Launched Jun 4, 2018 · SEC filings

First Trust Smith Unconstrained Bond ETF

UCONNYSE ArcaFirst TrustC

$24.01−0.03 (−0.12%)

At close: Nov 2, 2026, 4:00 PM ET

C54/ 100

Rank 72 of 116 in US Aggregate Bond

C54/100Rank 72 of 116inUS Aggregate Bond

Expense ratio: 0.86%
Fund size: $3.12B
1Y total return: −0.1%
Yield · Last 12 months: 4.78%
Holdings: 451
Avg volume · 30D: 627K sh
52W range: low $23.56high $25.63
Launched: Jun 4, 2018
Filings: SEC EDGAR

The ETF.net UCON Grade

Score 54 out of 100

Category: US Aggregate Bond⁠
Rank: 72 of 116

Cost
F4 out of 100
Rank 110 of 115
Mission
A96 out of 100
Rank 65 of 100
Risk
B64 out of 100
Rank 17 of 116
Tradability
C52 out of 100
Rank 57 of 116
Holdings
A83 out of 100
Rank 9 of 115
Durability
A80 out of 100
Rank 15 of 116

Our read on UCON

ETF.net Research

In short

CA bond fund with no index to hug. UCON's mandate keeps at least 80% in fixed income and leaves the rest of the map open, spreading roughly a thousand positions across the bond market and paying out monthly.

Stated mandate

The fund seeks to maximize long-term total return and normally invests at least 80% of its net assets in fixed-income securities.

Why people hold it

No benchmark leash. The mandate requires at least 80% in fixed income and otherwise lets the manager roam sectors, credit tiers and maturities in pursuit of long-term total return.ftportfolios.com
Roughly a thousand bond positions, so no single issuer's stumble dominates the portfolio.
Cash lands monthly, and this is a multi-billion-dollar, actively traded fund rather than a thin newcomer nobody quotes.
Trading since 2018, so the strategy has been run through both the zero-rate era and the hiking cycle that ended it.

Worth knowing

0.86% a year is active-manager pricing. Index aggregate trackers in the same aisle, like BND and SPAB, charge 0.03%.
Unconstrained also means unbenchmarked. The portfolio can look nothing like a core bond index, so it moves on its own schedule.
The mix reflects a manager's judgment, not an index rulebook, so what you own can shift as their view of rates and credit shifts.

UCON Holdings

Holdings pillarA83Rank 9 of 115 in US Aggregate Bond

Asset class: Bonds
Holdings: 451
Top-10 weight: 13%
Largest holding: U.S. Treasury Bond, 5.125%, due 08/15/20462.5%

Geography

United States93.72%
Canada2.34%
Cayman Islands0.64%
United Kingdom0.59%
Switzerland0.52%

Saudi Arabia0.51%
Ireland0.44%
Bermuda0.38%
Other countries (6)0.86%

The fund’s holdings, weight-ordered — page 1 of 31.
#	Ticker	Company	Weight %	Shares	Market value	Held by ETFs
1	No data	U.S. Treasury Bond, 5.125%, due 08/15/2046	2.51%	79,116,000	$77.3M	28
2	No data	U.S. Treasury Note, 4.25%, due 07/31/2028	2.05%	63,441,000	$63.1M	18
3	No data	U.S. Treasury Note, 4.125%, due 08/31/2028	1.84%	57,068,000	$56.6M	17
4	No data	U.S. Treasury Note, 4.75%, due 09/30/2028	1.74%	53,424,000	$53.6M	26
5	No data	U.S. Treasury Note, 4.375%, due 08/31/2031	0.98%	30,699,000	$30.3M	16
6	No data	Fannie Mae FN BM7755, 4%, due 06/01/2064	0.93%	32,059,539	$28.7M	2
7	No data	ALBERTSONS COS/SAFEWAY 6.50%, due 02/15/2028	0.88%	27,020,000	$27.1M	11
8	No data	Fannie Mae FN FA6190, 5%, due 06/01/2056	0.82%	26,290,265	$25.3M	1
9	No data	Freddie Mac FR SL6333, 5%, due 07/01/2056	0.80%	25,473,599	$24.5M	1
10	No data	U.S. Treasury Bond, 1.625%, due 11/15/2050	0.78%	48,224,000	$23.9M	16
11	No data	THE BOEING CO 7.008%, due 05/01/2064	0.71%	20,804,000	$21.9M	8
12	No data	Fannie Mae Series 2024-82, Class CF, Variable rate, due 11/25/2054	0.71%	21,782,948	$21.7M	1
13	No data	AMNEAL PHARMACEUTICALS LLC 6.875%, due 08/01/2032	0.70%	21,152,000	$21.7M	12
14	No data	Fannie Mae FN BQ7973, 2%, due 02/01/2051	0.66%	25,883,471	$20.2M	1
15	No data	GILDAN ACTIVEWEAR INC 4.70%, due 10/07/2030	0.64%	20,342,000	$19.5M	8

