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Launched

FT Vest U.S. Equity Quarterly Max Buffer ETF

SQMXCboeFirst TrustC

$34.88+0.04 (+0.11%)

As of Nov 2, 2026, 1:55 PM ET

C46/ 100

Rank 12 of 20 in S&P 500 Max Buffer

C46/100Rank 12 of 20inS&P 500 Max Buffer
Intraday session: up, 54 prints from 34.85 to 34.88. Range 34.73 to 34.94. Use the arrow keys to read each point.34.7534.8034.9510 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM
Expense ratio
0.85%
Fund size
$55M
1Y total return
+6.0%
Yield · Last 12 months
No data
Holdings
3
Avg volume · 30D
9.29K sh
52W range
low $32.53high $35.11
Launched

The ETF.net SQMX Grade

Based on 5 of 6 pillars

C

Score 46 out of 100

Category
S&P 500 Max Buffer⁠
Rank
12 of 20
Six-pillar profile for SQMX. Scores out of 100: Cost 21, Risk 40, Mission not scored, Tradability 92, Holdings 48, Durability 80. Strongest: Tradability (92). Weakest: Cost (21). Based on 5 of 6 pillars.

Score 46 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.
    F21 out of 100
    Rank 12 of 20

  • 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.
    C40 out of 100
    Rank 15 of 20

  • Tradability

    How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.
    A92 out of 100
    Rank 1 of 20

  • Holdings

    How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.
    C48 out of 100
    Rank 3 of 4

  • Durability

    Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.
    A80 out of 100
    Rank 4 of 20

Our read on SQMX

ETF.net Research

In short

CMost buffer ETFs fix the cushion and let the cap float. SQMX flips it: each quarter it buys the deepest cushion the options market will sell against S&P 500 declines, then takes whatever upside is left, with a 3% cap floor by design.

Stated mandate

The Fund seeks returns matching the price return of the State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust up to a preset cap while protecting the first 12.62% of losses over an approximately three-month target period.

Why people hold it

  • Buffer first, upside second. Each roughly three-month period targets the maximum available cushion against declines, and the design sets a minimum 3% upside cap.businesswire.com
  • Resets four times a year, so a fresh cushion and cap get struck every quarter rather than once every twelve months.businesswire.com
  • The reference is the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust itself, built with FLEX options, and the payoff keys off its price return: plain large-cap America, dividends excluded.businesswire.com
  • Sits inside First Trust's Target Outcome range, one of the largest defined-outcome ETF families, with Vest Financial running the options sleeve as sub-advisor.businesswire.com

Worth knowing

  • Runs 0.85% a year against a roughly 0.79% median for S&P 500 buffer funds, and the buffer is quoted before fees, so expenses come out of the cushioned result. DHDG and MARM charge the same.businesswire.com
  • Buy after day one of a period and your cushion and cap differ from the posted terms; the full stated buffer may not be available at that entry point.businesswire.com
  • A 2024 launch that trades thinly next to the biggest buffer names, so the bid-ask spread can matter as much as the fee, and it has not been paying distributions.

SQMX Holdings

Holdings pillarC48 out of 100Rank 3 of 4 in S&P 500 Max Buffer
Asset class
Other
Holdings
3
Top-10 weight
101%
Largest holding
2026-12-18 State Street® SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust C 7.6297.8%
The fund’s holdings, weight-ordered — page 1 of 1.
#TickerCompanyWeight %SharesMarket valueHeld by ETFs
1No data2026-12-18 State Street® SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust C 7.6297.84%719$53.8M1
2No data2026-12-18 State Street® SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust P 761.692.30%719$1.27M1
3No dataUS Dollar0.99%542,629$543K408

Showing 1–3 of 3 holdings

SQMX Performance

Launched Dec 20, 2024

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.Not enough history yet.Not enough history yet.
SQMX$10,596
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. SQMX $10,596. SPY $11,199. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$10,000$11,000Oct 2025May 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 SQMX. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.
PeriodSQMX
Year to date+4.4%
1 month0.0%
3 months+1.4%
1 year+6.0%
3 yearsFund is under 3 years oldper yearNo data
5 yearsFund is under 5 years oldper yearNo data
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 SQMX
YearReturn barSQMX
2026 YTD+4.4%
2025+8.8%

History from Jan 10, 2025

SQMX in the news

SQMX Dividends

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

No distributions in the last 12 months.

SQMX Risk

Risk pillarC40 out of 100Rank 15 of 20 in S&P 500 Max Buffer
How much the fund’s monthly returns vary, scaled to a year.
2.8%
Annualised · 21 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.
0.94
vs 3-month T-bills · 21 months 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.
−7.0%
21 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.
0.20
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.

SQMX Cost

Compare SQMX and PMJN

Overpaying vs PMJN, tied cheapest in S&P 500 Max Buffer

$6,220

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

  • SQMX 0.85%

    $16,199

  • PMJN 0.50% Tied cheapest

    $9,979

$10,000
30 years

Cost over time

  • SQMX 0.85%
  • PMJN 0.50%
  • Overpaying
One line per fund, from year 0 to year 30. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$0$5K$10K$15K$20K051015202530SQMX $16,199PMJN $9,979

Year by year

YearSQMXPMJNOverpaying
10$1,508$900$608
20$5,706$3,460$2,246
30$16,199$9,979$6,220

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