Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
FTGS vs MDYG: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, FTGS returned +5.6% to MDYG's +13.3%; 2% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $1.3bn for First Trust Growth Strength ETF and $2.8bn for State Street SPDR S & P 400 Mid Cap Growth ETF.
Pair scorecard
MDYG costs 0.45 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 7.7 points; MDYG is 2.2 times larger.
| Measure | FTGS | MDYG |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +5.6% | +13.3% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 4.1%, high on Aug 13, 2026 | 8.3%, high on Aug 17, 2026 |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | Growth Strength Index | S&P MidCap 400 Growth Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.60% | 0.15% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 | $1.3bn | $2.8bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 2% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 21.4% | 13.8% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Nov 4, 2022 to Oct 23, 2026 · 207 weekly returnsEach against its own benchmark: FTGS against VOO, Nov 4, 2022 to Oct 23, 2026; MDYG against IJK, Nov 25, 2005 to Oct 23, 2026.
FTGS returned more: +90.1% to +63.3%. FTGS swung slightly less: 16.0% to 17.1%. FTGS fell less at its worst: −18.7% to −23.0%.
Full scorecard
19 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | FTGS | MDYG | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +90.1% | +63.3% | FTGS | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +17.5% | +13.1% | FTGS | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +87.3% | +57.2% | FTGS | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 16.0% | 17.1% | FTGS (slight) | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 10.2% | 11.6% | FTGS | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −18.7% | −23.0% | FTGS | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Upside capture | 98.4% | 101.1% | Share of its benchmark's rise caught in the weeks it rose. | |
| Downside capture | 105.3% | 100.3% | Share of its benchmark's fall taken in the weeks it fell. Lower is better. | |
| Beta | 1.05 | 1.02 | Not an edge | How far it moves for each 1% its benchmark moves. |
| R squared | 0.85 | 0.97 | Not an edge | Share of its weekly moves its benchmark explains. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.80 | 0.54 | FTGS | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 1.26 | 0.79 | FTGS | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Treynor | 0.123 | 0.097 | Return above Treasury bills per unit of beta. | |
| Calmar | 0.94 | 0.57 | FTGS | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
| Against the benchmark | ||||
| Benchmark | VOO | IJK | The ETF each fund is measured against. | |
| Alpha | −3.3% a year | +0.2% a year | Not significant | Yearly return beyond what its beta to the benchmark predicts. |
| Alpha t-stat | −1.06 | 0.30 | Not an edge | How sure the alpha is. Below 2, it could be chance. |
| Alpha range | −9.5% to +2.9% | −1.3% to +1.8% | Includes zero | The 95% range for the yearly alpha. |
| Information ratio | −0.42 | 0.11 | Return against its benchmark per unit of tracking error. | |
| Tracking error | 6.2% | 3.6% | Not an edge | How far weekly returns stray from the benchmark, annualized. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 207 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, FTGS and MDYG hold 2% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Oct 27, 2026.
half
2% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
FTGS and MDYG on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
FTGS and MDYG are built for the same job. How do they differ in cost, holdings and results?
- What each follows. FTGS follows Growth Strength Index and MDYG follows S&P MidCap 400 Growth Index.
- Holdings in common. 2% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Oct 27, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 FTGS returned +5.6% and MDYG +13.3% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 7.7 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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FTGS
FTGS tracks an index. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +5.6% with distributions reinvested, against +13.7% for its benchmark, the S&P 500 Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.60% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 94% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 50 positions, with the top ten at 21.4%. It sat 4.1% below its high of Aug 13, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
MDYG
MDYG tracks an index. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +13.3% with distributions reinvested, against +13.2% for its benchmark, the S&P MidCap 400 Growth Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.15% 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 247 positions, with the top ten at 13.8%. It sat 8.3% below its high of Aug 17, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, FTGS or MDYG?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, FTGS returned +5.6% and MDYG +13.3%.
- Which is cheaper, FTGS or MDYG?
- MDYG is cheaper, by 0.45 percentage points a year. That is about $45 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
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How this is computed
Overlap adds up the smaller of the two weights for each security both funds hold.
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ETFIQ, FTGS against MDYG, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ftgs-vs-mdyg
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). FTGS against MDYG. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ftgs-vs-mdyg
[FTGS against MDYG (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ftgs-vs-mdyg)
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