First Trust Indxx Aerospace & Defense ETF (MISL)


Market Price (8/7/2026): $46.06

First Trust Indxx Aerospace & Defense ETF (MISL)


Market Price (8/7/2026): $46.06

Key Takeaways

  • MISL has returned +7.6% YTD vs +13.0% for SPY; +19.2% over the past 12 months (SPY +22.5%). details →
  • Priced in gold, MISL has returned -12.0% over the past 3 years, vs +97.5% in dollars — its dollar gains have lagged gold. details →
  • Over the past month, MISL has seen net outflows of −$20M (−2.6% of assets). details →
  • MISL's portfolio trades at 34.2x forward earnings — a 322% premium to SPY (8.1x). details →
  • MISL's top 10 holdings represent 61% of the fund vs 38% for SPY — a more concentrated portfolio. details →
Last updated: 8/6/2026.

Price Chart

Asset Allocation with MISL

Risk Tolerance:
ConservativeModerateAggressive
Moderate — 55% equity / 25% bonds / 20% alternatives
10Y Return (ann.)
+7.9%
Volatility
7.9%
Sharpe
0.66
YTD
+5.3%
Modeled with monthly rebalancing to target weights; 10-year figures are annualized from monthly returns. Illustrative only — past performance is not indicative of future results.

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Tailored Asset Allocation
[1] Personalized 5 Level Risk Tolerance Assessment
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Top 20 Holdings for MISL

Total Weights
Top 5: 39.6% | Top 10: 61.1% | Top 20: 87.3%

TickerHoldingETF WeightSales WeightEarnings WeightFwd P/SFwd P/EFwd Sales GrowthFwd Earnings Growth
Total98.34%100.00%100.00%3.034.2+10.1%+14.6%
Top 2087.32%83.48%89.58%3.235.1+10.6%+14.0%
RTXRTX9.08%9.63%10.02%3.029.0+7.4%+8.7%
GEGE Aerospace8.29%3.68%8.20%7.243.2+11.1%+12.8%
BABoeing8.04%14.07%4.58%1.792.4+14.4%
PLTRPalantir Technologies8.02%0.45%2.78%36.385.6+47.1%+40.0%
SPCXSpace Exploration Technologies6.17%0.65%10.8527.4+90.6%
LMTLockheed Martin4.60%9.03%9.27%1.618.2+5.7%+7.1%
HWMHowmet Aerospace4.31%1.09%2.78%10.950.5+13.2%+19.1%
GDGeneral Dynamics4.23%7.58%7.80%1.821.3+4.8%+8.9%
HEIHeico4.20%1.39%2.81%8.852.7+10.2%+13.2%
NOCNorthrop Grumman4.16%7.55%9.95%1.819.0+6.9%+4.0%
TDGTransDigm4.02%1.90%5.07%6.427.0+9.4%+17.6%
LHXL3Harris Technologies3.94%5.73%5.84%2.222.0+7.6%+15.0%
RKLBRocket Lab3.31%0.17%38.7+43.3%
CWCurtiss-Wright2.98%1.39%2.48%6.643.1+8.1%+9.8%
ASTSAST SpaceMobile2.55%0.04%38.5+330.7%
WWDWoodward2.39%1.58%2.61%4.633.6+8.9%+13.4%
FTAIFTAI Aviation2.35%1.10%2.21%4.422.4+59.6%+101.8%
TXTTextron1.65%5.66%4.36%1.012.2+3.7%+12.8%
LDOSLeidos1.62%5.72%5.61%0.910.1+4.6%+6.6%
HIIHuntington Ingalls Industries1.43%5.08%3.20%0.916.4+6.1%+11.6%
[1] Total and Top 20 rows are weighted aggregates across constituents.
[2] Forward P/S and P/E ratios use consensus sales and earnings for the 12 months ending 8/31/27. Individual constituent FY1 and FY2 consensus figures adjusted to align with 8/31/27.
[3] Forward Sales and Non-GAAP Earnings Growth are calculated as next fiscal year (FY2) consensus growth over current fiscal year (FY1) consensus. They are not derived from the forward P/S and P/E multiples shown.

