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First Trust Institutional Preferred Securities & I...
Performance
Return for Risk
Dividends
Drawdowns
Volatility

ETF Info

ISIN
US33739P8555
CUSIP
33739P855
Inception Date
Aug 22, 2017
Region
Developed Markets (Broad)
Leveraged
1x (No leverage)
Index Tracked
No Index (Active)
Distribution Policy
Distributing
Asset Class
Multi-Asset
Asset Class Size
Multi-Cap
Asset Class Style
Blend

Share Price Chart


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Performance

Performance Chart

The chart shows the growth of an initial investment of $10,000 in First Trust Institutional Preferred Securities & Income ETF, comparing it to the performance of the S&P 500 index or another benchmark. All prices have been adjusted for splits and dividends.


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S&P 500 Index

Returns By Period

First Trust Institutional Preferred Securities & Income ETF (FPEI) has returned -0.64% so far this year and 7.60% over the past 12 months.


First Trust Institutional Preferred Securities & Income ETF

1D
1.04%
1M
-1.99%
YTD
-0.64%
6M
1.11%
1Y
7.60%
3Y*
10.49%
5Y*
4.17%
10Y*

Benchmark (S&P 500 Index)

1D
2.91%
1M
-5.09%
YTD
-4.63%
6M
-2.39%
1Y
16.33%
3Y*
16.69%
5Y*
10.18%
10Y*
12.16%
*Multi-year figures are annualized to reflect compound growth (CAGR)

Monthly Returns

Based on dividend-adjusted daily data since Aug 23, 2017, FPEI's average daily return is +0.02%, while the average monthly return is +0.42%. At this rate, your investment would double in approximately 13.8 years.

Historically, 68% of months were positive and 32% were negative. The best month was Apr 2020 with a return of +6.9%, while the worst month was Mar 2020 at -13.1%. The longest winning streak lasted 12 consecutive months, and the longest losing streak was 6 months.

On a daily basis, FPEI closed higher 53% of trading days. The best single day was Mar 19, 2020 with a return of +8.1%, while the worst single day was Mar 18, 2020 at -10.7%.


JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecTotal
20260.73%0.64%-1.99%-0.64%
20250.53%1.37%-0.49%-1.11%2.13%2.01%0.38%1.55%1.33%0.93%0.32%0.50%9.82%
20241.64%0.67%1.26%-1.07%2.56%0.82%1.35%1.79%2.03%-1.21%0.91%-0.23%10.94%
20235.13%-1.43%-7.93%1.26%-0.32%1.23%2.85%-0.52%-0.54%-1.39%5.05%3.45%6.29%
2022-1.12%-2.03%-0.69%-2.44%-0.86%-4.43%4.12%-0.51%-5.33%1.36%2.44%1.41%-8.19%
20210.30%0.16%0.09%1.51%0.62%1.02%0.76%0.16%0.08%-0.04%-1.02%0.93%4.63%

Benchmark Metrics

First Trust Institutional Preferred Securities & Income ETF has an annualized alpha of 2.50%, beta of 0.20, and R² of 0.18 versus S&P 500 Index. Calculated based on daily prices since August 24, 2017.

  • This ETF participated in 33.18% of S&P 500 Index downside but only 28.58% of its upside — more exposed to losses than it benefited from rallies.
  • Beta of 0.20 may look defensive, but with R² of 0.18 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 0.18 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.

Alpha
2.50%
Beta
0.20
0.18
Upside Capture
28.58%
Downside Capture
33.18%

Expense Ratio

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


Return for Risk

Risk / Return Rank

FPEI ranks 81 for risk / return — in the top 81% of ETFs on our site. This means strong returns relative to risk — exactly what professional investors look for. Well-suited for investors who want to maximize return per unit of risk.


