Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
FPE vs FPEI: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, FPE returned −2.6% to FPEI's +0.3%, and FPE charges 0.83% to FPEI's 0.85%.
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Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $5.8bn for First Trust Preferred Securities and Income ETF and $1.9bn for First Trust Institutional Preferred Securities and Income ETF.
Pair scorecard
FPE costs 0.02 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 2.9 points; FPE is 3.1 times larger.
| Measure | FPE | FPEI |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | −2.6% | +0.3% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 4.3%, high on Feb 20, 2026 | |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | No index, actively managed | No index, actively managed |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.83% | 0.85% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 | $5.8bn | $1.9bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 65% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 15.0% | 18.1% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Jul 31, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Sep 1, 2017 to Oct 23, 2026 · 477 weekly returnsFPEI returned more: +49.0% to +39.7%. FPEI swung less: 10.2% to 11.7%. FPEI fell slightly less at its worst: −27.2% to −30.1%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | FPE | FPEI | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +39.7% | +49.0% | FPEI | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +3.7% | +4.4% | FPEI | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | −16.0% | −8.8% | FPEI | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 11.7% | 10.2% | FPEI | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 8.6% | 8.2% | FPEI (slight) | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −30.1% | −27.2% | FPEI (slight) | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.14 | 0.22 | FPEI | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.19 | 0.27 | FPEI | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.12 | 0.16 | FPEI | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 477 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, FPE and FPEI hold 65% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Jul 31, 2026.
half
65% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
FPE and FPEI on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
FPE and FPEI are built for the same job. How do they differ in cost, holdings and results?
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 FPE returned −2.6% and FPEI +0.3% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 2.9 points.
- Size. FPE has $5.8bn in net assets and FPEI $1.9bn (net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026); FPE is 3.1 times larger.
- What each follows (similar). Both follow No index, actively managed.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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FPE
FPE is actively managed and tracks no index. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned −2.6% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.83% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 0% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 263 positions, with the top ten at 15.0%. It sat 4.3% below its high of Feb 20, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
FPEI
FPEI is actively managed and tracks no index. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +0.3% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.85% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 0% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 177 positions, with the top ten at 18.1%.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, FPE or FPEI?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, FPE returned −2.6% and FPEI +0.3%.
- Which is cheaper, FPE or FPEI?
- FPE is cheaper, by 0.02 percentage points a year. That is about $2 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, FPE against FPEI, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/fpe-vs-fpei
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). FPE against FPEI. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/fpe-vs-fpei
[FPE against FPEI (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/fpe-vs-fpei)
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