Showing 1–15 of 451 holdings

UCON Performance

Launched Jun 4, 2018

UCON$9,993

$11,199

Oct 31, 2025 – Oct 30, 2026

Trailing total return for UCON. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.
Period	UCON
Year to date	−0.8%
1 month	+1.6%
3 months	−1.0%
1 year	−0.1%
3 years	per year+5.4%
5 years	per year+2.4%
10 yearsFund is under 10 years old	per yearNo data

With distributions reinvested.

Annual total returns for UCON
Year	Return bar	UCON
2026 YTD		−0.8%
2025		+7.0%
2024		+4.7%
2023		+7.7%
2022		−5.7%
2021		+1.0%
2020		+6.5%

UCON in the news

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UCON Dividends

: 4.78%Last 12 months
Payout per share: $1.15Last 12 months

Last payment: $0.10 per share
Paid on: Oct 30, 2026
: Oct 21, 2026
Frequency: Monthly

Distribution history

2023–2026

Ex-date	Pay date	Amount per share
Oct 21, 2026	Oct 30, 2026	$0.10
Sep 24, 2026	Sep 30, 2026	$0.10
Aug 21, 2026	Aug 31, 2026	$0.10
Jul 21, 2026	Jul 31, 2026	$0.10
Jun 25, 2026	Jun 30, 2026	$0.10
May 21, 2026	May 29, 2026	$0.10
Apr 21, 2026	Apr 30, 2026	$0.09
Mar 26, 2026	Mar 31, 2026	$0.09
Feb 20, 2026	Feb 27, 2026	$0.09
Jan 21, 2026	Jan 30, 2026	$0.09
Dec 12, 2025	Dec 31, 2025	$0.11
Nov 21, 2025	Nov 28, 2025	$0.11

See all 99 payments⁠

$10,000 in UCON 5 years ago paid $2,007 in dividends.⁠

UCON Risk

Risk pillarB64Rank 17 of 116 in US Aggregate Bond

: 3.9%; Annualised · 36 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.
: 0.24; vs 3-month T-bills · 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.
: −9.5%; Trough Oct 2022; 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.
: 0.59; 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.

UCON Cost

Compare UCON and BKAG

Overpaying vs BKAG, cheapest in US Aggregate Bond

$16,368

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

UCON 0.86%
$16,368
BKAG 0.00% Cheapest
$0

Amount$10,000

Years30 years

Cost over time

UCON 0.86%
BKAG 0.00%
Overpaying

Year by year

Year	UCON	BKAG	Overpaying
10	$1,525	$0	$1,525
20	$5,768	$0	$5,768
30	$16,368	$0	$16,368

Other funds in US Aggregate Bond

CBKFIBNY Mellon Active Core Bond ETFExpense ratio 0.40%1 year return No data
CTABDTransamerica Bond Active ETFExpense ratio 0.39%1 year return No data
CVBNDVident U.S. Bond Strategy ETFExpense ratio 0.41%1 year return 0.0%
BWCPBWeitz Core Plus Bond ETFExpense ratio 0.45%1 year return +0.9%
CBCPLBNY Mellon Core Plus ETFExpense ratio 0.40%1 year return No data

See others

First Trust Smith Unconstrained Bond ETF

Cost

Mission

Risk

Tradability

Holdings

Durability