At a glance
SHRY charges 0.6% a year, above the 0.3% average of the 4 funds most like it (the most expensive of 5). It has $15.0M in assets, the 5th largest of that group; it paid 1.59% of its price in distributions over the past 12 months, quarterly. Over the past year it returned +12.3% with distributions reinvested (S&P 500: +11.5%), the weakest of those 5 funds. Its ten largest positions make up 40.2% of the fund, out of 50 in all.
The short version
First Trust Bloomberg Shareholder Yield ETF (SHRY) tracks the Bloomberg Shareholder Yield Index, a list of 50 US large- and mid-cap companies picked for returning cash through dividends, share repurchases and debt paydown. Unlike plain dividend funds, it gives credit for all three. Its 0.60% expense ratio is double the 0.30% average of funds with similar holdings, and it had only about $15 million in net assets as of June 30, 2026.
Price history
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SHRY +12.3% 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SHRY official prospectus, to Dec 31, 2025 | — | +7.11% | — | +10.44% | — | +10.91% |
| SHRY price data to Oct 27, 2026 | +14.1% | +12.3% | — | — | — | +11.7% |
- Over the year to Oct 27, 2026, SHRY returned +12.3%, 5th of 5 among similar funds.
- Its worst full calendar year was 2025 (+7.3%); its best was 2025 (+7.3%).
- The deepest fall in its price history was 15.4% (Nov 29, 2024 to Apr 8, 2025), recovered by Jun 30, 2025.
Show as a table
| Year | Price data | Prospectus (official) |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | +14.1% | — |
| 2025 | +7.3% | +7.11% |
| 2024 | — | +17.43% |
| 2023 | — | +17.34% |
| 2022 | — | -14.09% |
| 2021 | — | +29.58% |
| 2020 | — | +12.74% |
| 2019 | — | +29.78% |
| 2018 | — | -8.35% |
| 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 | Not in the price data, which starts Mar 4, 2024 |
| 2022 bear market stocks fell Jan 3, 2022 – Oct 12, 2022 | Not in the price data, which starts Mar 4, 2024 |
Dividends and income
Show as a table
| Year | Per share | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | $0.4800 | |
| 2025 | $0.7300 |
What's inside
As of Jun 30, 2026, the fund held 50 securities; the ten largest made up 40.19% of assets.
| Holding | Weight | |
|---|---|---|
| METLIFE INC | 5.29% | |
| FOX CORP | 4.48% | |
| PAYPAL HOLDINGS INC | 4.44% | |
| D.R. HORTON INC | 4.44% | |
| COMCAST CORP | 4.20% | |
| QUALCOMM INC | 4.10% | |
| FISERV INC | 3.80% | |
| AMERIPRISE FINANCIAL INC | 3.61% | |
| ALTRIA GROUP INC | 2.92% | |
| ADOBE INC | 2.89% | |
| CHARTER COMMUNICATIONS INC | 2.83% | |
| AFLAC INC | 2.78% | |
| BOOKING HOLDINGS INC | 2.59% | |
| KROGER COMPANY (THE) | 2.53% | |
| AUTOMATIC DATA PROCESSING INC | 2.46% |
By country
United States 94.29%Ireland 3.25%Curaçao 2.35%By asset type
Stocks 99.89%By sector
Sectors of the companies held, for the 94.3% 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 withdrew a net $2.2M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
- Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: +2.53%, -1.68%, -2.05%.
How it works
SHRY tracks the Bloomberg Shareholder Yield Index, run by Bloomberg Index Services Limited. The index starts with the Bloomberg US Large & Mid Cap Index, minus real estate investment trusts. For each of the past five years, a company needs positive free cash flow (cash left after operating costs and capital spending), positive “total returned capital” (dividends, plus net share repurchases minus stock-based pay, plus debt repaid), and returned capital no more than 150% of free cash flow.
A company’s shareholder yield, its returned capital divided by its market value, must be above 0.5% and no more than 15%. The 50 companies with the largest total returned capital are chosen, and a higher shareholder yield earns a larger weight. Caps limit any stock to 5% and any sector to 30%. The fund normally owns every index stock at its index weight.
The index is rebuilt and rebalanced quarterly, and the fund follows shortly after. This helps explain portfolio turnover of 149%, roughly one and a half times the portfolio traded in a year; those trading costs aren’t part of the expense ratio. The fund holds stocks directly, with no leverage or options. Because weights follow shareholder yield rather than company size, sector mix can swing: financials were 27.3% as of June 30, 2026.
What it really costs
- SHRY charges 0.6% a year, versus an average of 0.3% for the similar funds below (5th of 5, cheapest first).
In a retirement portfolio
A concentrated 50-stock portfolio with a financials tilt, a small asset base and above-average costs fits better beside a broad stock fund than as the main holding.
