First Trust Indxx Aerospace & Defense ETF (MISL)


Market Price (8/8/2026): $47.23

First Trust Indxx Aerospace & Defense ETF (MISL)


Market Price (8/8/2026): $47.23

Key Takeaways

  • MISL has returned +10.4% YTD vs +13.7% for SPY; +23.1% over the past 12 months (SPY +23.3%). details →
  • Priced in gold, MISL has returned -10.6% over the past 3 years, vs +103.9% 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 34.4x forward earnings — a 324% 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: 8/7/2026.

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
+7.0%
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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[1] Defensive Portfolios
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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%3.034.4+10.1%+14.4%
Top 2087.32%83.57%89.66%3.235.2+10.5%+13.9%
RTXRTX9.08%9.69%10.02%3.029.0+7.4%+8.7%
GEGE Aerospace8.29%3.75%8.30%7.142.7+11.1%+12.8%
BABoeing8.04%14.02%4.54%1.797.6+14.8%
PLTRPalantir Technologies8.02%0.41%2.52%38.294.5+49.3%+40.0%
SPCXSpace Exploration Technologies6.17%0.56%12.3584.2+84.7%
LMTLockheed Martin4.60%9.01%9.19%1.618.4+5.7%+7.1%
HWMHowmet Aerospace4.31%1.20%3.07%10.649.0+13.2%+19.1%
GDGeneral Dynamics4.23%7.53%7.69%1.821.5+4.8%+8.9%
HEIHeico4.20%1.38%2.78%8.953.3+10.2%+13.2%
NOCNorthrop Grumman4.16%7.55%9.88%1.819.2+6.9%+4.0%
TDGTransDigm4.02%1.96%5.22%6.125.8+10.1%+17.3%
LHXL3Harris Technologies3.94%5.82%5.90%2.221.8+7.6%+15.0%
RKLBRocket Lab3.31%0.15%42.4+43.3%
CWCurtiss-Wright2.98%1.46%2.71%6.441.8+8.1%+9.8%
ASTSAST SpaceMobile2.55%0.04%41.1+330.7%
WWDWoodward2.39%1.60%2.63%4.633.3+8.9%+13.4%
FTAIFTAI Aviation2.35%1.13%2.26%4.321.9+59.6%+101.8%
TXTTextron1.65%5.59%4.28%1.012.4+3.8%+12.4%
LDOSLeidos1.62%5.66%5.52%0.910.3+4.6%+5.3%
HIIHuntington Ingalls Industries1.43%5.06%3.17%0.916.5+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
8/7
1D Rtn1M RtnYTD Rtn1Y Rtn3Y Rtn5Y Rtn10Y Rtn
MISLFirst Trust Indxx Aerospace & Defense ETF100.00%47.222.5%5.2%10.4%23.1%103.9%  
RTXRTX9.08%223.03-0.1%14.4%22.5%45.5%175.7%184.3%342.5%
GEGE Aerospace8.29%370.08-1.2%3.9%20.5%36.7%315.1%476.9%173.0%
BABoeing8.04%234.421.0%4.2%8.0%3.1%-1.5%1.3%93.7%
PLTRPalantir Technologies8.02%172.0110.3%30.1%-3.2%-5.6%909.4%688.3% 
SPCXSpace Exploration Technologies6.17%133.1115.8%-10.2%     
LMTLockheed Martin4.60%587.950.9%11.4%23.0%40.2%41.8%85.8%193.9%
HWMHowmet Aerospace4.31%281.88-2.7%3.8%37.7%55.7%462.8%801.0%1,142.0%
GDGeneral Dynamics4.23%392.051.3%4.7%18.0%27.6%85.4%118.7%227.7%
HEIHeico4.20%367.581.2%5.7%13.7%16.1%109.3%179.0%930.3%
NOCNorthrop Grumman4.16%571.580.7%4.9%1.0%-1.2%38.8%71.1%209.6%
TDGTransDigm4.02%1,225.25-2.9%-5.5%-7.9%-8.4%61.3%134.3%583.0%
LHXL3Harris Technologies3.94%286.67-1.0%-2.3%-1.6%6.4%63.9%36.9%285.2%
RKLBRocket Lab3.31%82.839.5%-0.6%18.7%87.4%1,143.7%718.5% 
CWCurtiss-Wright2.98%691.52-3.2%-9.1%25.5%46.3%235.8%483.3%706.8%
ASTSAST SpaceMobile2.55%71.946.8%-4.0%-1.0%50.8%1,453.8%576.8% 
WWDWoodward2.39%362.89-0.8%-9.2%20.2%45.4%189.0%229.9%550.1%
FTAIFTAI Aviation2.35%216.24-2.3%0.1%10.2%57.8%543.1%979.5%3,863.9%
TXTTextron1.65%89.431.8%-0.4%2.6%15.7%14.7%23.8%131.5%
LDOSLeidos1.62%137.571.7%28.4%-23.3%-20.7%46.7%55.5%360.9%
HIIHuntington Ingalls Industries1.43%324.480.8%12.1%-3.9%23.8%52.9%76.0%132.0%

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_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_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%8%127%
Peers Return15%-20%33%13%40%39%172%
S&P 500 Return27%-19%24%23%16%13%105%

