At a glance
FTXG charges 0.6% a year, above the 0.36% average of the 8 funds most like it (the 6th cheapest of 9). It has $23.4M in assets, the 9th largest of that group; it paid 2.45% of its price in distributions over the past 12 months, quarterly. Over the past year it returned +6.0% with distributions reinvested (S&P 500: +11.5%), 7th of those 9 funds; over three years it returned +3.1% a year. At its worst it fell 30.5% in the 2020 crash (S&P 500: 33.7%) and 14.4% in the 2022 bear market (S&P 500: 24.5%). Its ten largest positions make up 62.3% of the fund, out of 30 in all.
The short version
First Trust Nasdaq Food & Beverage ETF (FTXG) is an index fund holding 30 to 50 US food and beverage companies, such as Archer-Daniels-Midland and Coca-Cola, picked by the Nasdaq US Smart Food & Beverage Index on profitability, momentum and cash flow. It offers a focused stake in food and drink makers, weighted by cash flow, not company size. Its 0.60% yearly fee is well above broad consumer staples funds such as XLP (0.08%).
Price history
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FTXG +6.0% over the year to Oct 27, 2026, total return with distributions reinvested.
How it has behaved
| YTD | 1 yr | 3 yr | 5 yr | 10 yr | Since start | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FTXG official prospectus, to Dec 31, 2025 | — | -6.65% | — | +0.39% | — | +2.57% |
| FTXG price data to Oct 27, 2026 | +8.7% | +6.0% | +3.1% | +0.6% | +3.3% | +3.2% |
- Over the year to Oct 27, 2026, FTXG returned +6.0%, 7th of 9 among similar funds.
- Its 5-year annualized return was +0.6% and its 10-year +3.3%.
- In the 2020 COVID crash it fell 30.5% and regained its old high 6.8 months after the low.
- Its worst full calendar year was 2018 (-12.1%); its best was 2019 (+24.0%).
- The deepest fall in its price history was 33.8% (Feb 14, 2020 to Mar 23, 2020), recovered by Nov 24, 2020.
Show as a table
| Year | Price data | Prospectus (official) |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | +8.7% | — |
| 2025 | -6.5% | -6.65% |
| 2024 | -2.5% | -2.46% |
| 2023 | -6.5% | -6.15% |
| 2022 | +6.2% | +6.17% |
| 2021 | +13.4% | +12.36% |
| 2020 | +6.7% | +7.13% |
| 2019 | +24.0% | +24.11% |
| 2018 | -12.1% | -12.38% |
| 2017 | +5.6% | +6.07% |
| 2008 financial crisis stocks fell Oct 9, 2007 – Mar 9, 2009 | Before this security existed |
|---|---|
| 2020 COVID crash stocks fell Feb 19, 2020 – Mar 23, 2020 | Lost 30.5% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 30.5%, back to its old high 6.8 months after the low |
| 2022 bear market stocks fell Jan 3, 2022 – Oct 12, 2022 | Gained 0.1% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 14.4%, not recovered by the end of the data |
Dividends and income
Show as a table
| Year | Per share | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | $0.3500 | |
| 2025 | $0.6200 | -1.6% |
| 2024 | $0.6300 | -39.4% |
| 2023 | $1.0400 | +153.7% |
| 2022 | $0.4100 | +5.1% |
| 2021 | $0.3900 | +21.9% |
| 2020 | $0.3200 | +14.3% |
| 2019 | $0.2800 | +12.0% |
| 2018 | $0.2500 | -22.8% |
| 2017 | $0.3240 |
What's inside
As of Jun 30, 2026, the fund held 30 securities; the ten largest made up 62.3% of assets.
