Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
FDL vs FTA: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, FDL returned +26.0% to FTA's +24.2%; 19% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $8.2bn for First Trust Morningstar ETF and $1.4bn for First Trust Large Cap Value AlphaDEX Fund.
Pair scorecard
FDL costs 0.15 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 1.8 points; FDL is 5.9 times larger.
| Measure | FDL | FTA |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +26.0% | +24.2% |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | Morningstar Dividend Leaders Index | Nasdaq AlphaDEX Large Cap Value Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.43% | 0.58% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 | $8.2bn | $1.4bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 19% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 50.6% | 9.8% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
May 18, 2007 to Oct 23, 2026 · 1,014 weekly returnsFTA returned slightly more: +392.0% to +366.6%. FDL swung less: 18.9% to 21.6%. FTA fell slightly less at its worst: −62.3% to −65.7%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | FDL | FTA | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +366.6% | +392.0% | FTA (slight) | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +8.2% | +8.5% | FTA (slight) | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +111.9% | +238.9% | FTA | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 18.9% | 21.6% | FDL | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 13.3% | 15.3% | FDL | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −65.7% | −62.3% | FTA (slight) | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.43 | 0.42 | FDL (slight) | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.61 | 0.59 | FDL (slight) | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.13 | 0.14 | FTA (slight) | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 1,014 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, FDL and FTA hold 19% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Oct 27, 2026.
half
19% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
FDL and FTA on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
FDL and FTA are built for the same job. How do they differ in cost, holdings and results?
- What each follows. FDL follows Morningstar Dividend Leaders Index and FTA follows Nasdaq AlphaDEX Large Cap Value Index.
- Holdings in common. 19% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Oct 27, 2026).
- Cost. FDL charges 0.43% of assets a year and FTA 0.58%, a gap of 0.15 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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FDL
FDL tracks an index. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +26.0% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.43% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 93% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 100 positions, with the top ten at 50.6%.
FTA
FTA tracks an index. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +24.2% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.58% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 93% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 187 positions, with the top ten at 9.8%.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, FDL or FTA?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, FDL returned +26.0% and FTA +24.2%.
- Which is cheaper, FDL or FTA?
- FDL is cheaper, by 0.15 percentage points a year. That is about $15 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Links are sources, not endorsements. A comparison is not a recommendation.
How this is computed
Overlap adds up the smaller of the two weights for each security both funds hold.
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ETFIQ, FDL against FTA, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/fdl-vs-fta
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). FDL against FTA. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/fdl-vs-fta
[FDL against FTA (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/fdl-vs-fta)
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