Performance for MISL Top Holdings

TickerHoldingWeightMkt Price
8/6
1D Rtn1M RtnYTD Rtn1Y Rtn3Y Rtn5Y Rtn10Y Rtn
MISLFirst Trust Indxx Aerospace & Defense ETF100.00%46.050.3%0.9%7.6%19.2%97.5%  
RTXRTX9.08%223.250.4%11.2%22.6%45.6%178.3%184.6%345.2%
GEGE Aerospace8.29%374.55-1.7%2.1%21.9%38.3%315.8%483.9%176.6%
BABoeing8.04%232.19-3.3%0.2%6.9%3.2%-2.5%0.4%92.5%
PLTRPalantir Technologies8.02%155.92-1.6%16.0%-12.3%-13.2%766.7%614.6% 
SPCXSpace Exploration Technologies6.17%114.926.1%-23.1%     
LMTLockheed Martin4.60%582.850.9%8.9%21.9%37.6%40.4%84.2%191.8%
HWMHowmet Aerospace4.31%289.58-0.6%5.1%41.4%59.4%478.5%825.2%1,163.1%
GDGeneral Dynamics4.23%386.920.7%3.3%16.4%25.0%80.7%115.9%224.4%
HEIHeico4.20%363.29-1.0%1.5%12.4%14.9%104.7%175.7%921.3%
NOCNorthrop Grumman4.16%567.741.8%3.4%0.3%-2.1%36.7%70.0%208.5%
TDGTransDigm4.02%1,262.070.6%-5.1%-5.1%-3.7%61.5%141.4%623.7%
LHXL3Harris Technologies3.94%289.531.2%-2.0%-0.6%6.3%63.5%38.2%292.7%
RKLBRocket Lab3.31%75.671.1%-9.3%8.5%71.6%1,048.3%647.7% 
CWCurtiss-Wright2.98%714.04-4.6%-6.8%29.6%40.4%246.7%502.3%736.1%
ASTSAST SpaceMobile2.55%67.36-1.5%-9.2%-7.3%30.1%1,434.4%533.7% 
WWDWoodward2.39%365.78-2.0%-9.6%21.2%45.9%191.6%232.6%559.3%
FTAIFTAI Aviation2.35%221.23-1.1%-2.8%12.8%62.0%559.8%1,004.4%3,955.4%
TXTTextron1.65%87.89-0.6%-4.0%0.9%13.6%10.7%21.7%127.8%
LDOSLeidos1.62%135.266.6%24.6%-24.6%-21.7%43.3%52.9%350.8%
HIIHuntington Ingalls Industries1.43%321.761.3%11.2%-4.7%22.3%48.6%74.5%132.1%

Guidance Updates for MISL Top Holdings

 TickerCompanyEarnings DateGuidance MetricMidpoint Value% ChangeGuidance Change
HII_7302026HIIHuntington Ingalls Industries7/30/20262026 Shipbuilding Revenue10.30 Bil5.1%RaisedRaised Prior Guidance of 9.80 Bil for 2026
HWM_5072026HWMHowmet Aerospace5/7/20262026 Revenue9.65 Bil6.0%RaisedRaised Prior Guidance of 9.10 Bil for 2026
PLTR_8032026PLTRPalantir Technologies8/3/20262026 Revenue8.15 Bil6.5%RaisedRaised Prior Guidance of 7.66 Bil for 2026
RKLB_5072026RKLBRocket Lab5/7/2026Q2 2026 Revenue232.50 Mil20.8%Higher NewNew Guidance Higher than Prior Actual of 192.50 Mil for Q1 2026

Return vs. Risk

Price Returns Compared

 202120222023202420252026Total [1]
Returns
MISL Return-8%15%20%41%7%127%
Peers Return15%-20%33%13%40%38%171%
S&P 500 Return27%-19%24%23%16%13%106%

Monthly Win Rates [3]
MISL Win Rate-100%58%58%83%50% 
Peers Win Rate58%45%62%58%67%72% 
S&P 500 Win Rate75%42%67%75%67%50% 

Max Drawdowns [4]
MISL Max Drawdown---10%-10%-16%-17% 
Peers Max Drawdown-20%-37%-19%-18%-26%-18% 
S&P 500 Max Drawdown-5%-25%-10%-8%-19%-9% 


[1] Cumulative total returns since the beginning of 2021
[2] Peers: SMH, SOXX, IBB, XBI, ITA.
[3] Win Rate = % of calendar months in which monthly returns were positive
[4] Max drawdown represents maximum peak-to-trough decline within a year
[5] 2026 data is for the year up to 8/6/2026 (YTD)

Sharpe Ratios Compared

One measure of reward vs. risk is a Sharpe ratio. A higher ratio indicates better risk-adjusted returns. Most funds have Sharpe ratios < 1.0.

Ticker1Y3Y5Y
MISL0.340.910.91
Equity Top Results (3Y)   
IALT2.112.112.11
SPMO0.891.380.82
VLUE2.491.260.69
CORO1.331.251.25
CGDV1.351.230.94

Results as of 7312026.

