AFSM
First Trust Active Factor Small Cap ETF
AFSM is an actively managed portfolio of US small-cap companies that exhibit exposure to one or more investing factors.
US
EQUITY
Active
MANAGEMENT STYLE
30.3 M
ASSETS UNDER MGMT
75 bp
EXPENSES
Fund Basics
| Fund sponsor | First Trust |
| Category | US |
| Asset class | Equity |
| Website | link... |
| Inception date | Dec 04, 2019 |
| Assets (mns) | $30 |
| Expense ratio | 75 bp |
| Currency | USD |
Sector Breakdown
Fund Structure
| Regulation | Open-Ended Fund |
| Distributions | Quarterly |
| Taxation | 1099 |
| Stock selection | Proprietary |
| Weighting | Proprietary |
| Holdings Transparency | Full |
| Derivatives-based | No |
| Options available | No |
| Currency hedged | No |
| Fund of funds | No |
Top 10 Holdings
Complete list +
| CORCEPT THERAPEUTICS INC | 1.6 % |
| INTERDIGITAL INC | 1.4 % |
| CATALYST PHARMACEUTICAL PART | 1.3 % |
| CARPENTER TECHNOLOGY | 1.2 % |
| SPROUTS FARMERS MARKET INC | 1.2 % |
| ADMA BIOLOGICS, INC. | 1.1 % |
| BANCORP INC/THE | 1.1 % |
| HALOZYME THERAPEUTICS INC | 1.1 % |
| H&R BLOCK INC | 1.0 % |
| ARCHROCK INC. | 1.0 % |
Constituent Breakdown
| Number of holdings | 330 |
| Herfindahl-Hirschman Index | 48 |
| Wgt avg mkt cap (mns) | $3,602 |
| Large cap (>$10bn) | 3.5% |
| Mid cap ($2-10bn) | 55.4% |
| Small cap (<$2bn) | 40.9% |
| Developed mkts. | 100.0% |
| Emerging mkts. | 0.1% |
Country Exposure
 |
UNITED STATES | 93.4 % |
 |
BERMUDA | 2.4 % |
 |
IRELAND | 1.8 % |
 |
ISRAEL | 0.5 % |
Historical Performance
Standardized Performance (as of 04/30/2025)
| YTD | 1 YR | 2 YR | 3 YR | 5 YR | 10 YR | 20 YR | Incep. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price Returns | -8.4% | -0.4% | 9.8% | 5.2% | 11.3% | -- | -- | 6.1% |
| Dividend Yield | 0.0% | 0.4% | 0.7% | 1.0% | 0.8% | -- | -- | 0.8% |
| Total Returns | -8.4% | 0.0% | 10.6% | 6.2% | 12.1% | -- | -- | 6.9% | Ann. Volatility | 28.0% | 23.2% | 20.7% | 21.9% | 22.6% | -- | -- | 26.7% |
Market Correlations
| versus... | Beta | R-squared |
| S&P 500 | 1.12 | 72% |
| MSCI EAFE | 0.95 | 55% |
| MSCI Emg Mkts | 0.62 | 23% |
Liquidity Measures
| Avg. volume (000) | 15 |
| Turnover | 1.4% |
| Avg. Bid/Ask (% of price) | 0.59% |
| ADV of underlying (mns) | $7,793 |
Technical Indicators
| Recent close | $27.57 |
| 30d moving avg. | $27.14 |
| Annualized volatility | 21.9% |
| Relative strength (RSI) | 48 |
| Short interest (ETF) | 0.2% |
| Short interest (underlying) | 6.5% |
Distributions
Assets Under Management (mns)
Money Flows (mns)
Short Interest (as % of shares outstanding)
Long Money Flows (mns)
Top Ten Comparable ETFs only shown here. For an extended list become an Individual or Professional subscriber. Start your FREE trial
Comparable ETFs Based on Overlap
| Ticker | Fund Name | Overlap vs. AFSM |
Expenses vs. AFSM |
ALTAR Score™ vs. AFSM |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSC | Principal U.S. Small-Cap ETF | 31.9% | -37 bp | -0.6% |
| FLQS | Franklin U.S. Small Cap Multifactor Index ETF | 28.9% | -40 bp | +2.3% |
| OMFS | Invesco Russell 2000 Dynamic Multifactor ETF | 28.8% | -36 bp | -1.8% |
| VIOG | Vanguard S&P Small-Cap 600 Growth ETF | 26.5% | -60 bp | -1.8% |
| ROSC | Hartford Multifactor Small Cap ETF | 26.5% | -41 bp | +2.6% |
| AFMC | First Trust Active Factor Mid Cap ETF | 26.2% | -10 bp | +1.1% |
| IJT | iShares S&P Small-Cap 600 Growth ETF | 25.8% | -57 bp | -2.1% |
