DIVB vs FTDS: Grades, Fees and Holdings Compared

iShares Core Dividend ETF

DIVBACboe

First Trust Dividend Strength ETF

FTDSCNasdaq

Overlap

10.3%by weight

Expense ratio

DIVB −0.65pt a year

DIVB0.05%FTDS0.70%

Avg volume · 30D

DIVB 136.6×the volume

DIVB298KFTDS2.19K

5Y return · a year

DIVB +6.2pt

DIVB+14.5%FTDS+8.3%

DIVB vs FTDS Performance

Oct 29, 2021 – Oct 30, 2026

+96.4%DIVB+48.9%FTDS

Expense ratio: DIVB 0.05%, better; FTDS 0.70%
Fund size: DIVB $2.31B; FTDS $40M
1Y total return: DIVB +40.7%, better; FTDS +26.8%
Yield (12M): DIVB 2.08%, better; FTDS 1.57%
Holdings: DIVB 384; FTDS 51
Avg volume (30D): DIVB 298K sh, better; FTDS 2.19K sh
NAV per share: DIVB $71.28; FTDS $67.47
52W range

ETF.net Grade

Pillar letters and Scores for DIVB, FTDS, with each pillar’s weight
Pillar	DIVB	FTDS
Cost30% weight	A95Higher	F0
Mission25% weight	A86Higher	A83
Risk15% weight	A74Higher	C46
Tradability15% weight	B64Higher	D27
Holdings10% weight	B60	B61Higher
Durability5% weight	A71Higher	C54

Rank among US Dividend Index funds

How we build Categories ›

Same Category. DIVB and FTDS are both graded against the same 52 US Dividend Index funds, so their Grades compare head to head.

US Dividend Index⁠

Category · 52 funds

See all 52 ›

DIVB ranks 3rd and FTDS 46th of 52 funds in the US Dividend Index Category.

Rank 1ADGROiShares Core Dividend Growth ETFScore 86
Rank 2ASCHDSchwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETFScore 81
Rank 3ADIVBiShares Core Dividend ETFScore 80
Rank 4ASPYDState Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 High Dividend ETFScore 79
Rank 45CPEYInvesco High Yield Equity Dividend Achievers ETFScore 41
Rank 46CFTDSFirst Trust Dividend Strength ETFScore 40
Rank 46CTMDVProShares Russell U.S. Dividend Growers ETFScore 40

Our read on each fund

ETF.net Research

DIVBAiShares Core Dividend ETF

FTDSCFirst Trust Dividend Strength ETF

In short

DIVB Most dividend funds only count the check that hits your account. DIVB's index also counts buybacks, treating a shrinking share count as cash returned to owners, and it charges five basis points to do it.

FTDS A yield fund with a bouncer at the door: companies must clear debt, return-on-equity, payout and dividend-growth tests before the index ranks them by yield. The roughly 50 survivors get equal weight, rechecked every quarter.

Stated mandate

DIVB The fund seeks to track an index of U.S. companies selected for a history of dividend payments and/or share buybacks, providing equity exposure oriented toward income and long-term growth.

FTDS The Fund seeks to track the price and yield performance of The Dividend Strength Index before fees and expenses.

Why people hold it

DIVB Five basis points a year, one of the lowest fees in the dividend-screen aisle, where the typical fund charges many times more.
The Morningstar US Dividend and Buyback Index counts repurchases alongside payouts, so a company buying back stock qualifies even with a modest yield. Roughly 400 US names.
Sits in the top tier of a large dividend-screen peer group and stays tight to its stated mandate: US dividend payers and buyback machines, nothing exotic.
A billion-dollar-plus member of the iShares Core lineup, running since 2017 and distributing quarterly.

FTDS Balance sheet first: long-term debt under 40% of market cap, ROE above 10%, payout under 50%, five-year dividend growth above 5%. Yield ranking comes after those gates.nasdaqomx.com ftportfolios.com
Equal weight across roughly 50 names, rebuilt quarterly, so no single mega-cap sets the tone.ftportfolios.com
Rules-based and passive: a Nasdaq-maintained index drawn from the Nasdaq US Benchmark, with liquidity screens. No manager picking favorites. Pays quarterly.nasdaqomx.com

Worth knowing

DIVB Buybacks return value through share count, not cash in your pocket, so the income profile can sit lighter than pure high-yield screens like SPYD.
Moderately traded rather than a volume heavyweight like SCHD or VIG, so limit orders earn their keep, especially in size.
All-equity, all-US. Dividends and buybacks soften nothing when the American stock market sells off.

