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Launched · SEC filings

FT Vest U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - December

FDECCboeFirst TrustC

$55.63−0.28 (−0.50%)

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

C45/ 100

Rank 49 of 77 in S&P 500 Buffer 9-12%

C45/100Rank 49 of 77inS&P 500 Buffer 9-12%
Intraday session: down, 78 prints from 55.91 to 55.63. Range 55.63 to 56.24. Use the arrow keys to read each point.55.7055.8056.0056.1056.2010 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM
Expense ratio
0.85%
Fund size
$1.33B
1Y total return
+12.2%
Yield · Last 12 months
No data
Holdings
3
Avg volume · 30D
29.4K sh
52W range
low $48.63high $56.67
Launched
Filings
SEC EDGAR

The ETF.net FDEC Grade

Based on 5 of 6 pillars

C

Score 45 out of 100

Category
S&P 500 Buffer 9-12%⁠
Rank
49 of 77
Six-pillar profile for FDEC. Scores out of 100: Cost 11, Risk 54, Mission not scored, Tradability 84, Holdings 60, Durability 81. Strongest: Tradability (84). Weakest: Cost (11). Based on 5 of 6 pillars.

Score 45 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.
    F11 out of 100
    Rank 60 of 77

  • 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.
    C54 out of 100
    Rank 30 of 77

  • Tradability

    How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.
    A84 out of 100
    Rank 4 of 77

  • Holdings

    How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.
    B60 out of 100
    Rank 19 of 45

  • Durability

    Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.
    A81 out of 100
    Rank 16 of 77

Our read on FDEC

ETF.net Research

In short

CThe December door into First Trust's buffer ladder: it absorbs the first 10% of a drop in the big S&P 500 ETF over a one-year stretch, and trades away the rest of the upside above a cap that resets every December.

Stated mandate

The Fund seeks to match the price return of the State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust, subject to a 14.75% upside cap and protection against the first 10% of losses during the stated outcome period.

Why people hold it

  • Mechanically simple: the first 10% of the reference S&P 500 ETF's price decline is absorbed over each one-year outcome period, with a cap set fresh every December.ftportfolios.com
  • One of twelve monthly siblings running the same playbook (FJAN through FNOV), so a fresh outcome period is never far off and start months can be laddered.
  • Live since 2020 with assets in the billions, one of the settled, well-established names in the defined-outcome aisle.

Worth knowing

  • 0.85% a year sits at the pricier end of the buffer shelf: BUFB charges 0.10% and ZALT 0.69% for a comparable 10% cushion.
  • It follows price return, so S&P 500 dividends are not passed through and the fund has not been making distributions.
  • Thinly traded for its size, and the stated buffer and cap apply in full only across a complete outcome period. Buy mid-period and your own terms differ.

FDEC Performance

Launched Dec 18, 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.
FDEC$11,222
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. FDEC $11,222. 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 FDEC. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.
PeriodFDEC
Year to date+9.2%
1 month−0.2%
3 months+2.0%
1 year+12.2%
3 yearsper year+17.5%
5 yearsper year+10.4%
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 FDEC
YearReturn barFDEC
2026 YTD+9.2%
2025+14.8%
2024+14.3%
2023+22.8%
2022−9.2%
2021+14.1%
2020+1.4%

History from Dec 21, 2020

FDEC in the news

FDEC Dividends

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

No distributions in the last 12 months.

FDEC Risk

Risk pillarC54 out of 100Rank 30 of 77 in S&P 500 Buffer 9-12%
How much the fund’s monthly returns vary, scaled to a year.
8.1%
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.
1.51
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.
−15.7%
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.
0.66
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.

FDEC Cost

Compare FDEC and XTR

Overpaying vs XTR, cheapest in S&P 500 Buffer 9-12%

$11,040

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

  • FDEC 0.85%

    $16,199

  • XTR 0.25% Cheapest

    $5,159

$10,000
30 years

Cost over time

  • FDEC 0.85%
  • XTR 0.25%
  • Overpaying
One line per fund, from year 0 to year 30. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$0$5K$10K$15K$20K051015202530FDEC $16,199XTR $5,159

Year by year

YearFDECXTROverpaying
10$1,508$455$1,053
20$5,706$1,769$3,937
30$16,199$5,159$11,040

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