First-Year Review
Hartford Dynamic Bond ETF's first year: coupons covered a 3.9% slide
First Trust High Income Strategic Focus ETF
$42.55+0.01 (+0.03%)
- 0.10%
- $98M
- −1.1%
- 5.28%
- 0M sh
- $42.55
- low $42.15high $45.62
The ETF.net HISF Grade
B
Score 69 out of 100
- 3 of 25
Score 69 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.A100 out of 100Rank 1 of 25Mission
Whether the fund did what it promised, tested against its stated mandate.B56 out of 100Rank 10 of 14Risk
How the fund held up when markets fell: downside volatility, drawdowns and tail loss.C42 out of 100Rank 12 of 20Tradability
How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.A74 out of 100Rank 3 of 25Holdings
How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.C43 out of 100Rank 16 of 25Durability
Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.A76 out of 100Rank 5 of 25
Our read on HISF
BAn income-first fund that ranks risk-adjusted income above raw yield, with capital appreciation as the second job. Trading since 2014, paying monthly, built on fixed income, and charging 0.83% for the active work.
The Fund seeks risk-adjusted income as its primary objective and capital appreciation secondarily.
Why people hold it
- Pays monthly, so income arrives on a schedule closer to the one your expenses run on.
- The mandate is explicit: risk-adjusted income first, capital appreciation second. That ordering tells you what gets priority when the two pull against each other.
- Live since 2014, so there is a real operating history across very different rate regimes behind it, not a backtest.
- Fixed income does the heavy lifting here, an income-built portfolio sitting in a peer group dominated by stock-and-bond allocation funds.
Worth knowing
- At 0.83% a year, it runs above the typical expense ratio in its multi-asset peer group. Active income selection is what that premium buys.
- Cheaper allocation options share the peer group: AOA at 0.19%, IRTR at 0.08%. Neither is built around an income-first mandate.
- It trades thinly for its category, so limit orders and a look at the spread matter more here than with the household names.
HISF Holdings
- Other
- 12
- 95%
- FTCB
Geography
- United States100.00%
HISF Performance
Shows how $10,000 changes over the selected period, with cash distributions reinvested at the closing price on each ex-dividend date.
HISF$9,893
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 | HISF |
|---|---|
| Year to date | −2.3% |
| 1 month | −1.4% |
| 3 months | −2.5% |
| 1 year | −1.1% |
| 3 years | +5.0% |
| 5 years | +1.3% |
| 10 years | +2.7% |
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 | HISF |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 YTD | −2.3% | |
| 2025 | +8.4% | |
| 2024 | +2.2% | |
| 2023 | +6.4% | |
| 2022 | −10.0% | |
| 2021 | +10.2% | |
| 2020 | −2.8% |
HISF in the news
HISF Dividends
- 5.28%
- $2.25
- $0.18 per share
- Monthly
Distribution history
HISF Risk
- 5.3%
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.
- 0.02
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.
- −13.2%
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.
- 0.88
How it’s calculated: beta
The beta figure is supplied by FMP. The comparison index depends on the fund’s broad asset class.
HISF Cost
0.10%
HISF0.10%
- The middle half of Multi-Sector Bond Income funds
- Median 0.55%
No Multi-Sector Bond Income fund charges less.
Other funds in Multi-Sector Bond Income
- AVGMSVanguard Malvern Funds - Vanguard Multi-Sector Income Bond ETFExpense ratio 0.30%1 year return +2.0%
- AAINPAllspring Exchange-Traded Funds Trust - Allspring Income Plus ETFExpense ratio 0.36%1 year return +0.9%
- BXAGGMorgan Stanley ETF Trust - Eaton Vance Strategic Income Opportunities ETFExpense ratio 0.50%1 year return —
- BTMBThornburg Multi Sector Bond ETFExpense ratio 0.55%1 year return +0.1%
- BMSTIMadison Short Term Strategic Income ETFExpense ratio 0.36%1 year return +1.1%