| GSSC | Goldman Sachs Activebeta U.S. Small Cap Equity ETF | 25.5% | -55 bp | -1.6% |
| VIOO | Vanguard S&P Small-Cap 600 ETF | 25.4% | -65 bp | +0.4% |
| SLYG | SPDR S&P 600 Small Cap Growth ETF | 25.1% | -60 bp | -2.1% |
Risk and Returns: AFSM vs. Comps (1 YR)
Notes: Top 10 overlapping ETFs. Funds with insufficient history not shown. Some funds may overlap. Hover over data point for ticker symbol.
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Results & Estimates
| 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sales per share | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | |
| change (%) | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | |
| Earnings per share | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | |
| change (%) | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | |
| Dividends per share | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | |
| change (%) | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | |
| Book value per share | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | |
| change (%) | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
Return on Equity
Net Margins
EPS Revision Activity (6 mo. ago = 100%)
Compound Annual Growth Rates
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Valuation Metrics
| Fwd Est | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 | |
| Price-to-sales | --x | --x | --x | --x |
| Price-to-earnings | --x | --x | --x | --x |
| Price-to-cash flow | --x | --x | --x | --x |
| Price-to-growth | --x | --x | --x | --x |
| Price-to-book value | --x | --x | --x | --x |
| Yield | --% | --% | --x | --% |
Based on closing prices from 4/30/2025
Peer Group Comparison Sample data. Subscribe for access.
Price-to-Earnings
Price-to-Sales
Price-to-Book Value
Price-to-Cash Flow
Price-to-Growth
Dividend Yield
Historical Valuation Trends Sample data. Subscribe for access.
SHOWING:
Price-to-Earnings
Price-to-Earnings
AFSM
Notes: Based on adjusted historical results for current fund constituents. May differ from results achieved by past fund constituents. Max P/E of 100x.
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ETF Research Center Rating
OVERWEIGHT
Above average appreciation potential. A rating of OVERWEIGHT is assigned to ETFs with ALTAR Scores in the 4th quintile (ranking higher than 60%-80%) of their category. Typically, funds in this category consist of stocks trading at attractive valuations and/or having above-average fundamentals.
ALTAR Score™
AFSM
8.3%
Cat. Avg
6.5%
ALTAR Score™ Calculation
Category Overview
There are 953 funds in the US Equity category, with an average ALTAR Score™
of 6.5% and a standard deviation of
2.7%. AFSM's ALTAR Score™ is approximately
0.7 standard deviations
above
the category average. This places AFSM in the 75th percentile among funds in the category.
Sell Side Consensus Rating
Sell-side recommendations on the ETF's individual constituents
AFSMSELL
U/W
HOLD
O/W
BUY
Expense Analysis
| Peer Group | Active US Equity ETFs |
| # of ETFs | 308 |
| Avg. Expense Ratio | 67.1 bp |
| Std. Deviation | 37 bp |
| AFSM (75 bp) Percentile rank | 61 |
Peer Group Expense Ratio Distribution
Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) Comparison
| Expense (bp) (A) |
Avg. Bid/Ask (bp) (B) |
TCO (bp) (A)+(B) |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| AFSM | 75.0 | 59.0 | 134 |
| Peer Avg. | 46.6 | 19.2 | 65.8 |
For a detailed cost analysis of this and any other ETF use the TCO Comparison Tool .