FT Vest Laddered Moderate Buffer ETF
$28.82−0.01 (−0.03%)
- 0.10%
- $1.1B
- +12.1%
- 0.2M sh
- $28.78
- low $25.72high $28.86
The ETF.net BUFZ Grade
A
Score 73 out of 100
- 3 of 18
Score 73 of 100 falls in the A 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.A82 out of 100Rank 1 of 18Mission
Whether the fund did what it promised, tested against its stated mandate.Risk
How the fund held up when markets fell: downside volatility, drawdowns and tail loss.B65 out of 100Rank 6 of 18Tradability
How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.B65 out of 100Rank 4 of 18Holdings
How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.A72 out of 100Rank 3 of 18Durability
Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.A73 out of 100Rank 4 of 18
Our read on BUFZ
ABuffer funds usually make you pick a start month and live with it. BUFZ skips the calendar: a ladder of FT Vest moderate-buffer ETFs on staggered outcome periods, so one ticker spreads buffered S&P 500 exposure across the cycle.
The fund targets capital growth by obtaining U.S. large-cap equity exposure through multiple moderate-buffer ETFs arranged across rolling maturities, with the structure intended to reduce downside risk.
Why people hold it
- No entry-date roulette. The ladder holds several moderate-buffer funds at different points in their outcome periods, so the buy date matters less than it does with a single-month buffer fund.ftportfolios.com
- One holding does the work of a do-it-yourself ladder. The rolling and rebalancing across maturities happens inside the fund instead of on your calendar.
- The underlying exposure is plain vanilla: US large-cap equity referenced to the S&P 500 via SPY, not an exotic custom index.
- Size and liquidity are real for a niche structure: a multi-billion-dollar fund that trades actively enough to keep dealing costs from dominating the decision.
Worth knowing
- Convenience has a price tag: 0.95% a year, above the buffer-peer median of 0.79%, and above laddered rivals like BUFP (0.50%) and IVVM (0.53%). It sits in the lower half of its peer group.
- Laddering blurs the buffer. Each sleeve sits at a different stage of its own period, so you hold a blend of partial buffers and partial caps rather than one clean stated buffer.
- Not an income vehicle. The mandate is capital growth with reduced downside risk, and the fund has not been making distributions.
BUFZ Holdings
- Other
- 13
- 83%
- GSEP
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%
BUFZ Performance
Shows how $10,000 changes over the selected period, with cash distributions reinvested at the closing price on each ex-dividend date.
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BUFZ$11,209
Returns run to the Oct 12, 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.
| Period | BUFZ |
|---|---|
| Year to date | +8.7% |
| 1 month | +1.2% |
| 3 months | +2.7% |
| 1 year | +12.1% |
| 3 years | — |
| 5 years | — |
| 10 years | — |
Calendar-year total return with cash distributions hypothetically reinvested at the ex-dividend date’s closing price. The current year shows year to date.
| Year | Return bar | BUFZ |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 YTD | +8.7% | |
| 2025 | +11.1% | |
| 2024 | +11.5% | |
| 2023 | +9.2% |
BUFZ in the news
BUFZ Dividends
No distributions in the last 12 months.
BUFZ Risk
- 5.4%
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.
- 1.52
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.
- −10.1%
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.
- 0.42
How it’s calculated: beta
The beta figure is supplied by FMP. The comparison index depends on the fund’s broad asset class.
BUFZ Cost
0.10%
BUFZ0.10%
- The middle half of S&P 500 Laddered Buffer funds
- Median 0.25%
No S&P 500 Laddered Buffer fund charges less.
Other funds in S&P 500 Laddered Buffer
- ABUFDFT Vest Laddered Deep Buffer ETFExpense ratio 0.10%1 year return +11.9%
- ABUFRFT Vest Laddered Buffer ETFExpense ratio 0.10%1 year return +14.8%
- ABUFFInnovator Laddered Allocation Power Buffer ETFExpense ratio 0.10%1 year return +12.3%
- BBUFBInnovator Laddered Allocation Buffer ETFExpense ratio 0.10%1 year return +15.7%
- BBUFTFT Vest Buffered Allocation Defensive ETFExpense ratio 0.20%1 year return +10.3%