First Trust Indxx Aerospace & Defense ETF (MISL)


Market Price (8/12/2026): $47.47

First Trust Indxx Aerospace & Defense ETF (MISL)


Market Price (8/12/2026): $47.47

Key Takeaways

  • MISL has returned +11.0% YTD vs +13.3% for SPY; +24.0% over the past 12 months (SPY +22.2%). details →
  • Priced in gold, MISL has returned -11.4% over the past 3 years, vs +105.9% 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 36.0x forward earnings — a 322% premium to SPY (8.5x). details →
  • 83% of MISL's portfolio (by weight) is currently profitable, vs 98% for SPY. details →
Last updated: 8/11/2026.

Price Chart

Asset Allocation with MISL

Risk Tolerance:
ConservativeModerateAggressive
Moderate — 55% equity / 25% bonds / 20% alternatives
10Y Return (ann.)
+8.1%
Volatility
8.0%
Sharpe
0.67
YTD
+7.5%
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
[2] Asset Allocation for My Risk Tolerance
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[1] Defensive Portfolios
[2] Tax-Efficient Strategies

Top 20 Holdings for MISL

Total Weights
Top 5: 41.6% | Top 10: 61.7% | Top 20: 87.1%

TickerHoldingETF WeightSales WeightEarnings WeightFwd P/SFwd P/EFwd Sales GrowthFwd Earnings Growth
Total98.46%100.00%100.00%3.136.0+10.3%+14.6%
Top 2087.11%81.54%88.66%3.437.1+10.8%+14.1%
PLTRPalantir Technologies10.36%0.54%3.36%38.896.1+49.3%+40.0%
RTXRTX8.58%9.49%9.89%3.029.1+7.4%+8.7%
BABoeing7.85%14.32%4.67%1.797.1+14.8%
GEGE Aerospace7.65%3.62%8.08%7.142.4+11.1%+12.8%
SPCXSpace Exploration Technologies7.16%0.68%12.3584.9+84.7%
LMTLockheed Martin4.32%8.65%8.90%1.618.7+5.7%+7.1%
NOCNorthrop Grumman4.01%7.53%9.94%1.819.3+6.9%+4.0%
GDGeneral Dynamics3.96%7.34%7.56%1.821.5+4.8%+8.9%
HWMHowmet Aerospace3.93%1.14%2.94%10.648.9+13.2%+19.1%
HEIHeico3.89%1.33%2.70%8.953.2+10.2%+13.2%
LHXL3Harris Technologies3.73%5.75%5.88%2.221.7+7.6%+15.0%
RKLBRocket Lab3.70%0.20%42.6+43.3%
TDGTransDigm3.55%1.78%4.78%6.226.1+10.1%+17.3%
ASTSAST SpaceMobile2.69%0.05%42.1+330.7%
CWCurtiss-Wright2.59%1.30%2.42%6.542.7+8.1%+9.8%
FTAIFTAI Aviation2.23%1.07%2.16%4.522.8+59.6%+101.8%
WWDWoodward2.14%1.51%2.51%4.532.7+8.9%+13.4%
LDOSLeidos1.77%6.27%6.17%0.910.6+4.6%+5.3%
TXTTextron1.57%5.60%4.32%1.012.3+3.8%+12.4%
CACICACI International1.44%3.35%2.37%1.421.0+6.3%+13.9%
[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
8/11
1D Rtn1M RtnYTD Rtn1Y Rtn3Y Rtn5Y Rtn10Y Rtn
MISLFirst Trust Indxx Aerospace & Defense ETF100.00%47.510.0%6.7%11.0%24.0%105.9%  
PLTRPalantir Technologies10.36%174.94-0.2%38.0%-1.6%-4.2%1,035.2%602.9% 
RTXRTX8.58%223.86-0.1%14.3%23.0%46.9%174.7%184.0%342.0%
BABoeing7.85%233.240.2%4.9%7.4%3.2%-1.1%-2.1%90.5%
GEGE Aerospace7.65%368.060.4%2.4%19.8%34.4%309.0%463.0%172.0%
SPCXSpace Exploration Technologies7.16%133.29-3.9%-8.3%     
LMTLockheed Martin4.32%597.77-0.9%14.2%25.1%44.0%42.7%90.1%194.8%
NOCNorthrop Grumman4.01%575.69-0.4%6.7%1.7%0.8%40.4%71.6%209.7%
GDGeneral Dynamics3.96%391.89-1.0%4.5%17.9%26.6%83.2%118.5%221.3%
HWMHowmet Aerospace3.93%281.34-0.8%3.9%37.4%56.7%473.8%773.4%1,161.5%
HEIHeico3.89%366.920.8%4.6%13.5%17.5%115.6%179.1%914.8%
LHXL3Harris Technologies3.73%286.02-1.3%-1.6%-1.8%7.5%61.5%36.9%284.2%
RKLBRocket Lab3.70%80.01-0.0%-1.3%14.7%77.7%1,166.0%659.1% 
TDGTransDigm3.55%1,242.041.5%-3.8%-6.6%-5.8%66.4%143.2%602.0%
ASTSAST SpaceMobile2.69%71.634.2%-2.3%-1.4%56.0%1,585.4%639.2% 
CWCurtiss-Wright2.59%705.961.7%-6.5%28.1%44.5%243.4%493.8%727.5%
FTAIFTAI Aviation2.23%225.104.7%-1.0%14.7%64.4%566.5%1,038.6%3,810.0%
WWDWoodward2.14%356.580.1%-12.3%18.2%43.9%184.3%213.2%540.0%
LDOSLeidos1.77%140.891.3%31.6%-21.4%-19.6%49.3%56.7%349.5%
TXTTextron1.57%88.21-1.1%-3.0%1.2%13.8%13.0%19.3%128.0%
CACICACI International1.44%667.573.0%37.2%25.3%39.5%94.1%163.2%611.1%

