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First Trust Tactical High Yield ETF (HYLS)
Investment Objective/Strategy - The First Trust Tactical High Yield ETF is an actively managed exchange-traded fund. The fund's primary investment objective is to provide current income. The fund's secondary investment objective is to provide capital appreciation. Under normal market conditions, the fund invests at least 80% of its net assets (plus the amount of any borrowing for investment purposes) in high yield debt securities that are rated below investment grade at the time of purchase or unrated securities deemed by the fund's advisor to be of comparable quality.
There can be no assurance that the Fund's investment objectives will be achieved.
Fund Overview
TickerHYLS
Fund TypeHigh Yield Bond
Investment AdvisorFirst Trust Advisors L.P.
Investor Servicing AgentBank of New York Mellon Corp
CUSIP33738D408
ISINUS33738D4088
Intraday NAVHYLSIV
Fiscal Year-End10/31
ExchangeNasdaq
Inception2/25/2013
Inception Price$50.00
Inception NAV$50.00
Fees And Expenses
Management Fees0.95%
Other Expenses0.06%
Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses0.01%
Total Annual Expenses1.02%
As of Date 3/1/2024
"Other Expenses" include margin interest expense and interest on investments sold short.
Current Fund Data (as of 3/15/2024)
Closing NAV1$41.23
Closing Market Price2$41.16
Bid/Ask Midpoint$41.17
Bid/Ask Discount0.15%
30-Day Median Bid/Ask Spread30.12%
Total Net Assets$1,478,026,882
Outstanding Shares35,850,002
Daily Volume202,811
Average 30-Day Daily Volume155,013
Closing Market Price 52-Week High/Low$41.71 / $38.23
Closing NAV 52-Week High/Low$41.60 / $38.29
Number of Holdings (excluding cash)315
Top Holdings (as of 3/15/2024)*
Holding Percent
NEXSTAR MEDIA INC 5.625%, due 07/15/2027 2.60%
SS&C TECHNOLOGIES INC 5.50%, due 09/30/2027 2.56%
ALLIANT HOLD / CO-ISSUER 6.75%, due 10/15/2027 2.53%
UNITED RENTALS (NORTH AMERICA) 6%, due 12/15/2029 2.12%
VERSCEND ESCROW CORP 9.75%, due 08/15/2026 2.11%
GRAHAM PACKAGING/GPC CAP 7.125%, due 08/15/2028 1.93%
1011778 BC / NEW RED FIN 4%, due 10/15/2030 1.87%
GRAY TELEVISION INC 5.875%, due 07/15/2026 1.84%
ASSUREDPARTNERS INC 5.625%, due 01/15/2029 1.83%
SELECT MEDICAL CORP 6.25%, due 08/15/2026 1.79%

* Excluding cash.  Holdings are subject to change.

NAV History (Since Inception)
Past performance is not indicative of future results.
Distribution Information
Dividend per Share Amt (as of 3/18/2024)4$0.2225
30-Day SEC Yield (as of 2/29/2024)57.40%
12-Month Distribution Rate (as of 2/29/2024)66.11%
Distribution Rate (as of 2/29/2024)76.50%
Fund Characteristics (as of 3/15/2024)
Net Weighted Average Effective Duration (Includes Short Positions)83.53 Years
Weighted Average Effective Duration (Long Positions)83.53 Years
Weighted Average Maturity (Long Positions)5.64 Years
Weighted Average Price$93.39
Weighted Average Coupon6.21%
Weighted Average Yield-To-Maturity97.38%
Weighted Average Yield-to-Worst107.35%
Long Positions96.98%
Short Position - U.S. Treasury Securities0.00%
Option-Adjusted Spread11304 bps
3-Month Term SOFR125.33%
Portfolio information statistics exclude cash and other assets and liabilities. Weighted average maturity excludes defaulted assets.
Asset Type Breakdown (as of 2/29/2024)
  Asset Percent
Bond 91.89%
Loan 8.11%
Bid/Ask Premium/Discount (as of 3/15/2024)
  2023 Q1 2024 Q2 2024 Q3 2024
Days Traded at Premium 80 39 --- ---
Days Traded at Discount 170 13 --- ---
Credit Quality (as of 2/29/2024)
A+ 0.40%
A- 1.23%
BBB+ 1.14%
BBB 4.55%
BBB- 7.33%
BB+ 6.96%
BB 6.55%
BB- 8.42%
B+ 13.81%
B 13.99%
B- 13.59%
CCC+ 17.98%
CCC 3.42%
NR 0.63%
The ratings are by S&P Global Ratings. A credit rating is an assessment provided by a nationally recognized statistical rating organization (NRSRO) of the creditworthiness of an issuer with respect to debt obligations except for those debt obligations that are only privately rated. Ratings are measured on a scale that generally ranges from AAA (highest) to D (lowest). Investment grade is defined as those issuers that have a long-term credit rating of BBB- or higher. "NR" indicates no rating. The credit ratings shown relate to the creditworthiness of the issuers of the underlying securities in the Fund, and not to the Fund or its shares. Credit ratings are subject to change.
Top Industry Exposure (as of 2/29/2024)
Software 16.49%
Insurance 12.58%
Media 12.52%
Containers & Packaging 6.89%
Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure 5.99%
Health Care Technology 5.40%
Health Care Providers & Services 5.36%
Trading Companies & Distributors 3.67%
Diversified Telecommunication Services 3.04%
Commercial Services & Supplies 2.56%
Hypothetical Growth of $10,000 Since Inception (as of 3/15/2024) *


