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Launched · SEC filings

First Trust NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index Fund

FBTNYSE ArcaFirst TrustB

$270.23−3.30 (−1.21%)

As of Nov 10, 2026, 11:15 AM ET

B62/ 100

Rank 6 of 17 in Biotech & Genomics

B62/100Rank 6 of 17inBiotech & Genomics
Intraday session: down, 22 prints from 273.53 to 270.23. Range 270.23 to 274.02. Use the arrow keys to read each point.271.00272.00273.00274.0010 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM
Expense ratio
0.55%
Fund size
$2.97B
1Y total return
+40.6%
Yield · Last 12 months
0.00%
Holdings
31
Avg volume · 30D
71K sh
52W range
low $189.47high $283.21
Launched
Filings
SEC EDGAR

The ETF.net FBT Grade

B

Score 62 out of 100

Category
Biotech & Genomics⁠
Rank
6 of 17
Six-pillar profile for FBT. Scores out of 100: Cost 25, Risk 73, Mission 85, Tradability 81, Holdings 68, Durability 76. Strongest: Mission (85). Weakest: Cost (25). Leans toward Mission and Tradability.

Score 62 of 100 falls in the B 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.
    D25 out of 100
    Rank 13 of 17

  • Mission

    Whether the fund did what it promised, tested against its stated mandate.
    A85 out of 100
    Rank 2 of 9

  • Risk

    How the fund held up when markets fell: downside volatility, drawdowns and tail loss.
    A73 out of 100
    Rank 2 of 17

  • Tradability

    How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.
    A81 out of 100
    Rank 3 of 17

  • Holdings

    How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.
    B68 out of 100
    Rank 7 of 17

  • Durability

    Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.
    A76 out of 100
    Rank 3 of 17

Our read on FBT

ETF.net Research

In short

BBiotech served in about 30 equal-sized bites. FBT has tracked the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index since 2006, spreading each dollar evenly across a short roster instead of letting a few large caps run the show.

Stated mandate

The fund seeks to track, before fees and expenses, the performance of the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index.

Why people hold it

  • Equal weighting hands a small cap the same slot as a mega cap. About 30 names, each sized alike, so no single giant steers the fund.
  • Live since 2006, through multiple biotech booms and busts, with a billion-dollar-plus asset base behind it.
  • Moderately traded rather than a thin corner of the shelf, which matters in a sector where headlines arrive fast.
  • Lands in the upper half of the biotech and genomics funds we grade.

Worth knowing

  • At 0.55% a year it runs above the typical biotech fund's fee, and cheaper index routes exist (IBBQ at 0.19%, XBI at 0.35%).
  • About 30 stocks, equally weighted, means one trial readout can swing the whole basket. Concentrated biotech moves hard in both directions.
  • Not an income holding: drug developers plow cash into pipelines, and the fund has not been sending out distributions.

FBT Performance

Launched Jun 19, 2006

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

FBT$14,061
SPY tracks large US stocks. It provides market context, rather than representing this fund’s strategy, asset class or investment benchmark.$11,339
Nov 7, 2025 to Nov 9, 2026. FBT $14,061. SPY $11,339. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$10,000$12,000$14,000Nov 2025May 2026Nov 2026

Nov 7, 2025 – Nov 9, 2026

Returns run to the Nov 9, 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 FBT. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.
PeriodFBT
Year to date+32.4%
1 month+3.1%
3 months+6.9%
1 year+40.6%
3 yearsper year+26.7%
5 yearsper year+11.5%
10 yearsper year+11.0%

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 FBT
YearReturn barFBT
2026 YTD+32.4%
2025+24.3%
2024+5.9%

FBT in the news

FBT Dividends

Adds up every distribution paid per share over the last 12 months, divided by the last completed close. Distributions are counted by ex-date. Data through Nov 9, 2026.
0.00%Last 12 months
Payout per share
NoneLast 12 months

No distributions in the last 12 months.

Distribution history

Payments through 2024

One bar per payment. 5 payments from 2015 to 2024. Mar 25, 2015 $0.05; Jun 24, 2015 $0.07; Sep 23, 2015 $0.02; Dec 30, 2021 $2.21; Dec 13, 2024 $1.17. Use the arrow keys to read each point.2015201620172018201920202021202220232024
Ex-datePay dateAmount per share
Dec 13, 2024Dec 31, 2024$1.17
Dec 30, 2021Jan 10, 2022$2.21
Sep 23, 2015Sep 30, 2015$0.02
Jun 24, 2015Jun 30, 2015$0.07
Mar 25, 2015Mar 31, 2015$0.05
Dec 23, 2014Dec 31, 2014$0.05
Jun 23, 2008Jun 30, 2008$0.27

$10,000 in FBT 10 years ago paid $339 in dividends.

FBT Risk

Risk pillarA73 out of 100Rank 2 of 17 in Biotech & Genomics
How much the fund’s monthly returns vary, scaled to a year.
17.4%
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.
1.27
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.
−24.7%
Trough Jun 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.
0.76
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.

FBT Cost

Compare FBT and IBBQ

Overpaying vs IBBQ, cheapest in Biotech & Genomics

$6,952

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

  • FBT 0.55%

    $10,904

  • IBBQ 0.19% Cheapest

    $3,952

$10,000
30 years

Cost over time

  • FBT 0.55%
  • IBBQ 0.19%
  • Overpaying
One line per fund, from year 0 to year 30. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$0$2.5K$5K$7.5K$10K$12.5K051015202530FBT $10,904IBBQ $3,952

Year by year

YearFBTIBBQOverpaying
10$988$347$641
20$3,790$1,351$2,439
30$10,904$3,952$6,952

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