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MISL

GradeCNew York Stock Exchange Arca

First Trust Indxx Aerospace & Defense ETF

Themes · First Trust · Inception 2022-10-25

$42.77+0.07 (+0.15%)

As of Sep 23, 2026, 3:15 PM EDT

History starts Oct 26, 2022.
Intraday session: up, 70 prints from 42.71 to 42.77. Range 42.72 to 43.22. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$43.00$43.2010 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM
Expense ratio
0.60%
Fund size
$713M
1Y return
+6.1%
Yield · Last 12 months
0.32%
Holdings
39
Volume · 30D
0.1M sh
NAV per share
$42.98
52W range
low $38.84high $51.10

The ETF.net MISL Grade

C

51/ 100

Rank 11 of 26 in Defense & Aerospace⁠

Confidence Medium

Six-pillar profile for MISL. Scores out of 100: Cost 34, Risk 48, Mission not scored, Tradability 83, Holdings 42, Durability 84. Strongest: Durability (84). Weakest: Cost (34). Based on 5 of 6 pillars.
F< 25
D≥ 25
C≥ 40
B≥ 55
A≥ 70

Score 51 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.
    DScore 34
    Category rank17/26 · mid-pack

  • Mission

    How faithfully it does the job it claims — tracking its mandate or index with minimal slippage.
    Not scored
    —

  • Risk

    How violently it can move — volatility, drawdown depth, and downside capture versus its category.
    CScore 48
    Category rank14/25 · mid-pack

  • Tradability

    How cheaply and easily you can get in and out — liquidity, spread, and premium/discount stability.
    AScore 83
    Category rank4/26 · top 15%

  • Holdings

    What it actually owns — the quality, breadth, and concentration of the underlying portfolio.
    CScore 42
    Category rank18/26 · mid-pack

  • Durability

    Whether it will still be here — the fund’s assets, age, flows, and issuer staying power.
    AScore 84
    Category rank4/26 · top 15%

Graded as of Sep 22, 2026 · Based on 5 of 6 pillars

Our read on MISL

ETF.net Research

CFirst Trust's aerospace-and-defense sleeve: roughly 50 US-listed names tracking the Indxx US Aerospace & Defense Index. A 2022 arrival in a crowded aisle, priced a notch above the category median.

Stated mandate

The Fund seeks investment results corresponding generally to the price and yield of the Indxx US Aerospace & Defense Index and normally invests at least 80% of net assets in the stocks comprising that index.

Why people hold it

  1. 01Roughly 50 US aerospace and defense stocks, with at least 80% of net assets in the index names. Rules-based tracking, no manager hunches.ftportfolios.com
  2. 02Moderately traded rather than thin, which generally shows up as workable spreads on retail-size orders.
  3. 03Live since 2022 and run by First Trust, a long-established ETF shop. It sits in the upper half of the defense-theme funds we grade.

Worth knowing

  1. 010.60% a year sits above the category median of 0.50%, and cheaper US aerospace-and-defense trackers exist: XAR at 0.35%, ITA at 0.37%.
  2. 02One theme, one country. Results ride on defense budgets and aerospace cycles, and with about 50 names each holding carries real weight.
  3. 03Built for exposure, not income: distributions land annually or semiannually.

MISL Holdings

As of Sep 21, 2026, 5:11 PM
Asset class
Stocks
Holdings
39
Top-10 weight
63%
Largest holding
PLTR11.8%

Sectors

  • Industrials81.1%
  • Technology16.3%
  • Communication2.6%

Geography

  • United States100.00%
The fund’s holdings, weight-ordered — page 1 of 3.
#TickerCompanyWeight %SharesMarket valueIn ETFs
001PLTRPalantir Technologies Inc. (Class A)11.75%465,786$83M503
002SPCXSpace Exploration Technologies Corp. (Class A)8.81%406,452$62M268
003RTXRTX Corporation8.30%301,418$58M390
004BAThe Boeing Company7.48%265,691$53M305
005GEGE Aerospace7.34%164,382$52M404
006LMTLockheed Martin Corporation4.27%56,436$30M406
007NOCNorthrop Grumman Corporation4.10%54,718$29M345
008GDGeneral Dynamics Corporation3.95%78,732$28M367
009LHXL3Harris Technologies, Inc.3.57%101,551$25M307
010HEIHEICO Corporation3.56%84,152$25M187
011HWMHowmet Aerospace Inc.3.56%109,027$25M363
012TDGTransDigm Group Incorporated3.53%22,865$25M280
013RKLBRocket Lab Corporation3.34%364,369$24M237
014ASTSAST SpaceMobile, Inc.2.56%308,510$18M152
015CWCurtiss-Wright Corporation2.37%29,369$17M221

Showing 1–15 of 40 holdings

MISL Performance

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

MISL$10,615
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. MISL $10,615. SPY $11,723. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$9,280$11,100$12,920Sep 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 MISL. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.
PeriodMISL
Year to date−0.1%
1 month−6.2%
3 months−4.1%
1 year+6.1%
3 years+26.0%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 MISL
YearReturn barMISL
2026 YTD−0.1%
2025+41.2%
2024+20.5%
2023+14.8%
2022+8.2%

History from Oct 26, 2022

MISL in the news

ETF.net Research hasn’t filed on MISL yet — coverage lands here as it’s written.

MISL 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 Sep 22, 2026.
0.32%Last 12 months
Payout per share
$0.14Last 12 months
Last payment
$0.03 per share
Paid on
Shares bought on or after this date do not qualify for this distribution.
Frequency
Twice a year

Distribution history

2022–2026

One bar per payment. 13 payments from 2022 to 2026 YTD. Dec 23, 2022 $0.02; Mar 24, 2023 $0.01; Jun 27, 2023 $0.03; Sep 22, 2023 $0.02; Dec 22, 2023 $0.10; Mar 21, 2024 $0.04; Jun 27, 2024 $0.03; Sep 26, 2024 $0.02; Dec 13, 2024 $0.14; Mar 27, 2025 $0.04; Jun 26, 2025 $0.03; Sep 25, 2025 $0.11; Mar 26, 2026 $0.03. Use the arrow keys to read each point.20222023202420252026YTD
Ex-datePay dateAmount per share
Mar 26, 2026Mar 31, 2026$0.03
Sep 25, 2025Sep 30, 2025$0.11
Jun 26, 2025Jun 30, 2025$0.03
Mar 27, 2025Mar 31, 2025$0.04
Dec 13, 2024Dec 31, 2024$0.14
Sep 26, 2024Sep 30, 2024$0.02
Jun 27, 2024Jun 28, 2024$0.03
Mar 21, 2024Mar 28, 2024$0.04
Dec 22, 2023Dec 29, 2023$0.10
Sep 22, 2023Sep 29, 2023$0.02
Jun 27, 2023Jun 30, 2023$0.03
Mar 24, 2023Mar 31, 2023$0.01

MISL Risk

How much the fund’s monthly returns vary, scaled to a year.
18.7%
Annualised · 36 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.
1.03
vs 3-month T-bills · 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.
−17.9%
46 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.
0.90
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.

MISL Cost

Expense ratio0.60%
  • The middle half of Defense & Aerospace funds
  • Median 0.50%

15 of the 25 Defense & Aerospace funds charge less.

MISL costs $60.00 a year on $10,000. The median Defense & Aerospace fund costs $50.00.