Month End Performance (as of 2/29/2024)
  3 Month YTD 1 Year 3 Year 5 Year 10 Year Since
Fund
Inception13
Fund Performance *
Net Asset Value (NAV) 3.21% -0.15% 10.74% 0.60% 2.90% 3.35% 4.02%
After Tax Held 2.53% -0.59% 7.95% -1.92% 0.48% 0.92% 1.55%
After Tax Sold 1.90% -0.09% 6.27% -0.63% 1.18% 1.46% 1.97%
Market Price 3.51% 0.16% 10.90% 0.76% 2.98% 3.35% 4.04%
Index Performance **
ICE BofA US High Yield Constrained Index 4.02% 0.33% 10.97% 1.89% 3.97% 4.26% 4.64%
Quarter End Performance (as of 12/29/2023)
  3 Month YTD 1 Year 3 Year 5 Year 10 Year Since
Fund
Inception13
Fund Performance *
Net Asset Value (NAV) 7.66% 13.38% 13.38% 0.88% 4.28% 3.61% 4.09%
After Tax Held 6.96% 10.54% 10.54% -1.62% 1.84% 1.19% 1.63%
After Tax Sold 4.52% 7.80% 7.80% -0.41% 2.24% 1.66% 2.02%
Market Price 7.73% 13.73% 13.73% 0.81% 4.36% 3.59% 4.08%
Index Performance **
ICE BofA US High Yield Constrained Index 7.07% 13.46% 13.46% 2.00% 5.19% 4.51% 4.68%
3-Year Statistics (as of 2/29/2024)
  Standard Deviation Alpha Beta Sharpe Ratio Correlation
HYLS 9.07% -1.21 1.04 -0.16 0.97
ICE BofA US High Yield Constrained Index 8.44% --- 1.00 -0.02 1.00
Standard Deviation is a measure of price variability (risk). Alpha is an indication of how much an investment outperforms or underperforms on a risk-adjusted basis relative to its benchmark.Beta is a measure of price variability relative to the market. Sharpe Ratio is a measure of excess reward per unit of volatility. Correlation is a measure of the similarity of performance.
On January 3, 2023, the fair value methodology used to value the senior loan investments held by the fund was changed. Prior to that date, the senior loans were valued using the bid side price provided by a pricing service. After such date, the senior loans were valued using the midpoint between the bid and ask price provided by a pricing service. The change in the fund's fair value methodology on January 3, 2023, resulted in a one-time increase in the fund's net asset value of approximately $0.035 per share on that date, which represented a positive impact on the fund's performance of 0.09%. Without the change to the pricing methodology, the performance of the fund on a NAV basis would have been 13.30%, 0.86%, 4.27%, 3.61%, 4.09%, in the one-year, three-year, five-year, ten-year and since fund inception periods ended December 29, 2023, respectively.

*Performance data quoted represents past performance. Past performance is not a guarantee of future results and current performance may be higher or lower than performance quoted. Investment returns and principal value will fluctuate and shares when sold or redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost.

After Tax Held returns represent return after taxes on distributions. Assumes shares have not been sold. After Tax Sold returns represent the return after taxes on distributions and the sale of fund shares. Returns do not represent the returns you would receive if you traded shares at other times. Market Price returns are determined by using the midpoint of the national best bid offer price ("NBBO") as of the time that the fund's NAV is calculated. Returns are average annualized total returns, except those for periods of less than one year, which are cumulative.

After-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Actual after-tax returns depend on the investor’s tax situation and may differ from those shown. The after-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold their fund shares through tax-deferred arrangements such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts.

