At a glance
XAPR charges 0.85% a year, below the 0.86% average of the 7 funds most like it (the 3rd cheapest of 8). It has $29.8M in assets, the 8th largest of that group. Over the past year it returned +7.7% with distributions reinvested (S&P 500: +11.5%), the weakest of those 8 funds.
The short version
FT Vest U.S. Equity Enhance & Moderate Buffer ETF - April (XAPR), a First Trust fund, holds options on the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) instead of stocks. Over each yearlong outcome period starting in April, it aims to absorb the first 15% of SPY's price losses (before fees) and return about twice SPY's gains, up to a cap. The costs: no dividends and a 0.85% expense ratio.
Price history
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XAPR +7.7% 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| XAPR price data to Oct 27, 2026 | +6.5% | +7.7% | — | — | — | +10.9% |
- Over the year to Oct 27, 2026, XAPR returned +7.7%, 8th of 8 among similar funds.
- Its worst full calendar year was 2025 (+12.6%); its best was 2025 (+12.6%).
- The deepest fall in its price history was 6.2% (Mar 24, 2025 to Apr 8, 2025), recovered by Apr 17, 2025.
Show as a table
| Year | Price data |
|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | +6.5% |
| 2025 | +12.6% |
| 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 | Before this security existed |
| 2022 bear market stocks fell Jan 3, 2022 – Oct 12, 2022 | Before this security existed |
What's inside
As of Aug 31, 2026, the fund held 0 securities; the ten largest made up 0% of assets.
| Holding | Weight |
|---|
By country
By asset type
What changed recently
- Over the three months to Aug 31, 2026, investors withdrew a net $1.9M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
- Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: +0.05%, +0.58%, +1.32%.
How it works
XAPR doesn't own stocks directly. It invests substantially all its assets in FLEX Options: exchange-traded option contracts with custom terms such as exercise prices and expiration dates. All reference the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY), a unit investment trust holding S&P 500 Index stocks. As of August 31, 2026, 15 option positions made up 99.12% of net assets, with 0.95% in cash. First Trust runs the fund, with Vest Financial, LLC as sub-advisor.
Each Target Outcome Period lasts about a year and starts in April, when the fund resets into new options. If SPY's price rises over the full period, the fund aims for about twice that gain, up to a cap. If SPY falls, it aims to absorb the first 15% of losses, then loses one for one: a 20% SPY drop means about a 5% fund loss, before fees. For April 21, 2025 to April 17, 2026, the cap was 12.58% before fees; after fees, the cap was 11.73% and the buffer 14.15%. The buffer stays at 15%, but each new cap depends on market conditions.
These targets apply only to shares held for a whole period; the doubling isn't reset daily. Entering or leaving partway can bring very different results, and returns exclude SPY's dividends.
What it really costs
- XAPR charges 0.85% a year, versus an average of 0.86% for the similar funds below (3rd of 8, cheapest first).
Structure and tax notes
- Organized as a unit investment trust: it cannot lend out its securities or reinvest dividends between payouts, which can create a small drag versus similar open-end ETFs.
- Uses options to limit losses within a range (the buffer) in exchange for a cap on gains over each outcome period; results depend on when you buy relative to the period start.
In a retirement portfolio
Its options aim to absorb the first 15% of SPY's price losses over each yearlong outcome period, at the cost of dividends and gains above a cap.
XAPR could soften stock declines for someone who may need to draw on savings in a bad year, provided the drop stays within the buffer and shares are held for a full outcome period. Its record is short. It launched in April 2024, so it has no history through the 2008, 2020 or 2022 downturns. Its only full calendar year, 2025, returned 12.57% on price, and its deepest drop, 6.2% from March 24 to April 8, 2025, was regained by April 17, 2025. It had recorded no distributions as of October 27, 2026, so cash comes only from redeeming shares. The 0.85% expense ratio applies every year.
SPY losses beyond 15% pass through one for one, and exiting mid-period can produce results far from the stated buffer. Past results don't predict future returns, and any plan needs to look at the whole portfolio, not one fund.