FTDS 0.70% net of a waiver through April 30, 2027 (0.81% gross), above the category median. Big index rivals cost far less: SCHD 0.06%, VIG 0.04%.
A small fund that trades thinly, so the bid/ask spread is part of the cost of getting in and out.
The ticker dates to 2006, the strategy does not: it tracked Value Line, then AlphaDEX indexes, before switching to The Dividend Strength Index in April 2022.sec.gov

Full DIVB profile⁠

Full FTDS profile⁠

DIVB vs FTDS Holdings

How DIVB and FTDS differ

Overlap by weight

10.3%

Shared holdings make up 73.7% of FTDS and 11.3% of DIVB.

Level by level

Holdings37 in both10.3%
Countryby domicile99.4%
Asset classEquity100%

Sector

No Sector split for DIVB.

Country, concentration and asset class

Country by domicile

Country weights in DIVB and FTDS, widest gap first
Country	More in DIVBMore in FTDS	DIVB	FTDS
United States	FTDS +0.6 points	99.4%	100.0%
Other countries (4)	DIVB +0.6 points	0.6%	0.0%

Concentration

Weight in the 10 largest Holdings

DIVB32.7%
FTDS21.1%

Securities held

DIVB381
FTDS50

Asset class

DIVB: Equity
FTDS: Equity

Holdings

Only in DIVB344
In both37
Only in FTDS13

Only in DIVB

344 securities, 88.4% of DIVB by weight

Accenture PLC Class A6.53%
International Business Machines Co5.18%
Automatic Data Processing Inc4.98%
Exxonmobil Holdings Corp2.75%
JPMorgan Chase & Co2.36%
Paychex2.06%
Johnson & Johnson2.03%
AbbVie1.94%
Chevron1.90%
Hp Inc1.88%
Procter & Gamble1.69%
UnitedHealth Group1.46%
Leidos Holdings1.44%
Pfizer1.39%
Ss and C Technologies Holdings1.37%
Merck & Co Inc1.34%
Skyworks Solutions1.31%
Philip Morris International1.25%
Microchip Technology Inc1.22%
Bank of America1.12%
Altria Group Inc1.11%
Coca-Cola1.08%
Wells Fargo1.05%
Verizon Communications Inc1.01%
Pepsico0.99%
Hca Healthcare0.97%
AT&T0.80%
Gilead Sciences0.78%
Citigroup0.78%
Progressive0.77%
Home Depot0.76%
Amgen Inc0.76%
Gen Digital0.72%
Comcast Class A0.69%
Abbott Laboratories0.66%
Marathon Petroleum0.64%
Bristol Myers Squibb0.63%
T Mobile Us Inc0.59%
Cigna0.59%
Mcdonalds Corp0.52%
Medtronic PLC0.52%
Morgan Stanley0.51%
Capital One Financial Corp0.50%
Mondelez International Class A0.44%
Genpact0.43%
Truist Financial0.43%
Cme Group Class A0.43%
United Parcel Service Inc Class B0.42%
Cvs Health0.42%
Valero Energy Corp0.41%

Only in FTDS

13 securities, 26.2% of FTDS by weight

Equifax Inc.2.22%
NXP Semiconductors N.V.2.19%
Texas Roadhouse, Inc.2.10%
Northrop Grumman Corporation2.08%
Targa Resources Corp.2.07%
Houlihan Lokey, Inc.2.06%
Intuit Inc.2.03%
Occidental Petroleum Corporation1.99%
Zoetis Inc.1.95%
Baker Hughes Company (Class A)1.92%
W.R. Berkley Corporation1.90%
QUALCOMM Incorporated1.86%
Cummins Inc.1.82%

Weight gaps

All 37 Holdings in both funds, largest gap first.