Guidance Updates for MISL Top Holdings

 TickerCompanyEarnings DateGuidance MetricMidpoint Value% ChangeGuidance Change
CACI_8052026CACICACI International8/5/20262027 Revenue10.75 Bil12.6%Higher NewNew Guidance Higher than Prior Actual of 9.55 Bil for 2026
HWM_8062026HWMHowmet Aerospace8/6/2026Q3 2026 Revenue2.58 Bil7.3%Higher NewNew Guidance Higher than Prior Actual of 2.40 Bil for Q2 2026
PLTR_8032026PLTRPalantir Technologies8/3/20262026 Revenue8.15 Bil6.5%RaisedRaised Prior Guidance of 7.66 Bil for 2026
RKLB_8102026RKLBRocket Lab8/10/2026Q3 2026 Revenue257.50 Mil10.8%Higher NewNew Guidance Higher than Prior Actual of 232.50 Mil for Q2 2026

Return vs. Risk

Price Returns Compared

 202120222023202420252026Total [1]
Returns
MISL Return-8%15%20%41%11%135%
Peers Return15%-20%33%13%40%40%175%
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 8/11/2026 (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-7.1%79.89811202686.00622202650
EEMiShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF-8.1%65.43811202671.21622202650
ASHRXtrackers Harvest CSI 300 China A-Shares ETF-7.0%34.68811202637.30622202650
EWYiShares MSCI South Korea ETF-23.7%167.248112026219.20621202651
EWZiShares MSCI Brazil ETF-18.6%33.98811202641.734142026119
FXIiShares China Large-Cap ETF-9.8%35.66811202639.532102026182
ILFiShares Latin America 40 ETF-11.4%33.75811202638.104142026119
KWEBKraneShares CSI China Internet ETF-18.1%28.09811202634.312102026182
MTUMiShares MSCI USA Momentum Factor ETF-10.7%308.348112026345.22622202650
SPMOInvesco S&P 500 Momentum ETF-8.1%148.568112026161.66622202650
URAGlobal X Uranium ETF-22.5%45.17811202658.26506202697
BOTZGlobal X Funds Global X Robotics & Artificial Intelligence ETF-10.0%37.48811202641.63513202690
ROBOROBO Global Robotics & Automation Index ETF-7.0%84.00811202690.34602202670
LITGlobal X Lithium & Battery Tech ETF-19.1%74.11811202691.62511202692
ICLNiShares Global Clean Energy ETF-23.4%18.20811202623.75602202670
ARKQARK Autonomous Technology & Robotics ETF-10.8%128.308112026143.82528202675
ARKXARK Space & Defense Innovation ETF-8.8%34.41811202637.74528202675
NASATema Space Innovators ETF-39.1%25.53811202641.89527202676
XOVREntrepreneurShares Series Trust ERShares Private-Public Crossover ETF-6.1%20.03811202621.34706202636
AGIXKraneShares Artificial Intelligence ETF-8.4%45.24811202649.40601202671
XLKState Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF-6.1%186.098112026198.21602202670
XLCState Street Communication Services Select Sector SPDR ETF-6.6%111.278112026119.104192026114
XLPState Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF-5.4%84.69811202689.513012026163
