DAPR vs DFEB: Grades, Fees and Holdings Compared

FT Vest U.S. Equity Deep Buffer ETF - April

DAPRCCboe

FT Vest U.S. Equity Deep Buffer ETF - February

DFEBCCboe

Overlap

0.5%by weight

Expense ratio

DAPR0.85%DFEB0.85%

Avg volume · 30D

DFEB 1.7×the volume

DAPR8.05KDFEB13.6K

5Y return · a year

DFEB +2.2pt

DAPR+5.9%DFEB+8.1%

DAPR vs DFEB Performance

Oct 29, 2021 – Oct 30, 2026

+33.4%DAPR+47.8%DFEB

Expense ratio: DAPR 0.85%; DFEB 0.85%
Fund size: DAPR $334M; DFEB $456M
1Y total return: DAPR +7.5%; DFEB +10.2%, better
Holdings: DAPR 3; DFEB 3
Avg volume (30D): DAPR 8.05K sh; DFEB 13.6K sh, better
NAV per share: DAPR $41.69; DFEB $51.65
52W range

ETF.net Grade

Pillar letters and Scores for DAPR, DFEB, with each pillar’s weight
Pillar	DAPR	DFEB
Cost30% weight	D31	D31
Mission25% weight	Not scored	Not scored
Risk15% weight	C53	B66Higher
Tradability15% weight	D33	A77Higher
Holdings10% weight	B65Higher	B63
Durability5% weight	C41	A74Higher

Rank among S&P 500 Deep Buffer 25-30% funds

How we build Categories ›

Same Category. DAPR and DFEB are both graded against the same 19 S&P 500 Deep Buffer 25-30% funds, so their Grades compare head to head.

S&P 500 Deep Buffer 25-30%⁠

Category · 19 funds

See all 19 ›

DFEB ranks 4th and DAPR 17th of 19 funds in the S&P 500 Deep Buffer 25-30% Category.

Rank 1BPSCXPacer Swan SOS Conservative (January) ETFScore 63
Rank 1BUFEBInnovator U.S. Equity Ultra Buffer ETFScore 63
Rank 3BPSCQPacer Swan SOS Conservative (October) ETFScore 60
Rank 4CDFEBFT Vest U.S. Equity Deep Buffer ETF - FebruaryScore 54
Rank 4CPSCWPacer Swan SOS Conservative (April) ETFScore 54
Rank 17CCTJNCorgi U.S. Equities 30% Structured Buffer ETF - June SeriesScore 40
Rank 17CDAPRFT Vest U.S. Equity Deep Buffer ETF - AprilScore 40

Our read on each fund

ETF.net Research

DAPRCFT Vest U.S. Equity Deep Buffer ETF - April

DFEBCFT Vest U.S. Equity Deep Buffer ETF - February

In short

DAPR Most buffer funds cushion the first 10% of a drop. This one skips that and guards the deeper stretch: you take the first 5% of an S&P 500 slide, the fund targets -5% through -30%. April is its rung on First Trust's monthly ladder.

DFEB A buffer with a deductible. DFEB lets the first 5% of a drop in the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust land on you, then covers the next 25 points, in exchange for an upside cap that resets every February.

Stated mandate

DAPR The Fund seeks to match the price return of the State Street® SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust before fees and expenses, subject to a 12.04% upside cap. It seeks to buffer losses from -5% through -30% during the April 20, 2026-April 16, 2027 target outcome period.

DFEB The Fund seeks to match the price return of the State Street® SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust before fees and expenses, subject to an 11.87% upside cap, while protecting against Underlying ETF losses from -5% through -30% during the February 23, 2026–February 19, 2027 outcome period.

Why people hold it

DAPR Deep-buffer geometry: over each one-year period it seeks to offset S&P 500 losses from -5% through -30%, the zone where a correction becomes a bear market, in exchange for a preset upside cap.ftportfolios.com
Resets every April with a fresh cap and a fresh buffer, and it has a sibling for all twelve calendar months, so the series can be laddered instead of timed.
The engine is FLEX options on the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust: customized, exchange-traded contracts with terms written to match the fund's outcome period.ftportfolios.com
The 0.85% fee sits right at the middle of its deep-buffer peer group.

DFEB Deep coverage where it hurts: the fund targets protection against reference-ETF losses from -5% through -30%, a 25-point band, over each one-year outcome period.
One of twelve monthly vintages on the same reference ETF (DMAR, DJUN, DDEC and the rest), so entries can be laddered across the calendar instead of hinging on one start date.
Running since 2020, it has rolled through several full outcome periods, and it sits in the upper half of its deep-buffer peer group.
At 0.85%, the fee sits right at the median for deep-buffer funds tracking this kind of strategy.