SHRY could add a tilt toward US companies with five-year records of returning cash. Launched in 2017, it has no 2008 record. Its prospectus shows a 23.80% loss in the first quarter of 2020, though it finished that year up 12.74%, and a 14.09% loss in 2022, its worst calendar year from 2018 through 2025. Since March 2024, its deepest drop was 15.4%, from November 2024 to April 2025; it recovered about 2.7 months later. Drawing cash in a slump like that means cashing in shares at lower prices.
Income is modest: a trailing 12-month yield of 1.59% as of October 27, 2026, paid quarterly. The index also rewards share repurchases and debt paydown, which pay holders no cash. The 0.60% expense ratio is double the 0.30% average for similar funds. Past results don’t predict the future, and a plan has to weigh the whole portfolio, not one fund.
Who it may suit — and who should look elsewhere
May suit
- Investors who want US large- and mid-cap stocks screened for five straight years of positive free cash flow and affordable payouts, not dividends alone.
- People comfortable with a concentrated 50-stock portfolio leaning toward financials (27.3% as of June 30, 2026) and names like MetLife, Fox Corp and PayPal.
- Long-term holders who can ride out declines like the 14.09% loss in 2022 and the 23.80% drop in the first quarter of 2020.
Look elsewhere if
- Cost-focused investors: the 0.60% expense ratio is the highest in a group of five similar funds; Schwab US Dividend Equity ETF (SCHD) charges 0.06%.
- Investors needing high income: despite the “yield” in its name, the trailing 12-month yield was 1.59% as of October 27, 2026, paid quarterly.
- Anyone wary of tiny funds: net assets were about $15 million as of June 30, 2026, after roughly $2.2 million in three-month outflows.
Close alternatives
Matched by holdings overlap from the latest N-PORT reports.
| Fund | Overlap | Cost | Net assets | 1 yr | 3 yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SHRY this fund | — | 0.6% | $15.0M | +12.3% | — |
| VALQ American Century U.S. Quality Value ETF | 26% | 0.29% | $359.4M | +12.5% | +17.8% |
| VSMV VictoryShares US Multi-Factor Minimum Volat… | 23% | 0.35% | $155.5M | +15.7% | +19.2% |
| COWZ Pacer US Cash Cows 100 ETF | 22% | 0.49% | $18.69B | +25.8% | +15.5% |
| SCHD Schwab US Dividend Equity ETF | 22% | 0.06% | $112.34B | +38.9% | +19.9% |
Questions investors ask
What does SHRY invest in?
SHRY holds 50 US large- and mid-cap stocks from the Bloomberg Shareholder Yield Index, chosen for returning cash through dividends, net share repurchases and debt paydown. As of June 30, 2026, the largest holdings were MetLife (5.3%), Fox Corp (4.5%), PayPal (4.4%), D.R. Horton (4.4%), Comcast (4.2%) and Qualcomm (4.1%). The top 10 made up about 40% of the fund, and financials were the biggest sector at 27.3%.
Is SHRY good for retirement income?
It can provide some income, but not much. SHRY’s trailing 12-month yield was 1.59% as of October 27, 2026, or about $0.75 a share, paid quarterly. The “shareholder yield” in its name includes share repurchases and debt paydown, not just dividends, and those don’t arrive as cash in a holder’s account. Its worst calendar year from 2018 through 2025 was 2022, a 14.09% loss, so the share price can fall sharply in bad years.
What's the difference between SHRY and VALQ?
The biggest differences are cost and size. American Century U.S. Quality Value ETF (VALQ) charges 0.29% a year versus SHRY’s 0.60%, and VALQ had about $359 million in net assets as of August 31, 2026, against about $15 million for SHRY as of June 30, 2026. VALQ is the closest match by holdings, but only about 26% of their portfolios overlap. One-year price returns were similar: 12.5% for VALQ and 12.3% for SHRY as of October 27, 2026.
Is SHRY's expense ratio high?
Yes, relative to similar funds. SHRY’s expense ratio is 0.60%, according to its prospectus filed July 29, 2026. That’s double the 0.30% average of four funds with overlapping holdings, and the highest in the group: American Century U.S. Quality Value ETF (VALQ) charges 0.29%, VictoryShares US Multi-Factor Minimum Volatility ETF (VSMV) 0.35%, Pacer US Cash Cows 100 ETF (COWZ) 0.49% and Schwab US Dividend Equity ETF (SCHD) 0.06%. Portfolio turnover of 149% adds trading costs not included in that figure.
How has SHRY performed over the long term?
SHRY returned an average of 10.44% a year over the five years to December 31, 2025, and 10.91% a year since its June 2017 launch, according to its prospectus. Results swung widely, from a 29.78% gain in 2019 to a 14.09% loss in 2022; 2025 brought 7.11%. By market price, it was up 14.1% for 2026 through October 27, but its 12.3% one-year return trailed all four funds with overlapping holdings.