**Performance information for each listed index is for illustrative purposes only and does not represent actual fund performance. Indexes do not charge management fees or brokerage expenses, and no such fees or expenses were deducted from the performance shown. Indexes are unmanaged and an investor cannot invest directly in an index.

ICE BofA US High Yield Constrained Index - The Index tracks the performance of U.S. dollar denominated below investment grade corporate debt publicly issued in the U.S. domestic market but caps issuer exposure at 2%.

Footnotes
1 The NAV represents the fund's net assets (assets less liabilities) divided by the fund's outstanding shares.
2 Fund shares are purchased and sold on an exchange at their market price rather than net asset value (NAV), which may cause the shares to trade at a price greater than NAV (premium) or less than NAV (discount).
3 The median bid-ask spread is calculated by identifying the national best bid and national best offer ("NBBO") for the fund as of the end of each 10 second interval during each trading day of the last 30 calendar days and dividing the difference between each such bid and offer by the midpoint of the NBBO. The median of those values is identified and that value is expressed as a percentage rounded to the nearest hundredth.
4 Most recent distribution paid or declared to today's date. Subject to change in the future. There is no guarantee that the fund will declare dividends.
5 The 30-day SEC yield is calculated by dividing the net investment income per share earned during the most recent 30-day period by the maximum offering price per share on the last day of the period and includes the effects of fee waivers and expense reimbursements, if applicable.
6 12-Month Distribution Rate is calculated by dividing the sum of the fund's trailing 12-month ordinary distributions paid or declared by the NAV price. Distribution rates may vary.
7 Distribution Rate is calculated by dividing the fund's most recent ordinary distribution paid or declared, on an annualized basis, by the NAV price. Distribution rates may vary.
8 A measure of a bond's sensitivity to interest rate changes that reflects the change in a bond's price given a change in yield. It accounts for the likelihood of changes in the timing of cash flows in response to interest rate movements.
9 The annualized return that would be earned on a debt security if held to maturity, weighted by the value of each debt security in the fund's portfolio. The calculation does not include the effect of fund fees and expenses.
10 YTW is the measure of the lowest possible yield that can be received on a fixed income security with an early retirement provision without the issuer defaulting. The calculation does not include the effect of fund fees and expenses.
11 A measurement of the spread of a fixed-income security rate and the risk-free rate of return, which is adjusted to take into account an embedded option.
12 Term SOFR Reference Rates provide an indicative, forward-looking measurement of SOFR rates, based on market expectations implied from leading derivatives markets. The Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR) is a broad measure of the cost of borrowing cash overnight collateralized by Treasury securities. The SOFR includes all trades in the Broad General Collateral Rate plus bilateral Treasury repurchase agreement (repo) transactions.
13 Inception Date is 2/25/2013

You should consider the fund's investment objectives, risks, and charges and expenses carefully before investing. You can download a prospectus or summary prospectus, or contact First Trust Portfolios L.P. at 1-800-621-1675 to request a prospectus or summary prospectus which contains this and other information about the fund. The prospectus or summary prospectus should be read carefully before investing.

Risk Considerations

You could lose money by investing in a fund. An investment in a fund is not a deposit of a bank and is not insured or guaranteed. There can be no assurance that a fund's objective(s) will be achieved. Investors buying or selling shares on the secondary market may incur customary brokerage commissions. Please refer to each fund's prospectus and Statement of Additional Information for additional details on a fund's risks. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.

Unlike mutual funds, shares of the fund may only be redeemed directly from a fund by authorized participants in very large creation/redemption units. If a fund's authorized participants are unable to proceed with creation/redemption orders and no other authorized participant is able to step forward to create or redeem, fund shares may trade at a premium or discount to a fund's net asset value and possibly face delisting and the bid/ask spread may widen.

Investments in bank loans are subject to the same risks as other debt securities, but the risks may be heightened because of limited public information available and because loan borrowers may be leveraged and tend to be more adversely affected by changes in market or economic conditions. The secondary market for bank loans may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads and extended trade settlement periods.

During periods of falling interest rates if an issuer calls higher-yielding debt instruments, a fund may be forced to invest the proceeds at lower interest rates, likely resulting in a decline in the fund's income.

A fund that effects all or a portion of its creations and redemptions for cash rather than in-kind may be less tax-efficient.

Investment exposure to CDX credit protection is subject to the risks of the underlying credit default swap obligations, which include general market risk, liquidity risk, credit risk and counterparty risk. Regardless of whether the fund buys or sells CDX credit protection, such investments can result in gains or losses that may exceed gains or losses the fund would have incurred investing directly in high yield debt securities.