Holding weights in DIVB and FTDS, widest gap first
Holding	More in DIVBMore in FTDS	DIVB	FTDS
Oshkosh CorpOSK	FTDS +2.10 points	0.03%	2.13%
ToroTTC	FTDS +2.03 points	0.05%	2.08%
ApaAPA	FTDS +2.02 points	0.06%	2.08%
HalliburtonHAL	FTDS +1.98 points	0.11%	2.09%
Cincinnati FinancialCINF	FTDS +1.97 points	0.08%	2.05%
Everest GroupEG	FTDS +1.97 points	0.08%	2.05%
Rpm International IncRPM	FTDS +1.96 points	0.03%	1.99%
Southstate Bank CorpSSB	FTDS +1.96 points	0.04%	2.00%
East West BancorpEWBC	FTDS +1.95 points	0.05%	2.00%
Avery Dennison CorpAVY	FTDS +1.94 points	0.07%	2.01%
Cullen Frost BankersCFR	FTDS +1.94 points	0.03%	1.97%
Mccormick & Co Non-VotingMKC	FTDS +1.92 points	0.06%	1.98%
Tractor SupplyTSCO	FTDS +1.91 points	0.07%	1.98%
Chord EnergyCHRD	FTDS +1.90 points	0.07%	1.97%
General Dynamics CorpGD	FTDS +1.90 points	0.20%	2.10%
Commerce BancsharesCBSH	FTDS +1.89 points	0.03%	1.92%
Regions FinancialRF	FTDS +1.89 points	0.13%	2.02%
Ingredion IncINGR	FTDS +1.88 points	0.04%	1.92%
Cf Industries Holdings IncCF	FTDS +1.87 points	0.11%	1.98%
PopularBPOP	FTDS +1.86 points	0.05%	1.91%
Principal Financial Group IncPFG	FTDS +1.86 points	0.13%	1.99%
Snap On IncSNA	FTDS +1.82 points	0.06%	1.88%
Expand EnergyEXE	FTDS +1.81 points	0.07%	1.88%
Devon EnergyDVN	FTDS +1.80 points	0.19%	1.99%
MarshMRSH	FTDS +1.76 points	0.31%	2.07%
Hartford Insurance GroupHIG	FTDS +1.71 points	0.19%	1.90%
AflacAFL	FTDS +1.64 points	0.36%	2.00%
Target CorpTGT	FTDS +1.64 points	0.30%	1.94%
Union PacificUNP	FTDS +1.61 points	0.43%	2.04%
Jack Henry and Associates IncJKHY	FTDS +1.55 points	0.49%	2.04%
Phillips 66PSX	FTDS +1.54 points	0.33%	1.87%
Eog ResourcesEOG	FTDS +1.53 points	0.50%	2.03%
ConocophillipsCOP	FTDS +1.37 points	0.67%	2.04%
Elevance Health IncELV	FTDS +1.32 points	0.58%	1.90%
Cognizant Technology Solutions ClaCTSH	DIVB +1.06 points	2.97%	1.91%
Broadridge Financial Solutions IncBR	FTDS +0.92 points	1.06%	1.98%
CdwCDW	FTDS +0.67 points	1.31%	1.98%

All 381 DIVB holdings⁠All 50 FTDS 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.

DIVB vs FTDS Cost

Overpaying FTDS vs DIVB

$12,546

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

DIVB 0.05%
$1,060
FTDS 0.70%
$13,606

Amount$10,000

Years30 years

Cost over time

DIVB 0.05%
FTDS 0.70%
Overpaying

Year by year

Year	DIVB	FTDS	Overpaying
10	$92	$1,250	$1,158
20	$360	$4,760	$4,400
30	$1,060	$13,606	$12,546

Expense ratio

0.05%DIVB, cheaper
0.70%FTDS

DIVB0.05%FTDS0.70%

0.04%0.70%

Middle half of US Dividend Index funds
Median 0.35%

DIVB 2nd cheapest of 52 funds

FTDS 52nd cheapest of 52 funds

DIVB vs FTDS Dividends

Last 12 months to Oct 30, 2026

Yield (12M): DIVB 2.08%, better; FTDS 1.57%
Payout (12M): DIVB $1.48; FTDS $1.06
Last payment: DIVB $0.42; FTDS $0.31
Ex-dividend: DIVB Sep 15, 2026; FTDS Sep 24, 2026
Paid on: DIVB Sep 18, 2026; FTDS Sep 30, 2026
Frequency: DIVB Quarterly; FTDS Quarterly

Distribution history

Per share, 2017 to 2026, same scale for both

DIVBQuarterly · 36 paymentsAll DIVB payments⁠

FTDSQuarterly · 39 paymentsAll FTDS payments⁠

DIVB vs FTDS Risk

Fall from peak · 5 years

DIVB
FTDS

Risk facts

VolatilityStd dev, 3 years: DIVB 14.0%, betterFTDS 14.3%
Return per unit of riskSharpe ratio, 3 years: DIVB 1.58, betterFTDS 1.08
Worst fallMax drawdown, 5 years: DIVB −21.1%, betterFTDS −23.4%
Market sensitivityBeta, 5 years: DIVB 0.88FTDS 0.59; Market = 1

DIVB and FTDS in the news

All news⁠

Best ETFs
For a rising dividend, iShares Core Dividend Growth ETF ranks first
Updated Nov 2, 2026DIVB

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