Looking for broad exposure to the Energy - Broad segment of the equity market? You should consider the First Trust NASDAQ Oil & Gas ETF (FTXN), a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on September 20, 2016.
An increasingly popular option among retail and institutional investors, passively managed ETFs offer low costs, transparency, flexibility, and tax efficiency; they are also excellent vehicles for long term investors.
Sector ETFs also provide investors access to a broad group of companies in particular sectors that offer low risk and diversified exposure. Energy - Broad is one of the 16 broad Zacks sectors within the Zacks Industry classification. It is currently ranked 1, placing it in top 6%.
Index Details
The fund is sponsored by First Trust Advisors. It has amassed assets over $859.51 million, making it one of the larger ETFs attempting to match the performance of the Energy - Broad segment of the equity market. FTXN seeks to match the performance of the Nasdaq US Smart Oil & Gas Index before fees and expenses.
The Nasdaq US Smart Oil & Gas Index is a modified factor weighted index, designed to provide exposure to US companies within the oil and gas industry.
Costs
Since cheaper funds tend to produce better results than more expensive funds, assuming all other factors remain equal, it is important for investors to pay attention to an ETF's expense ratio.
Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.6%, making it on par with most peer products in the space.
It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 2.07%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
ETFs offer a diversified exposure and thus minimize single stock risk but it is still important to delve into a fund's holdings before investing. Most ETFs are very transparent products and many disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
This ETF has heaviest allocation in the Energy sector -- about 100% of the portfolio.
Looking at individual holdings, Conocophillips (COP) accounts for about 8.07% of total assets, followed by Exxon Mobil Corporation (XOM) and Chevron Corporation (CVX).The top 10 holdings account for about 54.78% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, FTXN has gained about 30.75%, and is up roughly 36.38% in the last one year (as of 05/13/2026). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $26.09 and $39.86.
The ETF has a beta of 0.49 and standard deviation of 23.36% for the trailing three-year period. With about 44 holdings, it has more concentrated exposure than peers.
Alternatives
First Trust NASDAQ Oil & Gas ETF carries a Zacks ETF Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Thus, FTXN is a reasonable option for those seeking exposure to the Energy ETFs area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.
Vanguard Energy Index Fund ETF Shares (VDE) tracks MSCI US Investable Market Energy 25/50 Index and the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) tracks Energy Select Sector Index. Vanguard Energy Index Fund ETF Shares has $10.06 billion in assets, State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF has $41.03 billion. VDE has an expense ratio of 0.09%, and XLE charges 0.08%.
Bottom Line
To learn more about this product and other ETFs, screen for products that match your investment objectives and read articles on latest developments in the ETF investing universe, please visit Zacks ETF Center.
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First Trust NASDAQ Oil & Gas ETF (FTXN): ETF Research Reports
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).