Data as of .
MISL vs NATO: which is really different?
MISL and NATO hold 53% of their weight in the same names, and MISL returned more over the year.
ETFIQ Off-Index Score: NATO scores higher
How much of it is not the index it is sold as an alternative to?
A percentile among the 379 thematic ETFs with a holdings filing. It is a position in a set, not a rating, and neither end of it is a recommendation. All thematic ETFs ranked by it · How it is computed
53% of the two portfolios are the same securities at the same weight.
What they hold in common
By the books each fund has filed, MISL and NATO hold 53% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.
| Holding | MISL | NATO |
|---|---|---|
| RTX Corporation | 8.30% | 7.61% |
| GE Aerospace | 7.34% | 9.73% |
| The Boeing Company | 7.48% | 7.28% |
| Lockheed Martin Corporation | 4.27% | 5.19% |
| General Dynamics Corporation | 3.95% | 3.63% |
| Howmet Aerospace Inc. | 3.56% | 4.85% |
| TransDigm Group Incorporated | 3.53% | 3.40% |
| Northrop Grumman Corporation | 4.10% | 3.37% |
| L3Harris Technologies, Inc. | 3.57% | 2.52% |
| Rocket Lab Corporation | 3.34% | 2.51% |
| Curtiss-Wright Corporation | 2.37% | 1.31% |
| FTAI Aviation Ltd. | 2.21% | 1.27% |
| Only in MISL | Only in NATO |
|---|---|
| Palantir Technologies Inc. (Class A) 11.75% | Rolls-Royce Holdings PLC 7.16% |
| Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (Class A) 8.81% | Airbus SE 5.10% |
| AST SpaceMobile, Inc. 2.56% | Safran SA 4.89% |
| Woodward, Inc. 2.16% | BAE Systems PLC 3.38% |
| Leidos Holdings, Inc. 1.81% | Honeywell International Inc 3.15% |
| CACI International Inc. 1.56% | Honeywell Aerospace Inc 3.11% |
| Science Applications International Corporation 0.64% | Rheinmetall AG 2.41% |
| Parsons Corporation 0.54% | Axon Enterprise Inc 1.91% |
Weight overlap is an ETFIQ calculation: for every security both funds hold, the smaller of the two weights, summed. Above 50%, holding both is close to holding one of them twice. Holdings dated Jun 30, 2026 and Sep 18, 2026.
Performance, window by window
| Window | Total return | vs the S&P 500 | vs the Nasdaq-100 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MISL | NATO | MISL | NATO | MISL | NATO | |
| 3 months | −8.7% | −6.6% | −10.9 pts | −8.9 pts | −6.2 pts | −4.1 pts |
| 6 months | −7.5% | −3.4% | −25.5 pts | −21.5 pts | −31.7 pts | −27.7 pts |
| 1 year | +6.4% | +0.6% | −10.2 pts | −16.0 pts | −15.4 pts | −21.2 pts |
| 3 years | +93.1% | not published | +14.7 pts | not published | −5.1 pts | not published |
| Since launch | +109.5% | +49.9% | −0.6 pts | +15.4 pts | −56.0 pts | +2.3 pts |
| MISL First Trust Indxx Aerospace & Defense ETF Holds 40 stocks in defense, 62% of its weight in S&P 500 companies | NATO Themes Transatlantic Defense ETF Holds 84 stocks in defense, 58% of its weight in S&P 500 companies | |
|---|---|---|
| Issuer | First Trust | Themes |
| Theme | Defense | Defense |
| In the S&P 500 | 62.4% | 58.4% |
| Active share vs the S&P 500 | 97.5% | 97.6% |
| In the Nasdaq-100 | 11.8% | 5.1% |
| Holdings | 40 | 84 |
| Top ten, share of the fund | 63.1% | 58.8% |
| Expense ratio | 0.60% | 0.35% |
| Fee for the differing part | 0.62% | 0.36% |
| Total return, 1 year | +6.4% | +0.6% |
| vs the S&P 500 | −10.2 pts | −16.0 pts |
| vs the Nasdaq-100 | −15.4 pts | −21.2 pts |
| Below its high | −16.9% | −14.4% |
| Net assets | $704m | $95m |
MISL in plain words
By weight, 62% of MISL's portfolio is stocks that are also in the S&P 500; its active share against the S&P 500 is 98%. The top ten holdings are 63% of the fund across 40 positions, as published by its issuer for Sep 18, 2026. Over the year to Sep 18, 2026 the fund returned +6.4% with distributions reinvested against +16.6% for the S&P 500, so a holder was behind by 10.2 pts. It sits 16.9% below its all-time high of Jan 16, 2026.
NATO in plain words
By weight, 58% of NATO's portfolio is stocks that are also in the S&P 500; its active share against the S&P 500 is 98%. The top ten holdings are 59% of the fund across 84 positions, as filed for Jun 30, 2026. Over the year to Sep 18, 2026 the fund returned +0.6% with distributions reinvested against +16.6% for the S&P 500, so a holder was behind by 16.0 pts. It sits 14.4% below its all-time high of Mar 2, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Do MISL and NATO hold the same stocks?
- By their latest filings, 53% of their books are the same securities at the same weight, which is close to holding one of them twice. Overlap is the sum of the smaller weight of every security they share.
- Which is more different from the S&P 500, MISL or NATO?
- MISL has 62% of its weight in S&P 500 names and NATO has 58%, so NATO differs more from the index.
- Which is cheaper, MISL or NATO?
- MISL charges 0.60% a year and NATO charges 0.35%, so NATO is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Other comparisons
Where these figures came from
ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure. It is not affiliated with any issuer, and a link is not an endorsement.
Cite this page. ETFIQ, MISL against NATO, data as of Sep 18, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/themes/misl-vs-nato Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.