FT Vest U.S. Equity Enhance & Moderate Buffer ETF - December
$44.06+0.06 (+0.14%)
- 0.85%
- $209M
- +10.2%
- 0M sh
- $44.03
- low $39.57high $44.10
The ETF.net XDEC Grade
C
Score 48 out of 100
- 5 of 7
Score 48 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.D39 out of 100Rank 2 of 7Mission
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.C44 out of 100Rank 5 of 6Tradability
How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.B55 out of 100Rank 4 of 7Holdings
How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.B58 out of 100Rank 4 of 5Durability
Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.A79 out of 100Rank 1 of 7
Our read on XDEC
CMost buffered funds trade upside away for protection. This December-dated First Trust fund goes after both: roughly twice the price gain of the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust up to a yearly cap, with the first 15% of losses absorbed.
The Fund seeks approximately twice the positive price return of the State Street® SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust, subject to a 10.06% upside cap and protection against the first 15% of losses during the stated outcome period.
Why people hold it
- Accelerated and buffered in one wrapper: it aims for about 2x the reference ETF's positive price return up to a cap, while absorbing the first 15% of a decline over the outcome period.
- The reference is the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust itself, not a custom index built for the product, so the exposure being doubled is plain US large-cap.
- One rung of a dated ladder. Siblings like XMAR, XJUN and XNOV run the same structure on different reset months, so entry isn't pinned to a single December date.
- Live since 2021, which puts several full December-to-December outcome periods behind the strategy rather than a single test run.
Worth knowing
- At 0.85% a year it runs above accelerated peers such as XTAP and XDSQ at 0.79%. Layered options structures carry a higher price tag than plain beta.
- The cap and buffer are engineered for a full outcome period, December to December, and the cap is reset at each new period. Buy mid-period and your own cap and remaining buffer differ from the headline terms.
- Thinly traded next to mainstream index funds, so limit orders earn their keep. The design targets price return, not an income stream.
XDEC Holdings
- Other
- 4
- 120%
- 2026-12-18 State Street® SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust C 6.82
Sectors
- Technology40.1%
- Financials11.3%
- Communication9.9%
- Health Care9.4%
- Consumer Discretionary8.7%
- Industrials7.6%
- Consumer Staples4.4%
- Energy3.4%
- Utilities1.9%
- Real Estate1.7%
- Materials1.6%
XDEC Performance
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.
XDEC$11,022
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 | XDEC |
|---|---|
| Year to date | +7.5% |
| 1 month | +0.8% |
| 3 months | +2.3% |
| 1 year | +10.2% |
| 3 years | +9.9% |
| 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 | XDEC |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 YTD | +7.5% | |
| 2025 | +9.7% | |
| 2024 | +9.6% | |
| 2023 | +14.4% | |
| 2022 | −3.4% | |
| 2021 | +1.9% |
XDEC in the news
XDEC Dividends
No distributions in the last 12 months.
XDEC Risk
- 4.3%
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.
- 1.21
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.
- −11.7%
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.
- 0.30
How it’s calculated: beta
The beta figure is supplied by FMP. The comparison index depends on the fund’s broad asset class.
XDEC Cost
0.85%
XDEC0.85%
- The middle half of S&P 500 Accelerated, 15% Buffer funds
- Median 0.85%
1 of the 7 S&P 500 Accelerated, 15% Buffer funds charge less.
Other funds in S&P 500 Accelerated, 15% Buffer
- BXMARFT Vest U.S. Equity Enhance & Moderate Buffer ETF - MarchExpense ratio 0.85%1 year return +12.0%
- CXJUNFT Vest U.S. Equity Enhance & Moderate Buffer ETF - JuneExpense ratio 0.85%1 year return +8.9%
- CXSEPFT Vest U.S. Equity Enhance & Moderate Buffer ETF - SeptemberExpense ratio 0.85%1 year return +10.7%
- CXNOVFT Vest U.S. Equity Enhance & Moderate Buffer ETF - NovemberExpense ratio 0.85%1 year return +11.1%
- CXJANFirst Trust Exchange Traded Fund VIII - FT Vest U.S. Equity Enhance & Moderate Buffer ETF - JanuaryExpense ratio 0.85%1 year return +10.1%