First Trust Emerging Markets Local Currency Bond ETF (FEMB)

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First Trust Emerging Markets Local Currency Bond ETF (FEMB) is up 2.2% since the beginning of the year. FEMB is currently trading at $29 per share. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of FEMB shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $1,146.

First Trust Emerging Markets Local Currency Bond ETF (FEMB) has returned 2.20% so far this year and 9.79% over the past 12 months. Over the last ten years, FEMB has returned 1.90% per year, falling short of the S&P 500 Index benchmark, which averaged 13.26% annually.

Based on dividend-adjusted daily data since Nov 5, 2014, FEMB's average daily return is +0.01%, while the average monthly return is +0.14%. At this rate, an investment would double in approximately 41.3 years.

Historically, 51% of months were positive and 49% were negative. The best month was Mar 2016 with a return of +8.8%, while the worst month was Mar 2020 at -13.8%. The longest winning streak lasted 7 consecutive months, and the longest losing streak was 5 months.

On a daily basis, FEMB closed higher 46% of trading days. The best single day was Jun 9, 2016 with a return of +5.0%, while the worst single day was Mar 9, 2020 at -5.9%.

First Trust Emerging Markets Local Currency Bond ETF has an annualized alpha of -0.87%, beta of 0.20, and R2 of 0.10 versus S&P 500 Index. Calculated based on daily prices since November 05, 2014.

• This ETF participated in 57.62% of S&P 500 Index downside but only 29.67% of its upside - more exposed to losses than it benefited from rallies.
• Beta of 0.20 may look defensive, but with R2 of 0.10 this ETF is largely uncorrelated with S&P 500 Index - low beta reflects independence, not downside protection. See the Volatility section for a true picture of this ETF's risk.
• R2 of 0.10 means this ETF moves largely independently of S&P 500 Index - capture ratios reflect limited market correlation rather than active downside protection. Consider using a more representative benchmark.

FEMB has an expense ratio of 0.85%, placing it in the medium range.

FEMB ranks 46 for risk / return — above 46% of ETFs peers on PortfoliosLab. Its historical combined result is near the middle of the peer group.

First Trust Emerging Markets Local Currency Bond ETF provided a 6.19% dividend yield over the last twelve months, with an annual payout of $1.82 per share. The fund has been increasing its distributions for 2 consecutive years.

The table displays the monthly dividend distributions for First Trust Emerging Markets Local Currency Bond ETF. The dividends shown in the table have been adjusted to account for any splits that may have occurred.

The Drawdowns chart displays portfolio losses from any high point along the way. Drawdowns are calculated considering price movements and all distributions paid, if any.

The table below displays the maximum drawdowns of the First Trust Emerging Markets Local Currency Bond ETF. A maximum drawdown is a measure of risk, indicating the largest reduction in portfolio value due to a series of losing trades.

The maximum drawdown for the First Trust Emerging Markets Local Currency Bond ETF was 30.44%, occurring on Oct 19, 2022. Recovery took 725 trading sessions.

The current First Trust Emerging Markets Local Currency Bond ETF drawdown is 2.39%.

The chart below shows the rolling one-month volatility.