MISL Dip Buy History


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Current Dip Buy Opportunities Across ETFs

ETFs currently down 5% or more from trailing 6M peaks.

TickerNameDip %Mkt PricePrice DatePeak PricePeak Date# Days
IEMGiShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF-7.7%79.34806202686.00622202645
EEMiShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF-8.7%65.02806202671.21622202645
ASHRXtrackers Harvest CSI 300 China A-Shares ETF-6.9%34.71806202637.30622202645
EWYiShares MSCI South Korea ETF-25.1%164.128062026219.20621202646
EWZiShares MSCI Brazil ETF-14.2%35.81806202641.734142026114
FXIiShares China Large-Cap ETF-9.1%35.95806202639.532102026177
ILFiShares Latin America 40 ETF-8.4%34.91806202638.104142026114
KWEBKraneShares CSI China Internet ETF-17.4%28.38806202634.342092026178
MTUMiShares MSCI USA Momentum Factor ETF-10.7%308.178062026345.22622202645
SPMOInvesco S&P 500 Momentum ETF-7.8%149.108062026161.66622202645
ARKKARK Innovation ETF-9.4%75.73806202683.61706202631
URAGlobal X Uranium ETF-25.8%43.20806202658.26506202692
BOTZGlobal X Funds Global X Robotics & Artificial Intelligence ETF-11.3%36.94806202641.63513202685
ROBOROBO Global Robotics & Automation Index ETF-8.0%83.07806202690.34602202665
LITGlobal X Lithium & Battery Tech ETF-21.0%72.41806202691.62511202687
ICLNiShares Global Clean Energy ETF-23.7%18.12806202623.75602202665
ARKQARK Autonomous Technology & Robotics ETF-14.3%123.208062026143.82528202670
ARKWARK Next Generation Internet ETF-6.9%143.478062026154.18601202666
ARKXARK Space & Defense Innovation ETF-12.5%33.01806202637.74528202670
NASATema Space Innovators ETF-42.4%24.14806202641.89527202671
XOVREntrepreneurShares Series Trust ERShares Private-Public Crossover ETF-9.7%19.26806202621.34706202631
AGIXKraneShares Artificial Intelligence ETF-10.6%44.14806202649.40601202666
GDEWisdomTree Efficient Gold Plus Equity Strategy Fund-6.7%65.68806202670.39511202687
RAAXVanEck Real Assets ETF-5.9%40.18806202642.70511202687
XLKState Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF-6.5%185.338062026198.21602202665
XLEState Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF-7.0%58.16806202662.563292026130
XLCState Street Communication Services Select Sector SPDR ETF-6.6%111.188062026119.104192026109
XLUState Street Utilities Select Sector SPDR ETF-8.5%43.38806202647.403012026158
FXNFirst Trust Energy AlphaDEX Fund-7.1%21.54806202623.183292026130
SMHVanEck Semiconductor ETF-14.6%571.488062026668.91622202645
SOXXiShares Semiconductor ETF-18.7%532.528062026655.01622202645
XBIState Street SPDR S&P Biotech ETF-6.0%154.508062026164.28709202628
XOPState Street SPDR S&P Oil & Gas Exploration & Production ETF-11.2%167.058062026188.183292026130
IGViShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF-7.7%99.428062026107.70601202666
MISLFirst Trust Indxx Aerospace & Defense ETF-9.1%46.05806202650.663022026157
RINGiShares MSCI Global Gold Miners ETF-27.2%72.38806202699.423012026158
SOXQInvesco PHLX Semiconductor ETF-17.6%94.808062026115.11622202645
TLTiShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF-7.4%82.52806202689.153012026158
VGLTVanguard Long-Term Treasury ETF-6.3%52.94806202656.533012026158
SPTLState Street SPDR Portfolio Long Term Treasury ETF-6.7%25.18806202626.993012026158
TLHiShares 10-20 Year Treasury Bond ETF-6.1%96.838062026103.083012026158
EDVVanguard World Funds Extended Duration ETF-10.8%60.12806202667.423012026158
PDBCInvesco Optimum Yield Diversified Commodity Strategy No K-1 ETF-8.9%17.23806202618.91512202686
DBCInvesco DB Commodity Index Tracking Fund-8.9%28.86806202631.69512202686
COMTiShares GSCI Commodity Dynamic Roll Strategy ETF-11.1%32.48806202636.53519202679
GSGiShares GSCI Commodity-5.8%30.01806202631.853182026141
BCIabrdn Bloomberg All Commodity Strategy K-1 Free ETF-8.4%23.73806202625.91512202686
FTGCFirst Trust Global Tactical Commodity Strategy Fund-5.8%28.77806202630.53512202686
GLDSPDR Gold Trust-20.5%389.678062026490.003022026157
IAUiShares Gold Trust-20.4%79.878062026100.383022026157
GLDMSPDR Gold MiniShares Trust-20.4%84.038062026105.543022026157
SGOLETFS Physical Swiss Gold Shares-12.1%44.66806202650.813022026157
BARDirexion Daily Gold Bull 3X Shares-15.6%44.34806202652.533022026157
SLViShares Silver Trust-34.3%55.85806202684.993012026158
SIVRETFS Physical Silver Shares Trust ETF-6.6%83.39806202689.263012026158
PPLTETFS Physical Platinum Shares-27.0%15.67806202621.473012026158
CPERUnited States Copper Index Fund ETV-9.6%33.33806202636.883012026158
PALLETFS Physical Palladium Shares-23.5%24.89806202632.542242026163
USOUnited States Oil Fund LP-22.3%118.878062026152.96519202679
UNGUnited States Natural Gas Fund LP-28.8%9.63806202613.522052026182
BNOUnited States Brent Oil Fund LP ETV-7.1%55.85806202660.13504202694
IBITiShares Bitcoin Trust ETF-21.5%36.49806202646.47511202687
FBTCFidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund-21.4%56.06806202671.35511202687
ETHAiShares Ethereum Trust ETF-21.7%14.40806202618.384192026109