Worth knowing

DAPR The buffer is not a floor. The first 5% of a decline is yours, and past -30% losses resume one for one.ftportfolios.com
Cap and buffer are struck for the April-to-April period. Buy mid-period and your own upside room and cushion differ from the headline terms.ftportfolios.com
Cheaper deep-buffer wrappers exist: Pacer's Swan SOS Conservative funds (PSCW, PSCX) charge 0.49%.

DFEB The trade for depth: you absorb the first 5% of losses yourself, and gains stop at a cap that is reset each February from option pricing at the time.
It tracks price return only, so the reference ETF's dividends are not passed along, and the fund has not been paying distributions.
Cheaper deep-buffer options exist (PSCX and PSCW run 0.49%), and DFEB trades lightly, so limit orders are the sane way in and out.

Full DAPR profile⁠

Full DFEB profile⁠

DAPR vs DFEB Holdings

How DAPR and DFEB differ

Overlap by weight

0.5%

Shared holdings make up 0.7% of DAPR and 0.5% of DFEB.

Level by level

Holdings0 in both0.5%
Countryby domicile100%
Sector11 Sectors100%

Sector

Sector weights in DAPR and DFEB, widest gap first
Sector	More in DAPRMore in DFEB	DAPR	DFEB
Technology	Same weight	40.1%	40.1%
Financials	Same weight	11.3%	11.3%
Communication	Same weight	9.9%	9.9%
Health Care	Same weight	9.4%	9.4%
Consumer Discretionary	Same weight	8.7%	8.7%
Industrials	Same weight	7.6%	7.6%
Consumer Staples	Same weight	4.4%	4.4%
Energy	Same weight	3.4%	3.4%
Utilities	Same weight	1.9%	1.9%
Real Estate	Same weight	1.7%	1.7%
Materials	Same weight	1.6%	1.6%

Country, concentration and asset class

Country by domicile

Country weights in DAPR and DFEB, widest gap first
Country	More in DAPRMore in DFEB	DAPR	DFEB
United States	Same weight	99.5%	99.5%
Switzerland	Same weight	0.3%	0.3%
China	Same weight	0.1%	0.1%
Mexico	Same weight	0.1%	0.1%
Ireland	Same weight	0.0%	0.0%
United Kingdom	Same weight	0.0%	0.0%

Concentration

Weight in the 10 largest Holdings

DAPR102.8%
DFEB103.2%

Securities held

DAPR2
DFEB2

Asset class

DAPR: Multi-Asset
DFEB: Multi-Asset

Holdings

Only in DAPR2
In both0
Only in DFEB2

Only in DAPR

2 securities, 100% of DAPR by weight

2027-04-16 State Street® SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust C 7.09100.54%
2027-04-16 State Street® SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust P 674.631.59%

Only in DFEB

2 securities, 100% of DFEB by weight

2027-02-19 State Street® SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust C 6.88101.76%
2027-02-19 State Street® SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust P 654.960.87%

Weight gaps

DAPR and DFEB share no securities.

All 4 DAPR holdings⁠All 4 DFEB holdings⁠

How we measure overlap

Each holding counts at its smaller weight in the two funds, summed over the full Holdings. Sector, country and asset class use the same rule on each fund’s split. Cash, FX and derivative lines stay out of the counts. Two bond funds get no overlap figure.

DAPR vs DFEB Cost

Same expense ratio

$16,199

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

DAPR 0.85%
$16,199
DFEB 0.85%
$16,199

Amount$10,000

Years30 years

Cost over time

DAPR 0.85%
DFEB 0.85%

Year by year

Year	DAPR	DFEB
10	$1,508	$1,508
20	$5,706	$5,706
30	$16,199	$16,199

Expense ratio

0.85%DAPR
0.85%DFEB

DAPR0.85%DFEB0.85%

0.30%0.85%

Middle half of S&P 500 Deep Buffer 25-30% funds
Median 0.85%

DAPR 8th cheapest of 19 funds

DFEB 8th cheapest of 19 funds

DAPR vs DFEB Dividends

Last 12 months to Oct 30, 2026

Payout (12M): DAPR None; DFEB None

Distribution history

DAPRAll DAPR payments⁠

No distribution history available.

DFEBAll DFEB payments⁠

No distribution history available.

DAPR vs DFEB Risk

Fall from peak · 5 years

DAPR
DFEB

Risk facts

VolatilityStd dev, 3 years: DAPR 4.7%, betterDFEB 6.1%
Return per unit of riskSharpe ratio, 3 years: DAPR 1.46DFEB 1.57, better
Worst fallMax drawdown, 5 years: DAPR −10.5%DFEB −10.0%, better
Market sensitivityBeta, 5 years: DAPR 0.29DFEB 0.50; Market = 1

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