FPEI Risk / Return Rank: 8181
Overall Rank
FPEI Sharpe Ratio Rank: 8383
Sharpe Ratio Rank
FPEI Sortino Ratio Rank: 8282
Sortino Ratio Rank
FPEI Omega Ratio Rank: 9090
Omega Ratio Rank
FPEI Calmar Ratio Rank: 7474
Calmar Ratio Rank
FPEI Martin Ratio Rank: 7676
Martin Ratio Rank
The rank (0–100) shows how this investment's returns compare to the risk taken. Higher = better. Based on the past 12 months of data, combining Sharpe, Sortino, and other metrics used by quantitative funds and institutional investors.

Return / Risk — by metrics

The table below present risk-adjusted performance metrics for First Trust Institutional Preferred Securities & Income ETF (FPEI) and compare them to a chosen benchmark (S&P 500 Index).


FPEIBenchmarkDifference

Sharpe ratio

Return per unit of total volatility

1.68

0.90

+0.78

Sortino ratio

Return per unit of downside risk

2.21

1.39

+0.82

Omega ratio

Gain probability vs. loss probability

1.39

1.21

+0.18

Calmar ratio

Return relative to maximum drawdown

2.01

1.40

+0.61

Martin ratio

Return relative to average drawdown

8.34

6.61

+1.73

Explore FPEI risk-adjusted metrics in detail

Dive deeper into individual metrics with historical trends, benchmark comparisons, and performance across different time periods.

Dividends

Dividend History

First Trust Institutional Preferred Securities & Income ETF provided a 5.77% dividend yield over the last twelve months, with an annual payout of $1.10 per share. The fund has been increasing its distributions for 4 consecutive years.


2.00%3.00%4.00%5.00%6.00%$0.00$0.20$0.40$0.60$0.80$1.00201720182019202020212022202320242025
Dividends
Dividend Yield
PeriodTTM202520242023202220212020201920182017
Dividend$1.10$1.09$1.04$1.03$0.93$0.91$1.00$1.01$1.06$0.30

Dividend yield

5.77%5.62%5.55%5.76%5.20%4.46%4.90%5.02%5.81%1.50%

Monthly Dividends

The table displays the monthly dividend distributions for First Trust Institutional Preferred Securities & Income ETF. The dividends shown in the table have been adjusted to account for any splits that may have occurred.


JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecTotal
2026$0.09$0.09$0.09$0.27
2025$0.09$0.09$0.09$0.09$0.09$0.09$0.09$0.09$0.09$0.09$0.09$0.11$1.09
2024$0.08$0.08$0.09$0.08$0.09$0.09$0.09$0.09$0.08$0.09$0.09$0.09$1.04
2023$0.08$0.08$0.09$0.08$0.09$0.08$0.09$0.09$0.09$0.07$0.09$0.09$1.03
2022$0.07$0.07$0.08$0.07$0.08$0.07$0.08$0.08$0.08$0.08$0.07$0.09$0.93
2021$0.08$0.07$0.08$0.08$0.08$0.08$0.08$0.08$0.07$0.07$0.08$0.07$0.91

Drawdowns

Drawdowns Chart

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.


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Worst Drawdowns

The table below displays the maximum drawdowns of the First Trust Institutional Preferred Securities & Income 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 Institutional Preferred Securities & Income ETF was 27.51%, occurring on Mar 23, 2020. Recovery took 160 trading sessions.

The current First Trust Institutional Preferred Securities & Income ETF drawdown is 2.29%.


Depth

Start

To Bottom

Bottom

To Recover

End

Total

-27.51%Feb 19, 202024Mar 23, 2020160Nov 6, 2020184
-16.46%Sep 23, 2021378Mar 24, 2023248Mar 20, 2024626
-6.01%Jan 29, 2018227Dec 20, 201867Mar 29, 2019294
-4.26%Mar 3, 202526Apr 7, 202525May 13, 202551
-3.63%Feb 23, 202625Mar 27, 2026

Volatility

Volatility Chart

The chart below shows the rolling one-month volatility.


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