XLUState Street Utilities Select Sector SPDR ETF-8.0%43.63811202647.403012026163
SMHVanEck Semiconductor ETF-14.3%572.938112026668.91622202650
SOXXiShares Semiconductor ETF-18.4%534.208112026655.01622202650
XOPState Street SPDR S&P Oil & Gas Exploration & Production ETF-5.2%178.378112026188.183292026135
MISLFirst Trust Indxx Aerospace & Defense ETF-6.2%47.51811202650.663022026162
RINGiShares MSCI Global Gold Miners ETF-21.4%78.13811202699.423012026163
SOXQInvesco PHLX Semiconductor ETF-17.3%95.198112026115.11622202650
TLTiShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF-7.8%82.19811202689.153012026163
VGLTVanguard Long-Term Treasury ETF-6.7%52.76811202656.533012026163
SPTLState Street SPDR Portfolio Long Term Treasury ETF-7.1%25.09811202626.993012026163
TLHiShares 10-20 Year Treasury Bond ETF-6.3%96.568112026103.083012026163
EDVVanguard World Funds Extended Duration ETF-11.5%59.67811202667.423012026163
SPLBState Street SPDR Portfolio Long Term Corporate Bond ETF-5.3%21.35811202622.552192026173
IGLBiShares 10+ Year Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF-5.0%47.84811202650.372172026175
PDBCInvesco Optimum Yield Diversified Commodity Strategy No K-1 ETF-5.3%17.91811202618.91512202691
DBCInvesco DB Commodity Index Tracking Fund-5.4%29.97811202631.69512202691
COMTiShares GSCI Commodity Dynamic Roll Strategy ETF-7.9%33.64811202636.53519202684
GSGiShares GSCI Commodity-5.8%30.01811202631.853182026146
BCIabrdn Bloomberg All Commodity Strategy K-1 Free ETF-5.4%24.51811202625.91512202691
GLDSPDR Gold Trust-18.2%400.968112026490.003022026162
IAUiShares Gold Trust-18.1%82.188112026100.383022026162
GLDMSPDR Gold MiniShares Trust-18.1%86.468112026105.543022026162
SGOLETFS Physical Swiss Gold Shares-12.1%44.66811202650.813022026162
BARDirexion Daily Gold Bull 3X Shares-15.6%44.34811202652.533022026162
SLViShares Silver Trust-31.1%58.55811202684.993012026163
SIVRETFS Physical Silver Shares Trust ETF-6.6%83.39811202689.263012026163
PPLTETFS Physical Platinum Shares-26.5%15.78811202621.473012026163
CPERUnited States Copper Index Fund ETV-9.6%33.33811202636.883012026163
PALLETFS Physical Palladium Shares-23.9%24.77811202632.542242026168
USOUnited States Oil Fund LP-16.6%127.618112026152.96519202684
UNGUnited States Natural Gas Fund LP-22.8%10.07811202613.043122026152
BNOUnited States Brent Oil Fund LP ETV-7.1%55.85811202660.13504202699
SCHHSchwab U.S. REIT ETF-5.3%23.55811202624.86726202616
USRTiShares Core U.S. REIT ETF-5.8%65.80811202669.82726202616
IBITiShares Bitcoin Trust ETF-22.7%35.94811202646.47511202692
FBTCFidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund-22.6%55.23811202671.35511202692
ETHAiShares Ethereum Trust ETF-22.9%14.18811202618.384192026114

