FSCS vs IMCV: Grades, Fees and Holdings Compared

First Trust SMID Capital Strength ETF

FSCSCNasdaq

iShares Morningstar Mid-Cap Value ETF

IMCVANasdaq

Overlap

6.0%by weight

Expense ratio

IMCV −0.54pt a year

FSCS0.60%IMCV0.06%

Avg volume · 30D

IMCV 6.8×the volume

FSCS5.74KIMCV38.9K

5Y return · a year

IMCV +5.0pt

FSCS+6.0%IMCV+11.0%

FSCS vs IMCV Performance

Oct 29, 2021 – Oct 30, 2026

+34.0%FSCS+68.3%IMCV

Expense ratio: FSCS 0.60%; IMCV 0.06%, better
Fund size: FSCS $61M; IMCV $1.27B
1Y total return: FSCS +7.7%; IMCV +27.0%, better
Yield (12M): FSCS 1.23%; IMCV 1.84%, better
Holdings: FSCS 101; IMCV 271
Avg volume (30D): FSCS 5.74K sh; IMCV 38.9K sh, better
NAV per share: FSCS $37.13; IMCV $99.16
52W range

ETF.net Grade

Pillar letters and Scores for FSCS, IMCV, with each pillar’s weight
Pillar	FSCS	IMCV
Cost30% weight	F15	A96Higher
Mission25% weight	B64	A76Higher
Risk15% weight	C41	A77Higher
Tradability15% weight	C44	B69Higher
Holdings10% weight	B65	B69Higher
Durability5% weight	D38	A77Higher

Rank among US Multifactor funds

How we build Categories ›

Same Category. FSCS and IMCV are both graded against the same 99 US Multifactor funds, so their Grades compare head to head.

US Multifactor⁠

Category · 99 funds

See all 99 ›

IMCV ranks 4th and FSCS 83rd of 99 funds in the US Multifactor Category.

Rank 1AVONVVanguard Russell 1000 Value ETFScore 85
Rank 2AILCViShares Morningstar Value ETFScore 81
Rank 2AVYMVanguard High Dividend Yield ETFScore 81
Rank 4AIMCViShares Morningstar Mid-Cap Value ETFScore 80
Rank 5ADCORU.S. Core Equity 1 Portfolio ETF Class SharesScore 79
Rank 82CFADFirst Trust Multi Cap Growth AlphaDEX FundScore 42
Rank 83CFSCSFirst Trust SMID Capital Strength ETFScore 41
Rank 84CHQGOHartford US Quality Growth ETFScore 40

Our read on each fund

ETF.net Research

FSCSCFirst Trust SMID Capital Strength ETF

IMCVAiShares Morningstar Mid-Cap Value ETF

In short

FSCS First Trust pointed its Capital Strength screen at the small and mid cap end of the US market: about 100 names picked by rule, not hunch, filtered for quality, growth and lower volatility.

IMCV No data

Stated mandate

FSCS The Fund seeks investment results generally corresponding to the price and yield, before fees and expenses, of the SMID Capital Strength Index. It normally invests at least 80% of net assets, plus investment borrowings, in index securities.

IMCV No data

Why people hold it

FSCS Takes the Capital Strength playbook down the cap ladder: a quality, growth and low-volatility screen applied to US small and mid caps.ftportfolios.com
Rules run the show. It normally keeps at least 80% of net assets in the index's securities, so you get the screen, not a manager's mood.ftportfolios.com
A tight roster of roughly 100 US stocks, with cash paid out quarterly.

IMCV No data

Worth knowing

FSCS The 0.60% annual fee sits well above the typical US multifactor fund. Broad peers like VONV and FNDX charge a fraction of it.
Thinly traded and modest in assets, so bid-ask spreads can run wider than the household names in the category.
Screening for balance-sheet quality and lower volatility means the portfolio can look nothing like a plain small-cap index, in either direction.

IMCV No data

Full FSCS profile⁠

Full IMCV profile⁠

FSCS vs IMCV Holdings

How FSCS and IMCV differ

Overlap by weight

6.0%

Shared holdings make up 25.4% of FSCS and 6.0% of IMCV.

