FT Vest U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - September
$57.89+0.04 (+0.07%)
- 0.85%
- $1.4B
- +16.0%
- 0.1M sh
- $57.88
- low $49.14high $58.06
The ETF.net FSEP Grade
C
Score 45 out of 100
- 45 of 77
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 100Rank 60 of 77Mission
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.C52 out of 100Rank 37 of 76Tradability
How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.A86 out of 100Rank 3 of 77Holdings
How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.B56 out of 100Rank 24 of 44Durability
Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.A83 out of 100Rank 10 of 77
Our read on FSEP
CThe September rung of First Trust's twelve-month buffer ladder. It follows the price return of State Street's S&P 500 ETF, absorbs the first 10% of losses, and trades away upside above a cap that resets every September.
The fund seeks to track the price return of the State Street® SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust before fees and expenses, subject to a 14.00% upside cap and protection against the first 10% of losses during the stated outcome period.
Why people hold it
- The cushion is written into the mandate, not left to a manager's judgment: across each one-year period the options package absorbs the first 10% of a decline in the reference S&P 500 ETF, before fees.
- Twelve sibling funds, one per calendar month, all at the same 0.85% fee. Pick a start month or stack several so your protection isn't tied to a single September date.
- Running since 2020 and now a multi-billion-dollar fund with moderate trading activity, so the September vintage is a well-used rung rather than a thin experiment.
Worth knowing
- At 0.85% a year it prices above the typical buffer fund, and cheaper paths to a 10% buffer exist (BUFB at 0.10%, ZALT at 0.69%).
- Built to be held from one September reset to the next. Buy mid-period and your effective cap and leftover cushion differ from the stated terms.
- No distributions, so the payoff arrives in the share price. And the cushion stops at 10%; declines past that land on you alongside the reference ETF.
FSEP Holdings
- Other
- 3
- 104%
- 2027-09-17 State Street® SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust C 7.62
Sectors
- Technology38.5%
- Financials12.1%
- Communication9.6%
- Consumer Discretionary9.3%
- Health Care9.3%
- Industrials7.8%
- Consumer Staples4.5%
- Energy3.4%
- Utilities2.0%
- Real Estate1.8%
- Materials1.7%
FSEP Performance
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.
FSEP$11,601
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 | FSEP |
|---|---|
| Year to date | +12.2% |
| 1 month | +1.7% |
| 3 months | +4.2% |
| 1 year | +16.0% |
| 3 years | +15.5% |
| 5 years | +11.1% |
| 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 | FSEP |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 YTD | +12.2% | |
| 2025 | +12.8% | |
| 2024 | +13.6% | |
| 2023 | +20.2% | |
| 2022 | −7.1% | |
| 2021 | +11.6% | |
| 2020 | +9.4% |
FSEP in the news
Filings Digest
AllianzIM launches OCTI and resets October buffer terms
FSEP Dividends
No distributions in the last 12 months.
FSEP Risk
- 7.6%
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.
- 1.35
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.
- −13.8%
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.
- 0.62
How it’s calculated: beta
The beta figure is supplied by FMP. The comparison index depends on the fund’s broad asset class.
FSEP Cost
0.85%
FSEP0.85%
- The middle half of S&P 500 Buffer 9-12% funds
- Median 0.79%
59 of the 77 S&P 500 Buffer 9-12% funds charge less.
Other funds in S&P 500 Buffer 9-12%
- CFJANFT Vest U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - JanuaryExpense ratio 0.85%1 year return +15.5%
- CFJULFT Vest U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - JulyExpense ratio 0.85%1 year return +14.8%
- CDHDGFT Vest U.S. Equity Quarterly 2.5 to 15 Buffer ETFExpense ratio 0.85%1 year return +16.3%
- CFNOVFT Vest U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - NovemberExpense ratio 0.85%1 year return +16.1%
- CBNOVInnovator U.S. Equity Buffer ETFExpense ratio 0.79%1 year return +15.7%