A fund may be subject to the risk that a counterparty will not fulfill its obligations which may result in significant financial loss to a fund.

Covenant-lite loans contain fewer maintenance covenants than traditional loans and may not include terms that allow the lender to monitor the financial performance of the borrower and declare a default if certain criteria are breached. This may hinder a fund's ability to mitigate problems and increase a fund's exposure to losses on such investments.

An issuer or other obligated party of a debt security may be unable or unwilling to make dividend, interest and/or principal payments when due and the value of a security may decline as a result.

Ratings assigned by a credit rating agency are opinions of such entities, not absolute standards of credit quality and they do not evaluate risks of securities. Any shortcomings or inefficiencies in the process of determining credit ratings may adversely affect the credit ratings of the securities held by a fund and their perceived or actual credit risk.

Current market conditions risk is the risk that a particular investment, or shares of the fund in general, may fall in value due to current market conditions. As a means to fight inflation, the Federal Reserve and certain foreign central banks have raised interest rates and expect to continue to do so, and the Federal Reserve has announced that it intends to reverse previously implemented quantitative easing. Recent and potential future bank failures could result in disruption to the broader banking industry or markets generally and reduce confidence in financial institutions and the economy as a whole, which may also heighten market volatility and reduce liquidity. Ongoing armed conflicts between Russia and Ukraine in Europe and among Israel, Hamas and other militant groups in the Middle East, have caused and could continue to cause significant market disruptions and volatility within the markets in Russia, Europe, the Middle East and the United States. The hostilities and sanctions resulting from those hostilities have and could continue to have a significant impact on certain fund investments as well as fund performance and liquidity. The COVID-19 global pandemic, or any future public health crisis, and the ensuing policies enacted by governments and central banks have caused and may continue to cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets, negatively impacting global growth prospects.

A fund is susceptible to operational risks through breaches in cyber security. Such events could cause a fund to incur regulatory penalties, reputational damage, additional compliance costs associated with corrective measures and/or financial loss.

Investments in debt securities subject the holder to the credit risk of the issuer and the value of debt securities will generally change inversely with changes in interest rates. In addition, debt securities generally do not trade on a securities exchange making them less liquid and more difficult to value.

Defaulted securities pose a much greater risk that principal will not be repaid than non-defaulted securities which may result in losses for a fund.

The use of derivatives instruments involves different and possibly greater risks than investing directly in securities including counterparty risk, valuation risk, volatility risk, and liquidity risk. Further, losses because of adverse movements in the price or value of the underlying asset, index or rate may be magnified by certain features of the derivatives.

Distressed securities are speculative and often illiquid or trade in low volumes and thus may be more difficult to value and pose a substantial risk of default.

Extension risk is the risk that, when interest rates rise, certain obligations will be paid off by the issuer (or other obligated party) more slowly than anticipated, causing the value of these debt securities to fall. Rising interest rates tend to extend the duration of debt securities, making their market value more sensitive to changes in interest rates.

Floating rate securities are structured so that the security's coupon rate fluctuates based upon the level of a reference rate. As a result, the coupon on floating rate securities will generally decline in a falling interest rate environment, causing a fund to experience a reduction in the income it receives from the security. A floating rate security's coupon rate resets periodically according to the terms of the security. Consequently, in a rising interest rate environment, floating rate securities with coupon rates that reset infrequently may lag behind the changes in market interest rates.

High yield securities, or "junk" bonds, are less liquid and are subject to greater market fluctuations and risk of loss than securities with higher ratings, and therefore, are considered to be highly speculative.

A fund's income may decline when interest rates fall or if there are defaults in its portfolio.

A fund may be a constituent of one or more indices or models which could greatly affect a fund's trading activity, size and volatility.

As inflation increases, the present value of a fund's assets and distributions may decline.

Interest rate risk is the risk that the value of the debt securities in a fund's portfolio will decline because of rising interest rates. Interest rate risk is generally lower for shorter term debt securities and higher for longer-term debt securities.

Leverage may result in losses that exceed the amount originally invested and may accelerate the rates of losses. Leverage tends to magnify, sometimes significantly, the effect of any increase or decrease in a fund's exposure to an asset or class of assets and may cause the value of a fund's shares to be volatile and sensitive to market swings.