Level by level

Holdings25 in both6.0%
Sector11 Sectors68.0%
Countryby domicile93.3%
Asset classEquity100%

Sector

Sector weights in FSCS and IMCV, widest gap first
Sector	More in FSCSMore in IMCV	FSCS	IMCV
Industrials	FSCS +12.1 points	26.3%	14.2%
Energy	IMCV +11.5 points	1.9%	13.4%
Financials	FSCS +10.4 points	28.9%	18.5%
Utilities	IMCV +9.0 points	0.0%	9.0%
Health Care	IMCV +5.6 points	6.6%	12.2%
Consumer Staples	FSCS +4.9 points	13.6%	8.7%
Real Estate	IMCV +3.7 points	0.9%	4.6%
Consumer Discretionary	FSCS +2.9 points	9.8%	6.9%
Technology	IMCV +2.4 points	4.1%	6.5%
Communication	FSCS +1.1 points	2.2%	1.1%
Materials	FSCS +0.6 points	5.6%	5.0%

Country, concentration and asset class

Country by domicile

Country weights in FSCS and IMCV, widest gap first
Country	More in FSCSMore in IMCV	FSCS	IMCV
United States	IMCV +5.7 points	93.0%	98.7%
Bermuda	FSCS +2.9 points	2.9%	0.0%
Puerto Rico	FSCS +1.9 points	1.9%	0.0%
Ireland	FSCS +1.8 points	2.1%	0.3%
Other countries (3)	IMCV +1.0 points	0.0%	1.0%

Concentration

Weight in the 10 largest Holdings

FSCS11.2%
IMCV13.2%

Securities held

FSCS100
IMCV268

Asset class

FSCS: Equity
IMCV: Equity

Holdings

Only in FSCS75
In both25
Only in IMCV243

Only in FSCS

75 securities, 74.4% of FSCS by weight

Hasbro, Inc.1.19%
Allegion Public Limited Company1.18%
Healthcare Services Group, Inc.1.14%
Enerpac Tool Group Corp.1.13%
Tetra Tech, Inc.1.09%
Napco Security Technologies, Inc.1.08%
Simpson Manufacturing Co., Inc.1.08%
Ligand Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Class B)1.08%
ACI Worldwide, Inc.1.07%
Texas Roadhouse, Inc.1.07%
West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc.1.06%
Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc.1.05%
The Toro Company1.05%
Encompass Health Corporation1.04%
Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc.1.04%
A.O. Smith Corporation1.04%
United States Lime & Minerals, Inc.1.03%
Mueller Water Products, Inc.1.03%
The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc.1.03%
American Financial Group, Inc.1.02%
Federated Hermes, Inc. (Class B)1.02%
Rollins, Inc.1.02%
Avery Dennison Corporation1.02%
Assurant, Inc.1.02%
Jazz Pharmaceuticals Plc1.01%
Zions Bancorporation, National Association1.01%
The St. Joe Company1.01%
McCormick & Company, Incorporated1.01%
The Ensign Group, Inc.1.01%
RPM International Inc.1.00%
Innoviva, Inc.1.00%
Ralph Lauren Corporation1.00%
ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc.1.00%
Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc.1.00%
Brady Corporation1.00%
Interparfums, Inc.0.99%
National Beverage Corp.0.99%
Cirrus Logic, Inc.0.99%
City Holding Company0.99%
IDT Corporation (Class B)0.99%
Mercury General Corporation0.99%
The Buckle, Inc.0.98%
Nordson Corporation0.98%
MSA Safety Incorporated0.98%
Primerica, Inc.0.98%
Green Brick Partners, Inc.0.97%
AGNC Investment Corp.0.97%
SEI Investments Company0.97%
Stifel Financial Corp.0.97%
Popular, Inc.0.97%

Only in IMCV

243 securities, 93.8% of IMCV by weight

Automatic Data Processing Inc1.60%
Valero Energy Corp1.57%
Phillips 661.54%
Us Bancorp1.27%
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals1.25%
Pnc Financial Services Group1.24%
3M1.23%
Elevance Health Inc1.20%
Eog Resources1.19%
Mondelez International Class A1.14%
Travelers Companies1.13%
United Parcel Service Inc Class B1.11%
Slb1.09%
Moderna1.08%
General Motors1.05%
Cigna1.04%
Hewlett Packard Enterprise1.00%
Target Corp0.96%
Cheniere Energy0.93%
Kinder Morgan0.91%
Marathon Petroleum0.88%
Oneok0.83%
Truist Financial0.82%
Marsh0.82%
Devon Energy0.78%
Sempra0.77%
Dominion Energy0.77%
Aflac0.76%
Becton Dickinson0.74%
Metlife0.73%
Williams0.72%
Delta Air Lines0.72%
Paccar Inc0.69%
Colgate-Palmolive0.69%
Xcel Energy Inc0.68%
PayPal Holdings0.67%
Keurig Dr Pepper Inc0.66%
Ford Motor Co0.66%
Strategy Inc Class A0.65%
Exelon Corp0.65%
Northrop Grumman Corp0.64%
Occidental Petroleum Corp0.64%
Nike Class B0.62%
Iqvia Holdings Inc0.60%
Consolidated Edison0.59%
Norfolk Southern Corp0.59%
American Electric Power Inc0.56%
American International Group0.56%
Prudential Financial Inc0.55%
Sysco0.54%

Weight gaps

All 25 Holdings in both funds, largest gap first.

