ETF Evaluator:
First Trust Multi-Strat Alt ETF ()
Follow This ETF
(as of Aug 26)
Best Performing in Multistrategy Over the Last Year
| 16.9% | Franklin Systematic Style Premia ETF (FLSP) |
| 16.3% | First Trust Multi-Strat Alt ETF (LALT) |
| 14.6% | Unlimited HFND Multi-Strgy Ret Trckr ETF (HFND) |
| 14.5% | SEI DBi Multi-Strategy Alternative ETF (QALT) |
| 12.4% | NYLI Hedge Multi-Strategy Tracker ETF (QAI) |
Risk
Index
Risk
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ETF Details
First Trust Multi-Strat Alt ETF Overview
First Trust Multi-Strat Alt ETF (LALT) is an actively managed Alternative Multistrategy exchange-traded fund (ETF). First Trust launched the ETF in 2023.
The investment seeks long-term total return.
The fund is an actively managed exchange-traded fund (“ETF”) that seeks to achieve its investment objective by allocating its assets amongst a variety of alternative asset categories and strategies in an effort to provide lower correlation and diversifying risk exposures compared to traditional equity and fixed income benchmarks (e.g., the S&P 500® Index or Bloomberg Aggregate Bond Index) over various market cycles. The fund is non-diversified.
About First Trust Multi-Strat Alt ETF (LALT)
There are 5 members of the management team with an average tenure of 3.50 years: Daniel Lindquist (2023), David McGarel (2023), John Gambla (2023), Chris Peterson (2023) and Rob Guttschow (2023). Management tenure is more important for actively managed ETFs than passive index ETFs.
The ETF has 2 primary benchmarks: S&P 500 (TR) (1970) index with a weighting of 100% and Credit Suisse AllHedge TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. First Trust Multi-Strat Alt ETF has 8 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 100.0% of the ETF’s assets. The ETF meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a nondiversified fund. The ETF is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.
First Trust Multi-Strat Alt ETF is part of the Alternative Strategies global asset class and is within the Alternative ETF group. First Trust Multi-Strat Alt ETF has 5.9% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 20.9% There is 3.9% allocated to foreign stock, and 0.0% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 15.6% (13.7% domestic bond, 2.0% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). First Trust Multi-Strat Alt ETF has 53.5% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $295 million in total assets, which is below the $664 million average for the Multistrategy 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.
LALT 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 Multi-Strat Alt ETF expense ratio is high compared to funds in the Multistrategy category. First Trust Multi-Strat Alt ETF has an expense ratio of 1.18%, which is 61% higher than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a F. 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 Multi-Strat Alt ETF has a portfolio turnover rate of 31%, which indicates that it holds its assets around / 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 100% for the Multistrategy category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, First Trust Multi-Strat Alt ETF returned 0.7%, which earned it a grade of A, as the Multistrategy category had an average return of 0.0%. 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 Multi-Strat Alt ETF has a trailing yield of 3.74%, which is above the 2.91% category average.
The fund normally distributes its income quarterly and its capital gains annually.
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 Multi-Strat Alt ETF Grades
Year to date, the ETF has returned 8.6%, 5.7 percentage points better than the category, which translates into a grade of A. The fund has returned 16.3% over the past year (grade of A) and 9.1% over the past three years (grade of A).
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LALT Trailing NAV Total Returns Data as of 7/31/26
| Last Month |
Last Quarter |
Ann'l. 1Yr |
Ann'l. 3Yr |
Ann'l. 5Yr |
Ann'l. 10Yr |
|
| LALT Return (NAV) | 0.7% | -2.4% | 16.3% | 9.1% | na | na |
| LALT Return (Price) | 0.6% | -2.2% | 16.5% | 9.2% | na | na |
| NAV +/- Price Return | 0.127% | -0.212% | -0.181% | -0.103% | na | na |
| Multistrategy Avg | 0.0% | -2.7% | 5.1% | 3.8% | 5.3% | 3.7% |
| LALT Grade (NAV) | A | D | A | A | na | na |
| +/- Category (NAV) | 0.7% | 0.4% | 11.2% | 5.4% | na | na |
| LALT Tax-Cost Ratio | na | na | 1.5% | 1.1% | na | na |
LALT Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| LALT Return (NAV) | 8.6% | 10.7% | 8.7% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| LALT Return (Price) | 8.6% | 10.8% | 8.8% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| NAV +/- Price Ret | 0.004% | 0.008% | 0.003% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| Multistrategy Avg | 2.9% | 2.8% | 6.7% | 6.5% | -5.8% | 4.8% | -0.6% | 9.0% | -3.7% | 5.9% | 1.5% |
| LALT Grade (NAV) | A | A | A | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| +/- Category | 5.7% | 7.9% | 2.0% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| Risk Measures | |
| Beta: | 0.14 |
| R-Squared: | 13% |
| Standard Deviation: | 5.0% |
| Category Risk Index: | 0.66 |
| Category Risk Rating: | Below Average |
| Total Risk Index: | 0.41 |
| Total Risk Rating: | Low |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Yield: | 3.7% |
| Total Assets: | $ 295 Mil |
| Share Class Assets: | $ 295 Mil |
| Turnover: | 31.0% |
| Expense Ratio: | 1.18% |
| Index Fund: | No |
| Index Tracked: | S&P 500 (TR) (1970) |
| Index Weighting: | 100% |
| Leveraged: | No |
| Socially Responsible Fund: | No |
| Capital Gains Distribution Frequency: | Annually |
| Income Distribution Frequency: | Quarterly |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 5 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 3.5 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 3.5 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Lindquist Daniel (2023), McGarel David (2023), Gambla John (2023), Peterson Chris (2023), Guttschow Rob (2023) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 7/30/26)
| # of Holdings: | 8 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 100.0% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | Yes |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 5.9% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 20.9% |
| Foreign Stock: | 3.9% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.0% |
| Domestic Bond: | 13.7% |
| Foreign Bond: | 2.0% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 6.1% |
| Cash: | 53.5% |
Purchase Information
| Legal Structure: | Open Ended Investment Company |
| Fund Family: | First Trust |
| Phone Number: | 800-621-1675 |
| Website: | |
| Inception Date: | January 31, 2023 |
Expenses and Fees
| Expense Ratio (%): | 1.18% (Rating: High) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 0.73% |
