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Launched · SEC filings

FT Vest Buffered Allocation Growth ETF

BUFGCboeFirst TrustD

$29.67−0.11 (−0.38%)

As of Nov 2, 2026, 3:59 PM ET

D27/ 100

Rank 18 of 18 in S&P 500 Laddered Buffer

D27/100Rank 18 of 18inS&P 500 Laddered Buffer
Intraday session: down, 78 prints from 29.78 to 29.67. Range 29.67 to 29.96. Use the arrow keys to read each point.29.7529.8529.9029.9510 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM
Expense ratio
1.13%
Fund size
$330M
1Y total return
+9.6%
Yield · Last 12 months
No data
Holdings
8
Avg volume · 30D
30.5K sh
52W range
low $26.25high $30.31
Launched
Filings
SEC EDGAR

The ETF.net BUFG Grade

Based on 5 of 6 pillars

D

Score 27 out of 100

Category
S&P 500 Laddered Buffer⁠
Rank
18 of 18
Six-pillar profile for BUFG. Scores out of 100: Cost 6, Risk 27, Mission not scored, Tradability 48, Holdings 44, Durability 70. Strongest: Durability (70). Weakest: Cost (6). Based on 5 of 6 pillars.

Score 27 of 100 falls in the D band. A is 70 or higher, B 55 to under 70, C 40 to under 55, D 25 to under 40, F under 25.

  • Cost

    The fund’s net expense ratio, ranked against its category.
    F6 out of 100
    Rank 17 of 18

  • Mission

    Whether the fund did what it promised, tested against its stated mandate.
    Not scored

  • Risk

    How the fund held up when markets fell: downside volatility, drawdowns and tail loss.
    D27 out of 100
    Rank 15 of 18

  • Tradability

    How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.
    C48 out of 100
    Rank 8 of 18

  • Holdings

    How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.
    C44 out of 100
    Rank 12 of 18

  • Durability

    Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.
    A70 out of 100
    Rank 5 of 18

Our read on BUFG

ETF.net Research

In short

DOne ticket instead of a calendar. BUFG holds a basket of buffered ETFs, each tied to the price return of a big S&P 500 fund up to a cap with a defined cushion against losses, so you skip picking an outcome month yourself.

Stated mandate

The Fund seeks capital appreciation by investing in ETFs designed to provide returns based on SPY’s price return up to a predetermined cap, with a defined buffer against SPY losses over a one-year period.

Why people hold it

  • A fund of buffer funds: one holding spreads you across several defined-outcome ETFs at once, instead of betting everything on a single start date.ftportfolios.com
  • The mechanism is the point: equity exposure to a large S&P 500 fund's price move, with a stated buffer against its losses over a one-year period.
  • Cheaper than the other fund built on the same reference: 1.13% a year versus BUFT's 1.21%.
  • Running since 2021, with a few hundred million dollars behind it, from an issuer with one of the deepest buffered-ETF lineups.

Worth knowing

  • You pay for the packaging: 1.13% a year, above the roughly 0.79% median in its buffer-fund peer group and above laddered sibling BUFR at 0.95%.
  • Buffers come with caps. Upside is limited by design, and the buffer and cap apply across a full outcome period, so mid-period buyers get different terms.ftportfolios.com
  • Thinly traded next to the largest buffer ETFs, so bid-ask spreads can be wider. The mandate targets capital appreciation, not income, and it has not been paying distributions.

BUFG Holdings

Holdings pillarC44 out of 100Rank 12 of 18 in S&P 500 Laddered Buffer
Asset class
Other
Holdings
8
Top-10 weight
100%
Largest holding
FAUG15.1%

Sectors

  • Technology40.1%
  • Financials11.3%
  • Communication9.9%
  • Health Care9.4%
  • Consumer Discretionary8.7%
  • Industrials7.6%
  • Consumer Staples4.4%
  • Energy3.4%
  • Utilities1.9%
  • Real Estate1.7%
  • Materials1.6%

