First Trust Global Portfolios’ ETF suite reaches $600m AUM

Feb 9th, 2018 | By | Category: ETF and Index News

The assets under management of First Trust Global Portfolios’ (FTGP) European-listed ETF suite has grown to over $600m since the firm debuted its first ETF in the European market in 2011.

Derek Fulton, CEO of First Trust Global Portfolios

Derek Fulton, CEO of First Trust Global Portfolios

Derek Fulton, CEO at FTGP said, “We have been hugely encouraged by the increasing interest in our trusted innovative investment solutions and believe this significant growth underlines the value of our proven investment strategies. Since launching to market we have continued to innovate and develop our proven systematic solutions.”

According to FTGP, a UK-based affiliate of First Trust Advisors, the uplift in AUM can be attributed not only to a growing appetite among investors for a disciplined and transparent investment approach but also due to the strong performance of the firm’s flagship AlphaDEX funds versus their investment universes.

The suite of smart beta AlphaDEX ETFs uses fundamental valuation factors to seek better potential risk-adjusted returns relative to traditional market cap-weighted benchmarks. The methodology uses two pillars, fundamental value and growth factors, to select stocks based on their potential for long-term capital gains.

The range includes funds offering exposure to US large-cap, Japanese, UK, German, eurozone and emerging market equities. FTGP reports that all six Alphadex ETFs outperformed their benchmarks during the 2017 calendar year. Two additional funds in the range, providing exposure to Swiss and US small-cap equities launched during 2017.

The largest funds in the range are the First Trust Eurozone AlphaDEX UCITS ETF (FEUZ LN) and the First Trust US Large Cap Core AlphaDEX UCITS ETF (FEX LN) with $224 million and $155m AUM respectively.

Reflecting the innovative nature of the firm’s strategies, FTGP brought to market last year the first actively managed foreign exchange ETF in Europe – the First Trust FactorFX UCITS ETF (FTFX LN).

FTFX primarily seeks to earn alpha through the implementation of multiple carry trades, which are strategies that seek to capitalise on the interest rate differential between various currencies. It is typically administered by selling short a low yielding currency and using the proceeds to invest in higher-yielding currencies, thereby earning a positive interest rate differential. The fund’s TER is 0.75%.

While the firm’s ETF AUM growth is certainly impressive, even amid a booming ETF industry both in Europe and globally, Fulton predicts the firm will maintain its pace and close in on the coveted $1bn milestone. He said, “With predictions pointing to the record inflows into ETFs set to continue, we have been delighted with the feedback we have received from our peers and clients.  We look forward to continuing our sustained growth across all our transparent investment strategies, as well as reinforcing our footprint in the active ETF universe.”

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