ETF Evaluator: First Trust SMID Growth Strength ETF () Follow This ETF

First Trust SMID Growth Strength ETF Overview

First Trust SMID Growth Strength ETF (FSGS) is a passively managed U.S. Equity Small Value exchange-traded fund (ETF). First Trust launched the ETF in 2017.

The investment seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield (before the fund’s fees and expenses) of an equity index called The SMID Growth Strength Index (the “Index”). The fund will normally invest at least 80% of its net assets in the securities that comprise the index. The index seeks to provide exposure to well capitalized small and mid-sized companies with strong market positions.

About First Trust SMID Growth Strength ETF (FSGS)

There are 7 members of the management team with an average tenure of 8.61 years: Daniel Lindquist (2017), Jon Erickson (2017), David McGarel (2017), Stan Ueland (2017), Chris Peterson (2017), Erik Russo (2020) and Roger Testin (2017). Management tenure is more important for actively managed ETFs than passive index ETFs.

The ETF has 2 primary benchmarks: Russell 3000 TR USD index with a weighting of 100% and S&P 1000 TR index with a weighting of 100%. First Trust SMID Growth Strength ETF has 102 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 11.1% of the ETF’s assets. The ETF meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a diversified fund. The ETF is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.

First Trust SMID Growth Strength ETF is part of the Equity global asset class and is within the U.S. Equity ETF group. First Trust SMID Growth Strength ETF has 0.0% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 99.9% There is 0.0% allocated to foreign stock, and 0.0% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 0.0% (0.0% domestic bond, 0.0% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). First Trust SMID Growth Strength ETF has 0.1% of the portfolio in cash.

Assets Under Management

The fund has $30 million in total assets, which is below the $2 billion average for the Small Value category. Normally, lower assets under management translates to higher average expense ratios, and greater total assets are desired. However, for some investment categories, such as small-cap investing, it may be difficult for the manager to fully employ the desired active strategy if assets grow too large or too quickly.

FSGS Performance and Fees

The expense ratio measures how much of a fund’s assets are used for administrative expenses and operating expenses, including adviser fees and fees for the transfer agent and custodial services. The First Trust SMID Growth Strength ETF expense ratio is above average compared to funds in the Small Value category. First Trust SMID Growth Strength ETF has an expense ratio of 0.61%, which is 27% higher than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a D. While it is difficult to predict returns, it is known that high annual expense ratios reduce your rate of return, and excessive fees are difficult to overcome. Active management normally comes with higher expense ratios than passive index management. Certain investment categories such as small company and foreign also normally have higher expense ratios. It is best to compare fund expense ratios against the category averages for meaningful assessments.

High portfolio turnover can translate to higher expenses and lower aftertax returns. First Trust SMID Growth Strength ETF has a portfolio turnover rate of 135%, which indicates that it holds its assets around / 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 60% for the Small Value category.

Recently, in the month of July 2026, First Trust SMID Growth Strength ETF returned 2.9%, which earned it a grade of B, as the Small Value category had an average return of 1.2%. The letter grades of A, B, C, D and F are based upon relative rankings within the investment category. A grade of A, for example, would indicate that the return is in the highest 20% for that time period compared to all ETFs in that category.

First Trust SMID Growth Strength ETF has a trailing yield of 0.03%, which is below the 1.71% category average. The fund normally distributes its income quarterly.

It’s natural to seek the best-performing investments, but you must consider the relationship between risk and return and the impact of costs and taxes on your realized returns.

First Trust SMID Growth Strength ETF Grades

Year to date, the ETF has returned 7.0%, 12.8 percentage points worse than the category, which translates into a grade of F. The fund has returned 7.0% over the past year (grade of F), 6.3% over the past three years (grade of F) and 4.1% per year over the past five years (grade of F).

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