Geography

  • United States100.00%
The fund’s holdings, weight-ordered — page 1 of 1.
#TickerCompanyWeight %SharesMarket valueHeld by ETFs
1FAUGFT Vest U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - August15.07%868,494$49.8M2
2FMAYFT Vest U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - May14.97%867,032$49.5M2
3FSEPFT Vest U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - September14.69%852,666$48.5M2
4FJUNFT Vest U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - June14.68%797,302$48.5M2
5FJULFT Vest U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - July14.60%790,847$48.2M2
6FAPRFT Vest U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - April13.11%908,705$43.3M2
7FJANFT Vest U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - January12.82%750,680$42.4M2
8No dataUS Dollar0.06%199,242$199K408

Showing 1–8 of 8 holdings

BUFG Performance

Launched Oct 26, 2021

Shows how $10,000 changes over the selected period, with cash distributions reinvested at the closing price on each ex-dividend date.

Not enough history yet.
BUFG$10,965
SPY tracks large US stocks. It provides market context, rather than representing this fund’s strategy, asset class or investment benchmark.$11,199
Oct 31, 2025 to Oct 30, 2026. BUFG $10,965. SPY $11,199. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$10,000$11,000Oct 2025Apr 2026Oct 2026

Oct 31, 2025 – Oct 30, 2026

Returns run to the Oct 30, 2026 close, with cash distributions reinvested. Each period starts on the same date that many months or years earlier. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.

Trailing total return for BUFG. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.
PeriodBUFG
Year to date+8.2%
1 month−0.4%
3 months+1.1%
1 year+9.6%
3 yearsper year+15.4%
5 yearsper year+8.2%
10 yearsFund is under 10 years oldper yearNo data

With distributions reinvested.

Calendar-year total return with cash distributions hypothetically reinvested at the ex-dividend date’s closing price. The current year shows year to date.

Annual total returns for BUFG
YearReturn barBUFG
2026 YTD+8.2%
2025+12.3%
2024+15.1%
2023+18.5%
2022−11.6%
2021+1.8%

History from Oct 27, 2021

BUFG in the news

BUFG Dividends

This fund pays no distributions.
No dataLast 12 months
Payout per share
No dataLast 12 months

No distributions in the last 12 months.

BUFG Risk

Risk pillarD27 out of 100Rank 15 of 18 in S&P 500 Laddered Buffer
How much the fund’s monthly returns vary, scaled to a year.
7.8%
Annualised · 36 months to Oct 2026
How it’s calculated: standard deviation

The sample standard deviation of monthly total returns, multiplied by the square root of 12.

Uses up to 36 complete months, with at least 12 required. Total returns include reinvested distributions.

Return above 3-month US Treasury bills per unit of volatility.
1.32
vs 3-month T-bills · to Oct 2026
How it’s calculated: Sharpe ratio

Subtract each month’s Treasury-bill return from the fund’s monthly total return.

Divide the average of those excess returns by their sample standard deviation, then multiply by the square root of 12.

Uses up to 36 complete months, with at least 12 required. Each month uses the Treasury yield quoted at the end of the previous month.

The largest fall from a peak to the low that followed.
−17.6%
Trough Oct 2022
How it’s calculated: maximum drawdown

The largest percentage decline from an earlier peak, using total returns with reinvested distributions.

Uses up to five years through the last close, with at least 12 months required.

How strongly the fund’s returns move with its asset-class index.
0.67
vs its asset-class index
How it’s calculated: beta

The beta figure is supplied by FMP. The comparison index depends on the fund’s broad asset class.

FMP measures it over up to five years of monthly returns.

BUFG Cost

Compare BUFG and ALDB

Overpaying vs ALDB, cheapest in S&P 500 Laddered Buffer

$14,615

On $10,000 over 30 years. 7% growth a year before fees, expense ratio only.

  • BUFG 1.13%

    $20,764

  • ALDB 0.30% Cheapest

    $6,149

$10,000
30 years

Cost over time

  • BUFG 1.13%
  • ALDB 0.30%
  • Overpaying
One line per fund, from year 0 to year 30. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$0$5K$10K$15K$20K$25K051015202530BUFG $20,764ALDB $6,149

Year by year

YearBUFGALDBOverpaying
10$1,981$545$1,436
20$7,403$2,113$5,290
30$20,764$6,149$14,615

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