ETF Fund Flows

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

Net fund flows · as of 2026-08-10

Asset allocation rotation · Past month

  • Equity ETFs drew the largest net inflows (+$58.2B), followed by Bond (+$14.9B), with every major asset class in net inflows.
  • Within the mix, money rotated into US Large Cap Core (+$19.4B) and out of Thematic (−$3.2B).
  • Relative to fund size, BFLX drew the largest inflow (+55.7% of AUM) and FTXL the largest outflow (−60.3%).
Largest inflows
#TickerNameTypeNet flow% of AUM
1SPYState Street SPDR S&P 500 ETFEquity US Large Cap Core+$14.5B+1.8%
2VOOVanguard S&P 500 ETFEquity US Large Cap Core+$12.57B+1.3%
3QQQInvesco QQQ Trust, Series 1Equity US Nasdaq Growth+$7.95B+1.7%
4EWYiShares MSCI South Korea ETFEquity Emerging Markets+$6.01B+25.6%
5SPYMState Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 ETFEquity US Large Cap Core+$5.92B+3.7%
6SGOViShares 0-3 Month Treasury Bond ETFCash+$3.99B+4.0%
7DRAMRoundhill Memory ETFOther+$3.9B+16.3%
8TLTiShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETFBond Long Treasury+$3.43B+8.1%
9QQQMInvesco NASDAQ 100 ETFEquity US Nasdaq Growth+$3.35B+3.4%
10SCHDSchwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETFEquity Dividend Income+$3.29B+3.2%
Largest outflows
#TickerNameTypeNet flow% of AUM
1IVViShares Core S&P 500 ETFEquity US Large Cap Core-$13.45B-1.5%
2IEFiShares 7-10 Year Treasury Bond ETFBond Intermediate Treasury-$3.65B-7.7%
3IWMiShares Russell 2000 ETFEquity US Small Cap Core-$2.79B-3.5%
4ARKKARK Innovation ETFEquity Thematic-$2.33B-39.2%
5LQDiShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETFBond Intermediate Corporate-$2.28B-6.9%
6IQMMProShares - GENIUS Money Market ETFOther-$2.22B-12.3%
7IWDiShares Russell 1000 Value ETFEquity US Large Value-$1.1B-1.4%
8VOVanguard Morningstar Mid-Cap ETFEquity US Mid Cap Core-$1.02B-1.0%
9IWFiShares Russell 1000 Growth ETFEquity US Large Growth-$1.01B-0.8%
10IGViShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETFEquity Industry Subsector-$977M-7.2%

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)0.771.644.49.810.215.112.6
Expense Ratio0.60%0.35%0.33%0.44%0.35%0.37%0.36%
10-D Avg Volume (Mil)0.4210.829.761.558.890.805.22
Latest Day Volume (Mil)0.155.869.481.148.64-5.86
Holdings Count4926302471554949
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 Value44.32582.90543.49197.66154.57250.70-
Premium/Discount7.2%-1.7%-1.7%1.1%2.3%0.5%0.8%
Distribution Yield0.3%0.2%0.3%0.2%0.4%0.0%0.2%
Sales Yield28.4%7.1%7.5%12.4%8.5%28.3%10.4%
Earnings Yield2.3%2.3%2.0%1.9%1.2%2.5%2.1%

Valuation

MISLSMHSOXXIBBXBIITAMedian
NameFirst Trus.VanEck Sem.iShares Se.iShares Bi.State Stre.iShares U.. 
P/S (TTM)3.5x14.0x13.4x8.1x11.8x3.5x9.9x
P/E (TTM)44.4x44.2x49.0x52.7x84.7x40.3x46.7x
P/FCF (TTM)61.3x50.4x55.6x158.7x-42.1x55.6x
Forward P/E36.0x---60.4x33.7x36.0x
Forward P/S3.1x---9.2x3.2x3.2x

Risk

MISLSMHSOXXIBBXBIITAMedian
NameFirst Trus.VanEck Sem.iShares Se.iShares Bi.State Stre.iShares U.. 
Volatility (1Y)25.2%38.8%44.9%20.5%27.1%22.7%26.2%
Volatility (3Y)20.7%36.8%39.4%20.4%27.6%19.9%24.1%
Volatility (5Y)19.8%36.5%38.3%22.1%32.3%20.3%27.2%
Beta (1Y)1.182.372.600.781.051.021.12
Beta (3Y)0.861.972.050.811.020.850.94
Beta (5Y)0.811.761.810.861.160.811.01
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)0.981.931.992.132.421.231.96
Sharpe Ratio (3Y)1.271.381.180.850.951.441.22
Sharpe Ratio (5Y)1.240.990.860.270.310.970.91
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 Return8.9%-2.2%-3.5%5.4%1.8%7.2%3.6%
3M Return4.1%-0.6%0.3%17.5%17.3%11.5%7.8%
6M Return-3.4%40.9%51.5%14.6%25.3%7.3%20.0%
YTD Return11.0%59.1%77.5%18.4%29.6%17.4%24.0%
1Y Return24.0%95.8%120.9%51.6%85.7%28.8%68.7%
2Y Return65.9%165.5%163.6%42.7%68.0%87.6%77.8%
3Y Return106.0%276.5%218.5%58.1%95.7%122.5%114.2%

Short Interest

Short Interest: As Of Date7312026
Short Interest: Shares Quantity0.0 Mil
Short Interest: % Change Since 7152026-37.7%
Average Daily Volume0.1 Mil
Days-to-Cover Short Interest1