To the extent a fund invests in floating or variable rate obligations that use the London Interbank Offered Rate ("LIBOR") as a reference interest rate, it is subject to LIBOR Risk. LIBOR has ceased to be made available as a reference rate and there is no assurance that any alternative reference rate, including the Secured Overnight Financing Rate ("SOFR"), will be similar to or produce the same value or economic equivalence as LIBOR. The unavailability or replacement of LIBOR may affect the value, liquidity or return on certain fund investments and may result in costs incurred in connection with closing out positions and entering into new trades. Any potential effects of the transition away from LIBOR on a fund or on certain instruments in which a fund invests is difficult to predict and could result in losses to the fund.

Certain fund investments may be subject to restrictions on resale, trade over-the-counter or in limited volume, or lack an active trading market. Illiquid securities may trade at a discount and may be subject to wide fluctuations in market value.

The portfolio managers of an actively managed portfolio will apply investment techniques and risk analyses that may not have the desired result.

Market risk is the risk that a particular security, or shares of a fund in general may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as general economic conditions, political events, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Shares of a fund could decline in value or underperform other investments as a result. In addition, local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, spread of infectious disease or other public health issues, recessions, natural disasters or other events could have significant negative impact on a fund.

A fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for fund shares due to a limited number of market makers. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants to reduce their role or step away in times of market stress could inhibit the effectiveness of the arbitrage process in maintaining the relationship between the underlying values of a fund's portfolio securities and a fund's market price.

Securities of non-U.S. issuers are subject to additional risks, including currency fluctuations, political risks, withholding, lack of liquidity, lack of adequate financial information, and exchange control restrictions impacting non-U.S. issuers.

A fund and a fund's advisor may seek to reduce various operational risks through controls and procedures, but it is not possible to completely protect against such risks. The fund also relies on third parties for a range of services, including custody, and any delay or failure related to those services may affect the fund's ability to meet its objective.

The market price of a fund's shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in the fund's net asset value ("NAV") as well as the relative supply of and demand for shares on the exchange, and a fund's investment advisor cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their NAV.

Prepayment risk is the risk that the issuer of a debt security will repay principal prior to the scheduled maturity date. Debt securities allowing prepayment may offer less potential for gains during a period of declining interest rates, as a fund may be required to reinvest the proceeds of any prepayment at lower interest rates.

Companies that issue loans tend to be highly leveraged and thus are more susceptible to the risks of interest deferral, default and/or bankruptcy. Loans are usually rated below investment grade but may also be unrated. As a result, the risks associated with these loans are similar to the risks of high-yield fixed income instruments. The senior loan market has seen a significant increase in loans with weaker lender protections which may impact recovery values and/or trading levels in the future.

Short selling creates special risks which could result in increased gains or losses and volatility of returns. Because losses on short sales arise from increases in the value of the security sold short, such losses are theoretically unlimited.

A fund with significant exposure to a single asset class, country, region, industry, or sector may be more affected by an adverse economic or political development than a broadly diversified fund.

Securities of small- and mid-capitalization companies may experience greater price volatility and be less liquid than larger, more established companies.

Trading on an exchange may be halted due to market conditions or other reasons. There can be no assurance that a fund's requirements to maintain the exchange listing will continue to be met or be unchanged.

Securities issued or guaranteed by federal agencies and U.S. government sponsored instrumentalities may or may not be backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government.

A fund may hold securities or other assets that may be valued on the basis of factors other than market quotations. This may occur because the asset or security does not trade on a centralized exchange, or in times of market turmoil or reduced liquidity. Portfolio holdings that are valued using techniques other than market quotations, including "fair valued" assets or securities, may be subject to greater fluctuation in their valuations from one day to the next than if market quotations were used. There is no assurance that a fund could sell or close out a portfolio position for the value established for it at any time.

A fund may invest in securities that exhibit more volatility than the market as a whole.

First Trust Advisors L.P. (FTA) is the adviser to the First Trust fund(s). FTA is an affiliate of First Trust Portfolios L.P., the distributor of the fund(s).

CUSIP identifiers have been provided by CUSIP Global Services, managed on behalf of the American Bankers Association by FactSet Research Systems Inc. and are not for use or dissemination in a manner that would serve as a substitute for any CUSIP service. The CUSIP Database, ©2024 CUSIP Global Services. "CUSIP" is a registered trademark of the American Bankers Association.

Not FDIC Insured • Not Bank Guaranteed • May Lose Value
 
The information presented is not intended to constitute an investment recommendation for, or advice to, any specific person. By providing this information, First Trust is not undertaking to give advice in any fiduciary capacity within the meaning of ERISA, the Internal Revenue Code or any other regulatory framework. Financial professionals are responsible for evaluating investment risks independently and for exercising independent judgment in determining whether investments are appropriate for their clients.
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