Holding weights in FSCS and IMCV, widest gap first
Holding	More in FSCSMore in IMCV	FSCS	IMCV
United Therapeutics CorporationUTHR	FSCS +0.97 points	1.10%	0.13%
Veralto CorporationVLTO	FSCS +0.93 points	1.08%	0.15%
Copart, Inc.CPRT	FSCS +0.92 points	1.06%	0.14%
Ulta Beauty, Inc.ULTA	FSCS +0.90 points	1.06%	0.16%
Incyte CorporationINCY	FSCS +0.89 points	1.05%	0.16%
The Hershey CompanyHSY	FSCS +0.86 points	0.96%	0.10%
Church & Dwight Co., Inc.CHD	FSCS +0.85 points	1.02%	0.17%
Cincinnati Financial CorporationCINF	FSCS +0.85 points	1.05%	0.20%
Expeditors International of Washington, Inc.EXPD	FSCS +0.83 points	1.00%	0.17%
Corpay, Inc.CPAY	FSCS +0.81 points	0.99%	0.18%
Darden Restaurants, Inc.DRI	FSCS +0.80 points	1.00%	0.20%
Snap-on IncorporatedSNA	FSCS +0.80 points	0.95%	0.15%
Raymond James Financial, Inc.RJF	FSCS +0.80 points	0.99%	0.19%
Northern Trust CorporationNTRS	FSCS +0.79 points	1.00%	0.21%
NVR, Inc.NVR	FSCS +0.78 points	0.99%	0.21%
East West Bancorp, Inc.EWBC	FSCS +0.77 points	1.02%	0.25%
Williams-Sonoma, Inc.WSM	FSCS +0.76 points	0.99%	0.23%
ResMed Inc.RMD	FSCS +0.74 points	0.95%	0.21%
PPG Industries, Inc.PPG	FSCS +0.73 points	1.09%	0.36%
T. Rowe Price Group, Inc.TROW	FSCS +0.71 points	1.01%	0.30%
W.R. Berkley CorporationWRB	FSCS +0.70 points	0.98%	0.28%
Halliburton CompanyHAL	FSCS +0.64 points	1.06%	0.42%
Arch Capital Group Ltd.ACGL	FSCS +0.56 points	1.04%	0.48%
Kimberly-Clark CorporationKMB	FSCS +0.52 points	1.01%	0.49%
The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc.HIG	FSCS +0.47 points	0.97%	0.50%

All 100 FSCS holdings⁠All 268 IMCV 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.

FSCS vs IMCV Cost

Overpaying FSCS vs IMCV

$10,547

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

FSCS 0.60%
$11,817
IMCV 0.06%
$1,270

Amount$10,000

Years30 years

Cost over time

FSCS 0.60%
IMCV 0.06%
Overpaying

Year by year

Year	FSCS	IMCV	Overpaying
10	$1,076	$110	$966
20	$4,116	$432	$3,684
30	$11,817	$1,270	$10,547

Expense ratio

0.60%FSCS
0.06%IMCV, cheaper

IMCV0.06%FSCS0.60%

0.04%1.01%

Middle half of US Multifactor funds
Median 0.29%

IMCV 4th cheapest of 99 funds

FSCS 82nd cheapest of 99 funds

FSCS vs IMCV Dividends

Last 12 months to Oct 30, 2026

Yield (12M): FSCS 1.23%; IMCV 1.84%, better
Payout (12M): FSCS $0.46; IMCV $1.83
Last payment: FSCS $0.14; IMCV $0.52
Ex-dividend: FSCS Sep 24, 2026; IMCV Sep 15, 2026
Paid on: FSCS Sep 30, 2026; IMCV Sep 18, 2026
Frequency: FSCS Quarterly; IMCV Quarterly

Distribution history

Per share, 2017 to 2026, same scale for both

FSCSQuarterly · 37 paymentsAll FSCS payments⁠

IMCVQuarterly · 39 paymentsAll IMCV payments⁠

FSCS vs IMCV Risk

Fall from peak · 5 years

FSCS
IMCV

Risk facts

VolatilityStd dev, 3 years: FSCS 14.7%IMCV 13.6%, better
Return per unit of riskSharpe ratio, 3 years: FSCS 0.64IMCV 1.22, better
Worst fallMax drawdown, 5 years: FSCS −21.2%IMCV −19.9%, better
Market sensitivityBeta, 5 years: FSCS 0.76IMCV 0.88; Market = 1

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