ETF Evaluator:
Westwood Salient Enhanced Mid Inc ETF ()
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(as of Aug 26)
Best Performing in Energy Limited Partnership Over the Last Year
| 31.2% | Invesco SteelPath MLP & Enrgy Infras ETF (PIPE) |
| 30.1% | VanEck Energy Income ETF (EINC) |
| 29.1% | Barclays ETN+ Select MLP (ATMP) |
| 28.7% | Alerian Energy Infrastructure ETF (ENFR) |
| 28.0% | USCF Midstream Energy Income ETF (UMI) |
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ETF Details
Westwood Salient Enhanced Mid Inc ETF Overview
Westwood Salient Enhanced Mid Inc ETF (MDST) is an actively managed Sector Equity Energy Limited Partnership exchange-traded fund (ETF). Westwood launched the ETF in 2024.
The investment seeks to provide current income and capital appreciation.
The fund is an actively managed exchange-traded fund (“ETF”) that seeks to achieve its investment objectives by investing, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets (plus the amount of borrowings, if any, for investment purposes) in securities of Midstream North American corporations and Midstream U.S. master limited partnerships (“MLPs”). The fund is non-diversified.
About Westwood Salient Enhanced Mid Inc ETF (MDST)
There are 6 members of the management team with an average tenure of 2.31 years: Rafael Zayas (2024), Gregory Reid (2024), Frank (Ted) Gardner (2024), Austin Wen (2024), Parag Sanghani (2024) and Yin Bhuyan (2024). Management tenure is more important for actively managed ETFs than passive index ETFs.
The ETF has 1 primary benchmark: S&P 500 (TR) (1970) index with a weighting of 100%. Westwood Salient Enhanced Mid Inc ETF has 119 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 63.6% 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.
Westwood Salient Enhanced Mid Inc ETF is part of the Equity global asset class and is within the Sector Equity ETF group. Westwood Salient Enhanced Mid Inc ETF has 21.2% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 76.6% There is 21.2% 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). Westwood Salient Enhanced Mid Inc ETF has 2.2% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $287 million in total assets, which is below the $1 billion average for the Energy Limited Partnership 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.
MDST 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 Westwood Salient Enhanced Mid Inc ETF expense ratio is high compared to funds in the Energy Limited Partnership category. Westwood Salient Enhanced Mid Inc ETF has an expense ratio of 0.80%, which is 5% higher than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a C. 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. Westwood Salient Enhanced Mid Inc ETF has a portfolio turnover rate of 12%, which indicates that it holds its assets around / 0.1 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 21% for the Energy Limited Partnership category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, Westwood Salient Enhanced Mid Inc ETF returned 3.0%, which earned it a grade of C, as the Energy Limited Partnership category had an average return of 4.4%. 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.
Westwood Salient Enhanced Mid Inc ETF has a trailing yield of 9.21%, which is above the 5.06% category average.
The fund normally distributes its income monthly 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.
Westwood Salient Enhanced Mid Inc ETF Grades
Year to date, the ETF has returned 18.8%, 6.3 percentage points worse than the category, which translates into a grade of F. The fund has returned 20.6% over the past year (grade of F).
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MDST 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 |
|
| MDST Return (NAV) | 3.0% | 2.2% | 20.6% | na | na | na |
| MDST Return (Price) | 2.6% | 2.4% | 17.6% | na | na | na |
| NAV +/- Price Return | 0.397% | -0.205% | 2.943% | na | na | na |
| Energy Limited Partnership Avg | 4.4% | 2.2% | 24.7% | 23.2% | 21.3% | 9.5% |
| MDST Grade (NAV) | C | C | F | na | na | na |
| +/- Category (NAV) | -1.4% | 0.0% | -4.1% | na | na | na |
| MDST Tax-Cost Ratio | na | na | 3.9% | na | na | na |
MDST Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| MDST Return (NAV) | 18.8% | 7.2% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| MDST Return (Price) | 18.4% | 7.1% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| NAV +/- Price Ret | -0.019% | -0.017% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| Energy Limited Partnership Avg | 25.0% | 6.0% | 34.2% | 17.3% | 23.5% | 38.2% | -26.5% | 13.9% | -14.9% | -4.6% | 27.4% |
| MDST Grade (NAV) | F | B | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| +/- Category | -6.3% | 1.2% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| Risk Measures | |
| Beta: | na |
| R-Squared: | na |
| Standard Deviation: | na |
| Category Risk Index: | na |
| Category Risk Rating: | |
| Total Risk Index: | na |
| Total Risk Rating: | |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Yield: | 9.2% |
| Total Assets: | $ 287 Mil |
| Share Class Assets: | $ 287 Mil |
| Turnover: | 12.0% |
| Expense Ratio: | 0.80% |
| 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: | Monthly |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 6 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 2.3 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 2.3 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Zayas Rafael (2024), Reid Gregory (2024), Gardner Frank (Ted) (2024), Wen Austin (2024), Sanghani Parag (2024), Bhuyan Yin (2024) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 7/31/26)
| # of Holdings: | 119 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 63.6% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | Yes |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 21.2% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 76.6% |
| Foreign Stock: | 21.2% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.0% |
| Domestic Bond: | 0.0% |
| Foreign Bond: | 0.0% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 0.0% |
| Cash: | 2.2% |
Purchase Information
| Legal Structure: | Open Ended Investment Company |
| Fund Family: | Westwood |
| Phone Number: | 800-994-0755 |
| Website: | |
| Inception Date: | April 8, 2024 |
Expenses and Fees
| Expense Ratio (%): | 0.80% (Rating: High) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 0.76% |
