Is First Trust Large Cap Growth AlphaDEX ETF (FTC) a Strong ETF Right Now?

The First Trust Large Cap Growth AlphaDEX ETF (FTC) was launched on 05/08/2007, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Growth category of the market.

What Are Smart Beta ETFs?

For a long time now, the ETF industry has been flooded with products based on market capitalization weighted indexes, which are designed to represent the broader market or a particular market segment.

Market cap weighted indexes offer a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, and are a good option for investors who believe in market efficiency.

But, there are some investors who would rather invest in smart beta funds; these funds track non-cap weighted strategies, and are a strong option for those who prefer choosing great stocks in order to beat the market.

Non-cap weighted indexes try to choose stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, which is based on specific fundamental characteristics, or a mix of other such characteristics.

The smart beta space gives investors many different choices, from equal-weighting, one of the simplest strategies, to more complicated ones like fundamental and volatility/momentum based weighting. However, not all of these methodologies have been able to deliver remarkable returns.

Fund Sponsor & Index

Because the fund has amassed over $1.2 billion, this makes it one of the average sized ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Growth. FTC is managed by First Trust Advisors. Before fees and expenses, this particular fund seeks to match the performance of the Nasdaq AlphaDEX Large Cap Growth Index.

The NASDAQ AlphaDEX Large Cap Growth Index is an enhanced index which employs the AlphaDEX stock selection methodology to select stocks from the NASDAQ US 500 Large Cap Growth Index.

Cost & Other Expenses

Cost is an important factor in selecting the right ETF, and cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive cousins if all other fundamentals are the same.

Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.58% for this ETF, which makes it on par with most peer products in the space.

It's 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 0.20%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

It is important to delve into an ETF's holdings before investing despite the many upsides to these kinds of funds like diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

For FTC, it has heaviest allocation in the Industrials sector --about 27.7% of the portfolio --while Information Technology and Consumer Discretionary round out the top three.

When you look at individual holdings, Seagate Technology Holdings Plc (STX) accounts for about 1.34% of the fund's total assets, followed by Ftai Aviation Ltd. (FTAI) and Lam Research Corporation (LRCX).

The top 10 holdings account for about 11.18% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

The ETF has added roughly 0.13% and was up about 24.47% so far this year and in the past one year (as of 03/11/2026), respectively. FTC has traded between $116.97 and $166.21 during this last 52-week period.

The fund has a beta of 1.13 and standard deviation of 17.77% for the trailing three-year period, which makes FTC a medium risk choice in this particular space. With about 188 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .

Alternatives

First Trust Large Cap Growth AlphaDEX ETF is an excellent option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Growth segment of the market. There are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider as well.

Vanguard Growth Index Fund ETF Shares (VUG) tracks CRSP U.S. Large Cap Growth Index and the Invesco QQQ (QQQ) tracks NASDAQ-100 Index. Vanguard Growth Index Fund ETF Shares has $197.16 billion in assets, Invesco QQQ has $391.86 billion. VUG has an expense ratio of 0.03% and QQQ changes 0.18%.

Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Style Box - Large Cap Growth

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 Large Cap Growth AlphaDEX ETF (FTC): ETF Research Reports

This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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