Who it may suit — and who should look elsewhere
May suit
- Investors wanting S&P 500 exposure, through options on SPY, with the first 15% of price losses cushioned over each April-to-April period they fully hold.
- People content with limited upside: the fund's doubled SPY gains stop at a cap, 12.58% before fees for April 2025 to April 2026.
- Those seeking smaller price swings: one-year volatility was 2.7% and the deepest drop since launch was 6.2%, as of October 27, 2026.
Look elsewhere if
- Income seekers or the cost-sensitive: no distributions were recorded as of October 27, 2026, SPY's dividends are excluded, and the expense ratio is 0.85%.
- Anyone likely to invest or cash out partway through an outcome period, when results can stray far from the stated buffer and cap.
- Those wanting deep-crash protection: SPY losses past 15% pass through one for one, and the fund has no record from 2008, 2020 or 2022.
Close alternatives
Matched by other buffer (defined-outcome) funds, largest first.
| Fund | Cost | Net assets | 1 yr | 3 yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| XAPR this fund | 0.85% | $29.8M | +7.7% | — |
| BUFR FT Vest Laddered Buffer ETF | 0.95% | $10.49B | +11.6% | +16.8% |
| BUFD FT Vest Laddered Deep Buffer ETF | 0.95% | $2.04B | +9.5% | +13.9% |
| PJAN Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - Ja… | 0.79% | $1.44B | +10.5% | +14.8% |
| PDEC Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - De… | 0.79% | $984.1M | +11.6% | +14.9% |
| FDEC FT Vest US Equity Buffer ETF - December | 0.85% | $1.31B | +12.9% | +18.5% |
| FJAN FT Vest US Equity Buffer ETF - January | 0.85% | $1.47B | +12.3% | +17.4% |
| FFEB FT Vest U.S. Equity Buffer Fund - February | 0.85% | $1.42B | +12.9% | +18.6% |
Questions investors ask
Does XAPR pay dividends?
No. XAPR had recorded no distributions as of October 27, 2026. It holds FLEX options on the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) rather than SPY shares, and its targets are based on SPY's price alone, so SPY's dividends are not passed through. Anyone wanting cash from the fund would have to redeem shares, and doing so partway through an outcome period can produce results far from the stated buffer and cap.
Is XAPR a leveraged ETF?
Not in the usual sense. XAPR aims for about twice SPY's positive price return, but only over a full outcome period of roughly one year and only up to a cap: 12.58% before fees, or 11.73% after fees, for April 21, 2025 to April 17, 2026. It resets once a year, not daily like typical 2x funds, and pairs that upside with a buffer against the first 15% of losses. On any given day, it's unlikely to rise at twice SPY's rate.
How does the XAPR buffer work?
The buffer aims to absorb the first 15% of SPY's price decline over a full outcome period, before fees; after fees, it was 14.15% for April 21, 2025 to April 17, 2026. If SPY falls more than 15%, the fund takes the extra loss one for one, so a 20% SPY drop means about a 5% fund loss before fees. The buffer stays at 15% each period, but the prospectus says there's no guarantee it works, and a shareholder could lose their entire investment.
What happens if I invest in XAPR in the middle of the outcome period?
Results can differ sharply from the targets. The buffer and cap apply only to shares held from the first day of an outcome period to the last. Someone entering after SPY has risen may have little upside left before the cap, while someone entering after a fall may find part of the buffer already used. About a week before each period ends, the fund's website posts an expected cap range for the next one, though the final cap may land outside it.
What's the difference between XAPR and SPY?
SPY holds the stocks in the S&P 500 Index and aims to match the index's price and dividend performance, before expenses. XAPR holds FLEX options on SPY instead. Over each yearlong outcome period, it aims to cushion the first 15% of SPY's price losses and return about twice SPY's price gains up to a cap, but it passes along no dividends and has a 0.85% expense ratio. Its one-year beta, a gauge of how much it moves with the market, was 0.17 as of October 27, 2026.