ETF Fund Flows

Largest fund inflows and outflows across ETFs, with the asset-allocation rotation they imply.

Net fund flows · as of 2026-08-05

Asset allocation rotation · Past month

  • Equity ETFs drew the largest net inflows (+$56.2B), followed by Bond (+$16.9B), with every major asset class in net inflows.
  • Within the mix, money rotated into US Total Market (+$9.6B) and out of US Small Cap Core (−$1.5B).
  • Relative to fund size, BFLX drew the largest inflow (+56.4% of AUM) and FTXL the largest outflow (−39.3%).
Largest inflows
#TickerNameTypeNet flow% of AUM
1VOOVanguard S&P 500 ETFEquity US Large Cap Core+$12.53B+1.3%
2VTIVanguard Morningstar Total Stock Market ETFEquity US Total Market+$8.74B+1.3%
3SOXXiShares Semiconductor ETFEquity Industry Subsector+$6.23B+13.6%
4EWYiShares MSCI South Korea ETFEquity Emerging Markets+$5.95B+26.1%
5SPYMState Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 ETFEquity US Large Cap Core+$5.51B+3.4%
6DRAMRoundhill Memory ETFOther+$5.46B+22.6%
7SGOViShares 0-3 Month Treasury Bond ETFCash+$4.11B+4.1%
8EFViShares MSCI EAFE Value ETFEquity International Developed Broad+$3.75B+13.4%
9SCHDSchwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETFEquity Dividend Income+$3.26B+3.2%
10SPYState Street SPDR S&P 500 ETFEquity US Large Cap Core+$3.15B+0.4%
Largest outflows
#TickerNameTypeNet flow% of AUM
1IVViShares Core S&P 500 ETFEquity US Large Cap Core-$13.27B-1.5%
2IQMMProShares - GENIUS Money Market ETFOther-$3.15B-17.4%
3IWMiShares Russell 2000 ETFEquity US Small Cap Core-$1.9B-2.3%
4LQDiShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETFBond Intermediate Corporate-$1.54B-4.5%
5IWDiShares Russell 1000 Value ETFEquity US Large Value-$1.13B-1.4%
6SCZiShares MSCI EAFE Small-Cap ETFEquity International Small Cap-$1.12B-8.4%
7MTUMiShares MSCI USA Momentum Factor ETFEquity Factor Smart Beta-$906M-3.5%
8FTXLFirst Trust Nasdaq Semiconductor ETFOther-$873M-39.3%
9IWRiShares Russell Mid-Cap ETFEquity US Mid Cap Core-$860M-1.5%
10IWFiShares Russell 1000 Growth ETFEquity US Large Growth-$825M-0.7%

Largest ETF fund flows across ~2599 funds (min AUM $100M). Net creations/redemptions; leveraged & inverse ETFs excluded. A ⚠ marks a day excluded as a suspected data error.