| Holding | Weight | |
|---|---|---|
| ARCHER DANIELS MIDLAND COMPANY | 9.41% | |
| COCA-COLA COMPANY (THE) | 8.48% | |
| KRAFT HEINZ COMPANY (THE) | 8.17% | |
| MONDELEZ INTERNATIONAL INC | 7.99% | |
| PEPSICO INC | 6.79% | |
| MONSTER BEVERAGE CORP | 4.79% | |
| KEURIG DR PEPPER INC | 4.60% | |
| CORTEVA INC | 4.50% | |
| US FOODS HOLDING CORP | 3.83% | |
| CONSTELLATION BRANDS INC | 3.75% | |
| TYSON FOODS INC | 3.75% | |
| CAL-MAINE FOODS INC | 3.49% | |
| GENERAL MILLS INC | 3.27% | |
| HERSHEY COMPANY (THE) | 3.16% | |
| J.M. SMUCKER COMPANY (THE) | 2.61% |
By country
United States 97.92%Switzerland 1.9%By asset type
Stocks 99.82%By sector
Sectors of the companies held, for the 61.7% of the fund in companies that have a stock page here; other holdings and cash aren't classified. Source: N-PORT holdings report as of Jun 30, 2026. Cash, money-market funds and derivatives are shown separately from the securities list.What changed recently
- Over the three months to Jun 30, 2026, investors added a net $4.5M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
- Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: +1.72%, -1.38%, +0.81%.
How it works
FTXG tries to match, before fees, the Nasdaq US Smart Food & Beverage Index, run by Nasdaq, Inc., and keeps at least 80% of its net assets in the index's stocks. The starting pool is US companies in the broader Nasdaq US Benchmark Index that fall into seven subsectors: brewers; distillers and vintners; soft drinks; farming, fishing, ranching and plantations; food products; fruit and grain processing; and sugar. Each stock must meet minimum size and trading standards.
Nasdaq ranks the eligible stocks on four factors: gross income, return on assets (profit relative to what a company owns), momentum (recent price strength) and cash flow, which gets limited weight and may break ties. The top 30 to 50 make the index; it held 30 as of June 30, 2026. Weights are based on cash flow, not company size. No more than five stocks can reach the 8% cap, the rest are capped at 4%, and none can fall below 0.50%.
The index resets its members and weights twice a year, and the fund follows shortly after. Between resets, price moves can push weights past the caps: Archer-Daniels-Midland was 9.4% of the fund on June 30, 2026. Turnover, the share of holdings replaced over a year, was 30%. Like the index, the fund is concentrated in one group of industries.
What it really costs
- FTXG charges 0.6% a year, versus an average of 0.36% for the similar funds below (6th of 9, cheapest first).
In a retirement portfolio
A focused, 30-stock food and beverage fund that roughly broke even in the 2022 bear market could complement a broad stock fund, but it is too narrow to anchor a portfolio.
FTXG could add a focused stake in food and drink makers alongside a broad stock fund. Launched in 2016, it has no 2008 record. Its deepest drop, 33.8%, came in the 2020 COVID crash, and it took about eight months to recover. In the 2022 bear market it roughly broke even, despite a 14.4% slide from April to June. Its worst calendar year was 2018 (down 12.38%), and it lost money in 2023, 2024 and 2025. Cashing out shares in March 2020, or after that three-year slump, would have locked in losses.
Its quarterly dividends, a 2.45% yield as of October 27, 2026, could provide some cash in a down year without parting with shares. Its 0.60% fee tops the 0.36% average of similar funds. Past results don't predict future ones, and a plan should look at the whole portfolio, not one fund.
Who it may suit — and who should look elsewhere
May suit
- Investors wanting a targeted stake in US food and drink makers such as Archer-Daniels-Midland, Coca-Cola, Kraft Heinz and Mondelez, not the whole staples sector.
- Those who like a rules-based index that screens for profitability and momentum, then weights 30 to 50 stocks by cash flow, not company size.
- Investors seeking quarterly dividends (a 2.45% yield as of October 27, 2026) from a fund that roughly broke even in the 2022 bear market.
