FT Vest U.S. Equity Quarterly Max Buffer ETF
$35.03−0.04 (−0.11%)
- 0.85%
- $55M
- +8.2%
- 0M sh
- $35.05
- low $32.51high $35.09
The ETF.net SQMX Grade
C
Score 46 out of 100
- 11 of 20
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 100Rank 12 of 20Mission
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.C40 out of 100Rank 15 of 20Tradability
How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.A93 out of 100Rank 1 of 20Holdings
How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.C48 out of 100Rank 3 of 4Durability
Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.A77 out of 100Rank 4 of 20
Our read on SQMX
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.
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
- Other
- 3
- 102%
- 2026-12-18 State Street® SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust C 7.62
SQMX Performance
Shows how $10,000 changes over the selected period, with cash distributions reinvested at the closing price on each ex-dividend date.
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SQMX$10,824
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 | SQMX |
|---|---|
| Year to date | +5.1% |
| 1 month | +0.9% |
| 3 months | +2.0% |
| 1 year | +8.2% |
| 3 years | — |
| 5 years | — |
| 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 | SQMX |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 YTD | +5.1% | |
| 2025 | +8.8% |
SQMX in the news
SQMX Dividends
No distributions in the last 12 months.
SQMX Risk
- 2.8%
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.
- 1.04
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.
- −7.0%
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.
- 0.20
How it’s calculated: beta
The beta figure is supplied by FMP. The comparison index depends on the fund’s broad asset class.
SQMX Cost
0.85%
SQMX0.85%
- The middle half of S&P 500 Max Buffer funds
- Median 0.52%
11 of the 20 S&P 500 Max Buffer funds charge less.
Other funds in S&P 500 Max Buffer
- CMARMFT Vest U.S. Equity Max Buffer ETF - MarchExpense ratio 0.85%1 year return +6.4%
- CPMNVPGIM S&P 500 Max Buffer ETF - NovemberExpense ratio 0.50%1 year return —
- CDECMFirst Trust Exchange-Traded Fund VIII - FT Vest U.S. Equity Max Buffer ETF - DecemberExpense ratio 0.85%1 year return +7.0%
- CJUNMFT Vest U.S. Equity Max Buffer ETF - JuneExpense ratio 0.85%1 year return +5.2%
- CJULMFirst Trust Exchange-Traded Fund VIII - FT Vest U.S. Equity Max Buffer ETF - JulyExpense ratio 0.85%1 year return +6.1%