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About MISL

0Holdings Count: 49
Expense Ratio: 0.6%
Inception Date: 2022-10-25
First Trust Indxx Aerospace & Defense ETF
The First Trust Indxx Aerospace & Defense ETF aims to mirror the financial performance, specifically the capital appreciation and income generation, of the Indxx US Aerospace & Defense Index, before factoring in its operational costs. Typically, under ordinary market circumstances, the Fund allocates a minimum of 80% of its net assets, including any capital acquired through borrowing, to the equity securities composing that benchmark index.
Asset Class: Sector Equity | ETF Website

Recent Active Movers

Peer Comparisons

Peers to compare with:

Profile

MISLSMHSOXXIBBXBIITAMedian
NameFirst Trus.VanEck Sem.iShares Se.iShares Bi.State Stre.iShares U.. 
Asset ClassEquityEquityEquityEquityEquityEquity-
AUM ($ Bil)0.768.144.79.29.914.112.0
Expense Ratio0.60%0.35%0.33%0.44%0.35%0.37%0.36%
10-D Avg Volume (Mil)0.4211.9310.221.559.040.785.29
Latest Day Volume (Mil)0.155.869.481.148.64-5.86
Holdings Count4926302481554949
Inception Date10/25/202212/20/20117/10/20012/5/20011/31/20065/1/2006-

Fundamentals

MISLSMHSOXXIBBXBIITAMedian
NameFirst Trus.VanEck Sem.iShares Se.iShares Bi.State Stre.iShares U.. 
Net Asset Value44.32540.29504.09186.49151.59239.52-
Premium/Discount3.9%5.8%5.6%3.5%1.9%4.4%4.1%
Distribution Yield0.4%0.2%0.3%0.2%0.4%0.0%0.2%
Sales Yield29.8%7.2%7.5%13.1%9.1%28.5%11.1%
Earnings Yield2.4%2.2%2.0%2.0%1.0%2.5%2.1%

Valuation

MISLSMHSOXXIBBXBIITAMedian
NameFirst Trus.VanEck Sem.iShares Se.iShares Bi.State Stre.iShares U.. 
P/S (TTM)3.4x13.9x13.4x7.6x11.0x3.5x9.3x
P/E (TTM)42.2x44.6x49.6x51.1x100.3x40.1x47.1x
P/FCF (TTM)55.8x50.0x55.2x131.7x-41.7x55.2x
Forward P/E34.2x---60.1x33.3x34.2x
Forward P/S3.0x---8.8x3.2x3.2x

Risk

MISLSMHSOXXIBBXBIITAMedian
NameFirst Trus.VanEck Sem.iShares Se.iShares Bi.State Stre.iShares U.. 
Volatility (1Y)25.1%38.7%44.8%20.4%27.1%22.7%26.1%
Volatility (3Y)20.6%36.8%39.4%20.4%27.6%20.0%24.1%
Volatility (5Y)19.8%36.5%38.3%22.1%32.3%20.3%27.2%
Beta (1Y)1.172.362.580.761.041.021.10
Beta (3Y)0.861.972.060.811.020.850.94
Beta (5Y)0.811.751.810.861.160.811.01
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)0.831.982.031.922.271.171.95
Sharpe Ratio (3Y)1.201.351.140.780.891.391.17
Sharpe Ratio (5Y)1.201.010.870.260.290.960.91
Max Drawdown (1Y)-17.1%-24.6%-29.0%-9.6%-10.5%-15.8%-16.5%
Max Drawdown (3Y)-17.9%-35.7%-41.4%-24.9%-33.0%-15.8%-28.9%
Max Drawdown (5Y)-17.9%-45.3%-45.8%-39.8%-54.0%-18.7%-42.6%

Returns

MISLSMHSOXXIBBXBIITAMedian
NameFirst Trus.VanEck Sem.iShares Se.iShares Bi.State Stre.iShares U.. 
1M Return2.6%-3.6%-5.3%-1.7%-5.2%4.3%-2.7%
3M Return3.4%4.0%5.1%11.0%12.2%11.9%8.0%
6M Return-3.2%49.6%61.3%11.0%23.3%9.7%17.1%
YTD Return7.6%58.7%76.9%14.4%26.7%16.5%21.6%
1Y Return19.4%99.7%124.0%45.0%78.5%27.1%61.8%
2Y Return55.4%149.3%146.7%31.9%57.2%78.7%68.0%
3Y Return97.0%260.8%204.1%51.9%86.5%116.9%107.0%

Short Interest

Short Interest: As Of Date7152026
Short Interest: Shares Quantity0.0 Mil
Short Interest: % Change Since 6302026422.4%
Average Daily Volume0.1 Mil
Days-to-Cover Short Interest1