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GSEP

GradeCChicago Board Options Exchange

FT Vest U.S. Equity Moderate Buffer ETF - September

Buffered · First Trust · Inception 2023-09-15

$42.22−0.14 (−0.33%)

As of Sep 23, 2026, 2:19 PM EDT

History starts Sep 18, 2023.
Intraday session: down, 51 prints from 42.36 to 42.22. Range 42.16 to 42.32. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$42.15$42.20$42.25$42.3010 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM
Expense ratio
0.85%
Fund size
$348M
1Y return
+11.3%
Yield · Last 12 months
—
Holdings
4
Volume · 30D
0.1M sh
NAV per share
$42.31
52W range
low $37.40high $42.41

The ETF.net GSEP Grade

C

43/ 100

Rank 32 of 61 in S&P 500 Buffer 15%⁠

Confidence High

Six-pillar profile for GSEP. Scores out of 100: Cost 13, Risk 48, Mission 92, Tradability 80, Holdings 53, Durability 80. Strongest: Mission (92). Weakest: Cost (13). Leans toward Mission.
F< 25
D≥ 25
C≥ 40
B≥ 55
A≥ 70

Score 43 of 100 sits in the C band. Bands: A ≥ 70, B ≥ 55, C ≥ 40, D ≥ 25, F < 25; the scale skips E.

  • Cost

    What you pay to own it — the expense ratio plus trading frictions, ranked within its category.
    FScore 13
    Category rank58/61 · bottom quartile

  • Mission

    How faithfully it does the job it claims — tracking its mandate or index with minimal slippage.
    AScore 92
    Category rank2/2 · bottom quartile

  • Risk

    How violently it can move — volatility, drawdown depth, and downside capture versus its category.
    CScore 48
    Category rank32/57 · mid-pack

  • Tradability

    How cheaply and easily you can get in and out — liquidity, spread, and premium/discount stability.
    AScore 80
    Category rank3/61 · top 5%

  • Holdings

    What it actually owns — the quality, breadth, and concentration of the underlying portfolio.
    CScore 53
    Category rank19/32 · mid-pack

  • Durability

    Whether it will still be here — the fund’s assets, age, flows, and issuer staying power.
    AScore 80
    Category rank10/61 · top 16%

Graded as of Sep 22, 2026

Our read on GSEP

ETF.net Research

CA one-year hedge on a September clock: GSEP absorbs the first 15% of the decline in the big S&P 500 ETF it references, and trades that cushion for a cap on the upside. It's the September rung of First Trust's twelve-month moderate buffer ladder.

Stated mandate

The Fund seeks to match the price return of the State Street® SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust, subject to a predetermined upside cap and protection against the first 15% of losses during the stated outcome period.

Why people hold it

  1. 01The cushion is written into the strategy, not left to a manager's judgment: the first 15% of the reference ETF's price decline over the outcome period is absorbed by the options package.ftportfolios.com
  2. 02Eleven dated siblings (GJAN through GDEC) run the same 15% recipe on different start months, so entries can be staggered instead of hinging on one September reset.
  3. 03It references SPY itself rather than an index, and holds a few hundred million dollars with steady two-way trading, so getting in and out is among the smoother experiences in its buffer group.

Worth knowing

  1. 010.85% a year, above what the typical fund in this buffer group charges. That fee comes out of an upside that is capped to begin with.
  2. 02The mandate follows SPY's price return, so S&P 500 dividends are not part of your return. That forgone income is part of what funds the buffer.
  3. 03Buffer and cap are set for a full outcome period, September to September. Buy mid-period and you get whatever cushion and headroom remain, not the headline terms.

GSEP Holdings

As of Sep 21, 2026, 5:43 PM
Asset class
Other
Holdings
4
Top-10 weight
104%
Largest holding
2027-09-17 State Street® SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust C 7.7797.9%

Sectors

The fund’s holdings, weight-ordered — page 1 of 1.
#TickerCompanyWeight %SharesMarket valueIn ETFs
001—2027-09-17 State Street® SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust C 7.7797.89%4,540$339M1
002—2027-09-17 State Street® SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust P 761.845.05%4,540$17M1
003—US Dollar1.16%4,016,410$4M394

Showing 1–3 of 3 holdings

GSEP Performance

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

GSEP$11,130
SPY tracks large US stocks. It provides market context, rather than representing this fund’s strategy, asset class or investment benchmark.$11,723
Sep 22, 2025 to Sep 22, 2026. GSEP $11,130. SPY $11,723. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$9,353$10,646$11,940Sep 2025Mar 2026Sep 2026

Sep 22, 2025 – Sep 22, 2026

Returns run to the Sep 22, 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 GSEP. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.
PeriodGSEP
Year to date+9.3%
1 month+1.5%
3 months+3.7%
1 year+11.3%
3 years+12.6%per year
5 yearsFund is under 5 years old—per year
10 yearsFund is under 10 years old—per year

As of the close, 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 GSEP
YearReturn barGSEP
2026 YTD+9.3%
2025+10.6%
2024+10.9%
2023+4.7%

History from Sep 18, 2023

GSEP in the news

GSEP Dividends

This fund pays no distributions.
—Last 12 months
Payout per share
—Last 12 months

No distributions in the last 12 months.

GSEP Risk

How much the fund’s monthly returns vary, scaled to a year.
6.0%
Annualised · 35 months to Aug 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.
1.28
vs 3-month T-bills · 35 months to Aug 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.
−10.1%
36 months · trough Apr 2025
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.
0.45
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.

GSEP Cost

Expense ratio0.85%
  • The middle half of S&P 500 Buffer 15% funds
  • Median 0.79%

35 of the 50 S&P 500 Buffer 15% funds charge less.

GSEP costs $85.00 a year on $10,000. The median S&P 500 Buffer 15% fund costs $79.00.