost, assuming all other metrics remain the same.
Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.60% for this ETF, which makes it on par with most peer products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.08%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
It is important to delve into an ETF's holdings before investing despite the many upsides to these kinds of funds like diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
For FTXR, it has heaviest allocation in the Industrials sector --about 68% of the portfolio --while Consumer Discretionary and Energy round out the top three.
Taking into account individual holdings, General Motors Company (GM) accounts for about 8.49% of the fund's total assets, followed by Union Pacific Corporation (UNP) and Ford Motor Company (F).
FTXR's top 10 holdings account for about 59.12% of its total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
Year-to-date, the First Trust NASDAQ Transportation ETF has added roughly 8.55% so far, and it's up approximately 22.37% over the last 12 months (as of 09/28/2026). FTXR has traded between $33.62 $45.77 in this past 52-week period.
FTXR has a beta of 1.29 and standard deviation of 22.56% for the trailing three-year period. With about 44 holdings, it has more concentrated exposure than peers .
Alternatives
First Trust NASDAQ Transportation ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Industrials ETFs segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
U.S. Global Jets ETF (JETS) tracks U.S. Global Jets Index and the iShares U.S. Transportation ETF (IYT) tracks Dow Jones Transportation Average Index. U.S. Global Jets ETF has $822.86 million in assets, iShares U.S. Transportation ETF has $2.05 billion. JETS has an expense ratio of 0.60% and IYT changes 0.38%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Industrials 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 Transportation ETF (FTXR) a Strong ETF Right Now?
The First Trust NASDAQ Transportation ETF (FTXR - Free Report) was launched on 09/20/2016, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the Industrials ETFs category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
The ETF industry has traditionally been dominated by products based on market capitalization weighted indexes that are designed to represent the market or a particular segment of the market.
Market cap weighted indexes offer a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, and are a good option for investors who believe in market efficiency.
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.
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
FTXR is managed by First Trust Advisors, and this fund has amassed over $974.16 million, which makes it one of the larger ETFs in the Industrials ETFs. FTXR seeks to match the performance of the Nasdaq US Smart Transportation Index before fees and expenses.
The Nasdaq US Smart Transportation Index is a modified factor weighted index, designed to provide exposure to US companies within the transportation industry.
Cost & Other Expenses
Investors should also pay attention to an ETF's expense ratio. Lower cost products will produce better results than those with a higher cost, assuming all other metrics remain the same.
Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.60% for this ETF, which makes it on par with most peer products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.08%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
It is important to delve into an ETF's holdings before investing despite the many upsides to these kinds of funds like diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
For FTXR, it has heaviest allocation in the Industrials sector --about 68% of the portfolio --while Consumer Discretionary and Energy round out the top three.
Taking into account individual holdings, General Motors Company (GM) accounts for about 8.49% of the fund's total assets, followed by Union Pacific Corporation (UNP) and Ford Motor Company (F).
FTXR's top 10 holdings account for about 59.12% of its total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
Year-to-date, the First Trust NASDAQ Transportation ETF has added roughly 8.55% so far, and it's up approximately 22.37% over the last 12 months (as of 09/28/2026). FTXR has traded between $33.62 $45.77 in this past 52-week period.
FTXR has a beta of 1.29 and standard deviation of 22.56% for the trailing three-year period. With about 44 holdings, it has more concentrated exposure than peers .
Alternatives
First Trust NASDAQ Transportation ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Industrials ETFs segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
U.S. Global Jets ETF (JETS) tracks U.S. Global Jets Index and the iShares U.S. Transportation ETF (IYT) tracks Dow Jones Transportation Average Index. U.S. Global Jets ETF has $822.86 million in assets, iShares U.S. Transportation ETF has $2.05 billion. JETS has an expense ratio of 0.60% and IYT changes 0.38%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Industrials 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.