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Is First Trust Mid Cap Core AlphaDEX ETF (FNX) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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Launched on 05/08/2007, the First Trust Mid Cap Core AlphaDEX ETF (FNX - Free Report) is a smart beta exchange traded fund offering broad exposure to the Style Box - Mid Cap Blend category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
The ETF industry has long been dominated by products based on market cap weighted indexes, a strategy created to reflect the market or a particular market segment.
A good option for investors who believe in market efficiency, market cap weighted indexes offer a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns.
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.
This area offers many different investment choices, such as simplest equal-weighting, fundamental weighting and volatility/momentum based weighting methodologies; however, not all of these strategies can deliver superior results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is managed by First Trust Advisors. FNX has been able to amass assets over $1.38 billion, making it one of the average sized ETFs in the Style Box - Mid Cap Blend. FNX seeks to match the performance of the Nasdaq AlphaDEX Mid Cap Core Index before fees and expenses.
The NASDAQ AlphaDEX Mid Cap Core Index is an enhanced index which employs the AlphaDEX stock selection methodology to select stocks from the NASDAQ US 600 Mid Cap Index.
Cost & Other Expenses
Cost is an important factor in selecting the right ETF, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive cousins if all other fundamentals are the same.
Annual operating expenses for FNX are 0.62%, which makes it one of the most expensive products in the space.
It's 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 0.98%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
Most ETFs are very transparent products, and disclose their holdings on a daily basis. ETFs also offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, though it's still important for investors to research a fund's holdings.
For FNX, it has heaviest allocation in the Financials sector --about 19.3% of the portfolio --while Industrials and Consumer Discretionary round out the top three.
Taking into account individual holdings, Hf Sinclair Corp. (DINO) accounts for about 0.64% of the fund's total assets, followed by Apa Corporation (APA) and Epam Systems, Inc. (EPAM).
The top 10 holdings account for about 5.06% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, FNX has added about 12.88%, and is up about 15.17% in the last one year (as of 11/02/2026). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $117.48 and $147.95.
FNX has a beta of 1.07 and standard deviation of 18.10% for the trailing three-year period, which makes the fund a medium risk choice in the space. With about 451 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .
Alternatives
First Trust Mid Cap Core AlphaDEX ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Mid Cap Blend segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
Vanguard Morningstar Mid-Cap ETF (VO) tracks CRSP US Mid Cap Index and the iShares Core S&P Mid-Cap ETF (IJH) tracks S&P MidCap 400 Index. Vanguard Morningstar Mid-Cap ETF has $107.09 billion in assets, iShares Core S&P Mid-Cap ETF has $122.58 billion. VO has an expense ratio of 0.03% and IJH changes 0.05%.
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 - Mid 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 Mid Cap Core AlphaDEX ETF (FNX) a Strong ETF Right Now?
Launched on 05/08/2007, the First Trust Mid Cap Core AlphaDEX ETF (FNX - Free Report) is a smart beta exchange traded fund offering broad exposure to the Style Box - Mid Cap Blend category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
The ETF industry has long been dominated by products based on market cap weighted indexes, a strategy created to reflect the market or a particular market segment.
A good option for investors who believe in market efficiency, market cap weighted indexes offer a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns.
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.
This area offers many different investment choices, such as simplest equal-weighting, fundamental weighting and volatility/momentum based weighting methodologies; however, not all of these strategies can deliver superior results.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is managed by First Trust Advisors. FNX has been able to amass assets over $1.38 billion, making it one of the average sized ETFs in the Style Box - Mid Cap Blend. FNX seeks to match the performance of the Nasdaq AlphaDEX Mid Cap Core Index before fees and expenses.
The NASDAQ AlphaDEX Mid Cap Core Index is an enhanced index which employs the AlphaDEX stock selection methodology to select stocks from the NASDAQ US 600 Mid Cap Index.
Cost & Other Expenses
Cost is an important factor in selecting the right ETF, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive cousins if all other fundamentals are the same.
Annual operating expenses for FNX are 0.62%, which makes it one of the most expensive products in the space.
It's 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 0.98%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
Most ETFs are very transparent products, and disclose their holdings on a daily basis. ETFs also offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, though it's still important for investors to research a fund's holdings.
For FNX, it has heaviest allocation in the Financials sector --about 19.3% of the portfolio --while Industrials and Consumer Discretionary round out the top three.
Taking into account individual holdings, Hf Sinclair Corp. (DINO) accounts for about 0.64% of the fund's total assets, followed by Apa Corporation (APA) and Epam Systems, Inc. (EPAM).
The top 10 holdings account for about 5.06% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, FNX has added about 12.88%, and is up about 15.17% in the last one year (as of 11/02/2026). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $117.48 and $147.95.
FNX has a beta of 1.07 and standard deviation of 18.10% for the trailing three-year period, which makes the fund a medium risk choice in the space. With about 451 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .
Alternatives
First Trust Mid Cap Core AlphaDEX ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Mid Cap Blend segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
Vanguard Morningstar Mid-Cap ETF (VO) tracks CRSP US Mid Cap Index and the iShares Core S&P Mid-Cap ETF (IJH) tracks S&P MidCap 400 Index. Vanguard Morningstar Mid-Cap ETF has $107.09 billion in assets, iShares Core S&P Mid-Cap ETF has $122.58 billion. VO has an expense ratio of 0.03% and IJH changes 0.05%.
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 - Mid 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.