Look elsewhere if
- Cost-conscious investors: the 0.60% fee is far above XLP (0.08%), FSTA (0.084%) and VDC (0.09%), which also hold consumer staples stocks.
- Those wanting stronger results: it trailed all eight similar funds over three years to October 27, 2026, and lost money in 2023, 2024 and 2025.
- Investors who prefer large funds: at about $23 million in net assets as of June 30, 2026, it is smaller than all eight similar funds.
Close alternatives
Matched by holdings overlap from the latest N-PORT reports.
| Fund | Overlap | Cost | Net assets | 1 yr | 3 yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FTXG this fund | — | 0.6% | $23.4M | +6.0% | +3.1% |
| RSPS Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight Consumer Stapl… | 44% | 0.4% | $246.8M | +7.2% | +5.7% |
| PBJ Invesco Food & Beverage ETF | 39% | 0.62% | $107.8M | +7.0% | +6.8% |
| IYK iShares U.S. Consumer Staples ETF | 37% | 0.4% | $1.42B | +13.3% | +11.2% |
| FXG First Trust Consumer Staples AlphaDEX Fund | 37% | 0.62% | $229.3M | -1.7% | +4.3% |
| XLP Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund | 35% | 0.08% | $13.65B | +20.1% | +12.8% |
| VDC Vanguard Consumer Staples ETF | 32% | 0.09% | $9.25B | +12.2% | +13.0% |
| FSTA Fidelity MSCI Consumer Staples Index ETF | 32% | 0.084% | $1.42B | +12.3% | +12.9% |
Questions investors ask
What stocks are in FTXG?
FTXG held 30 food, beverage and farming stocks as of June 30, 2026. The largest were Archer-Daniels-Midland (9.4%), Coca-Cola (8.5%), Kraft Heinz (8.2%), Mondelez International (8.0%) and PepsiCo (6.8%), followed by Monster Beverage, Keurig Dr Pepper, Corteva, US Foods and Constellation Brands. Those 10 made up 62.3% of the fund, so a few companies drive results. About 97.9% of assets were in US companies and 1.9% in Switzerland.
What is FTXG's expense ratio?
FTXG's expense ratio is 0.60% a year, according to its prospectus filed July 29, 2026, and the full amount is the management fee. That makes it the sixth-cheapest of nine similar funds, counting FTXG itself; the other eight average 0.36%. Broad consumer staples funds charge far less: XLP 0.08%, FSTA 0.084% and VDC 0.09%. The food-focused PBJ charges a similar 0.62%. The fee is taken from fund assets, so it trims returns rather than arriving as a bill.
Does FTXG pay a dividend?
Yes. FTXG pays dividends quarterly. Over the year to October 27, 2026, it paid about $0.55 per share, a yield of 2.45%. The money comes from dividends paid by the companies it holds, such as Coca-Cola, PepsiCo and General Mills, after the fund's 0.60% yearly fee. Payouts are not fixed and can rise or fall from quarter to quarter as those companies change their dividends and the index changes its holdings.
What's the difference between FTXG and PBJ?
The biggest differences are three-year returns and fund size; fees are nearly identical. Both focus on food and beverage stocks, and about 39% of holdings overlap. FTXG charges 0.60% a year and Invesco Food & Beverage ETF (PBJ) 0.62%. As of October 27, 2026, PBJ returned 7.0% over one year and 6.8% a year over three years, versus 6.0% and 3.1% for FTXG. PBJ held about $108 million in net assets as of July 31, 2026; FTXG held $23 million as of June 30, 2026.
How has FTXG performed over the long term?
Modestly. According to its prospectus, FTXG's average annual return was 0.39% over the five years to December 31, 2025, and 2.57% since its September 2016 launch, after a 6.65% loss in 2025. As of October 27, 2026, it had returned 3.3% a year over 10 years. Its strongest calendar year was 2019, up 24.11%, and its weakest was 2018, down 12.38%. It trailed all eight similar funds over three years to October 27, 2026.