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Launched

FT Vest Laddered Buffer ETF

BUFRCboeFirst TrustC

$37.27−0.13 (−0.35%)

At close: Nov 2, 2026, 4:00 PM ET

C52/ 100

Rank 8 of 18 in S&P 500 Laddered Buffer

C52/100Rank 8 of 18inS&P 500 Laddered Buffer
Intraday session: down, 79 prints from 37.40 to 37.27. Range 37.27 to 37.65. Use the arrow keys to read each point.37.5037.6010 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM
Expense ratio
0.95%
Fund size
$10.9B
1Y total return
+10.5%
Yield · Last 12 months
No data
Holdings
13
Avg volume · 30D
1.26M sh
52W range
low $33.03high $37.95
Launched

The ETF.net BUFR Grade

Based on 5 of 6 pillars

C

Score 52 out of 100

Category
S&P 500 Laddered Buffer⁠
Rank
8 of 18
Six-pillar profile for BUFR. Scores out of 100: Cost 24, Risk 47, Mission not scored, Tradability 91, Holdings 71, Durability 92. Strongest: Durability (92). Weakest: Cost (24). Based on 5 of 6 pillars.

Score 52 of 100 falls in the C 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.
    F24 out of 100
    Rank 12 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.
    C47 out of 100
    Rank 12 of 18

  • Tradability

    How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.
    A91 out of 100
    Rank 1 of 18

  • Holdings

    How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.
    A71 out of 100
    Rank 3 of 18

  • Durability

    Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.
    A92 out of 100
    Rank 1 of 18

Our read on BUFR

ETF.net Research

In short

CMost buffer ETFs make you pick a start month. BUFR skips the calendar: twelve underlying FT Vest buffer funds on a rolling monthly ladder, each cushioning the first 10% of S&P 500 ETF losses in exchange for a cap.

Stated mandate

The Fund seeks capital appreciation through U.S. large-cap equity exposure and a laddered portfolio of twelve underlying buffer ETFs. Those underlying ETFs seek SPY price-return exposure up to caps while buffering the first 10% of SPY losses.

Why people hold it

  • The ladder is the whole idea: twelve underlying buffer funds resetting on a staggered schedule, so one purchase date doesn't lock you into a single year's cap and buffer.ftportfolios.com
  • Each sleeve is built to absorb the first 10% of SPY's price decline over its outcome period. A defined cushion written into the fund's documents, not a manager's judgment call.
  • One ticker replaces a twelve-fund do-it-yourself ladder, and it's a multi-billion-dollar, actively traded name in a corner of the market full of thin ones.
  • Running since 2020, it sits in the upper half of its buffer peer group on our review, with a wide underlying basket rather than a single-month bet.

Worth knowing

  • The convenience costs: 0.95% a year, richer than the typical fund in its buffer group, and cheaper defensive structures exist (SWAN at 0.49%, DMAX at 0.53%).
  • Caps are the trade for the cushion. The sleeves track SPY's price return only, so dividends and the top of a big rally stay outside the deal.
  • Laddering blends outcomes rather than delivering one: each sleeve sits at a different point in its own period, so your protection at any moment is partial, not a clean 10% floor.

BUFR Performance

Launched Aug 10, 2020

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.
BUFR$11,046
SPY tracks large US stocks. It provides market context, rather than representing this fund’s strategy, asset class or investment benchmark.$11,146
Oct 31, 2025 to Nov 2, 2026. BUFR $11,046. SPY $11,146. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$10,000$11,000Oct 2025May 2026Nov 2026

Oct 31, 2025 – Nov 2, 2026

Returns run to the Nov 2, 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 BUFR. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.
PeriodBUFR
Year to date+8.8%
1 month−1.0%
3 months+1.4%
1 year+10.5%
3 yearsper year+14.8%
5 yearsper year+9.5%
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 BUFR
YearReturn barBUFR
2026 YTD+8.8%
2025+12.4%
2024+14.7%
2023+19.6%
2022−7.6%
2021+11.9%
2020+7.6%

History from Aug 11, 2020

BUFR in the news

BUFR Dividends

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

No distributions in the last 12 months.

BUFR Risk

Risk pillarC47 out of 100Rank 12 of 18 in S&P 500 Laddered Buffer
How much the fund’s monthly returns vary, scaled to a year.
7.1%
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.
1.50
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.
−13.7%
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.
0.61
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.

BUFR Cost

Compare BUFR and ALDB

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

$11,720

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

  • BUFR 0.95%

    $17,869

  • ALDB 0.30% Cheapest

    $6,149

$10,000
30 years

Cost over time

  • BUFR 0.95%
  • 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$20K051015202530BUFR $17,869ALDB $6,149

Year by year

YearBUFRALDBOverpaying
10$1,678$545$1,133
20$6,322$2,113$4,209
30$17,869$6,149$11,720

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