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 8/7/2026 (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-7.0%79.99807202686.00622202646
EEMiShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF-7.8%65.64807202671.21622202646
ASHRXtrackers Harvest CSI 300 China A-Shares ETF-5.8%35.12807202637.30622202646
EWYiShares MSCI South Korea ETF-24.2%166.098072026219.20621202647
EWZiShares MSCI Brazil ETF-15.3%35.34807202641.734142026115
FXIiShares China Large-Cap ETF-8.5%36.17807202639.532102026178
ILFiShares Latin America 40 ETF-9.1%34.62807202638.104142026115
KWEBKraneShares CSI China Internet ETF-16.5%28.66807202634.342092026179
MTUMiShares MSCI USA Momentum Factor ETF-10.4%309.328072026345.22622202646
SPMOInvesco S&P 500 Momentum ETF-7.4%149.698072026161.66622202646
URAGlobal X Uranium ETF-22.9%44.91807202658.26506202693
BOTZGlobal X Funds Global X Robotics & Artificial Intelligence ETF-9.7%37.61807202641.63513202686
ROBOROBO Global Robotics & Automation Index ETF-6.5%84.44807202690.34602202666
LITGlobal X Lithium & Battery Tech ETF-19.2%74.01807202691.62511202688
ICLNiShares Global Clean Energy ETF-22.9%18.30807202623.75602202666
ARKQARK Autonomous Technology & Robotics ETF-11.1%127.858072026143.82528202671
ARKXARK Space & Defense Innovation ETF-9.2%34.27807202637.74528202671
NASATema Space Innovators ETF-39.0%25.55807202641.89527202672
XOVREntrepreneurShares Series Trust ERShares Private-Public Crossover ETF-5.7%20.13807202621.34706202632
AGIXKraneShares Artificial Intelligence ETF-8.2%45.34807202649.40601202667
RAAXVanEck Real Assets ETF-5.1%40.54807202642.70511202688
XLKState Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF-5.2%187.978072026198.21602202666
XLEState Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF-8.1%57.50807202662.563292026131
XLCState Street Communication Services Select Sector SPDR ETF-6.6%111.258072026119.104192026110
XLUState Street Utilities Select Sector SPDR ETF-8.0%43.61807202647.403012026159
FXNFirst Trust Energy AlphaDEX Fund-7.5%21.44807202623.183292026131
SMHVanEck Semiconductor ETF-12.9%582.708072026668.91622202646
SOXXiShares Semiconductor ETF-17.1%543.278072026655.01622202646
XOPState Street SPDR S&P Oil & Gas Exploration & Production ETF-11.6%166.408072026188.183292026131
MISLFirst Trust Indxx Aerospace & Defense ETF-6.8%47.22807202650.663022026158
RINGiShares MSCI Global Gold Miners ETF-21.5%78.02807202699.423012026159
SOXQInvesco PHLX Semiconductor ETF-15.6%97.208072026115.11622202646
TLTiShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF-7.2%82.76807202689.153012026159
VGLTVanguard Long-Term Treasury ETF-6.1%53.08807202656.533012026159
SPTLState Street SPDR Portfolio Long Term Treasury ETF-6.5%25.25807202626.993012026159
TLHiShares 10-20 Year Treasury Bond ETF-5.8%97.058072026103.083012026159
EDVVanguard World Funds Extended Duration ETF-10.5%60.35807202667.423012026159
PDBCInvesco Optimum Yield Diversified Commodity Strategy No K-1 ETF-8.8%17.25807202618.91512202687
DBCInvesco DB Commodity Index Tracking Fund-8.8%28.91807202631.69512202687
COMTiShares GSCI Commodity Dynamic Roll Strategy ETF-10.9%32.55807202636.53519202680
GSGiShares GSCI Commodity-5.8%30.01807202631.853182026142
BCIabrdn Bloomberg All Commodity Strategy K-1 Free ETF-8.0%23.83807202625.91512202687
FTGCFirst Trust Global Tactical Commodity Strategy Fund-5.3%28.91807202630.53512202687
GLDSPDR Gold Trust-18.7%398.478072026490.003022026158
IAUiShares Gold Trust-18.6%81.688072026100.383022026158
GLDMSPDR Gold MiniShares Trust-18.6%85.958072026105.543022026158
SGOLETFS Physical Swiss Gold Shares-12.1%44.66807202650.813022026158
BARDirexion Daily Gold Bull 3X Shares-15.6%44.34807202652.533022026158
SLViShares Silver Trust-32.3%57.50807202684.993012026159
SIVRETFS Physical Silver Shares Trust ETF-6.6%83.39807202689.263012026159
PPLTETFS Physical Platinum Shares-26.2%15.85807202621.473012026159
CPERUnited States Copper Index Fund ETV-9.6%33.33807202636.883012026159
PALLETFS Physical Palladium Shares-23.0%25.05807202632.542242026164
USOUnited States Oil Fund LP-22.9%117.988072026152.96519202680
UNGUnited States Natural Gas Fund LP-26.6%9.74807202613.272082026180
BNOUnited States Brent Oil Fund LP ETV-7.1%55.85807202660.13504202695
IBITiShares Bitcoin Trust ETF-20.8%36.80807202646.47511202688
FBTCFidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund-20.8%56.53807202671.35511202688
ETHAiShares Ethereum Trust ETF-21.3%14.47807202618.384192026110

ETF Fund Flows

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

Net fund flows · as of 2026-08-06

Asset allocation rotation · Past month

  • Equity ETFs drew the largest net inflows (+$42.5B), followed by Bond (+$16.0B), with every major asset class in net inflows.
  • Within the mix, money rotated into Emerging Markets (+$9.8B) and out of US Small Cap Core (−$1.4B).
  • Relative to fund size, BFLX drew the largest inflow (+56.0% of AUM) and FTXL the largest outflow (−39.5%).
Largest inflows
#TickerNameTypeNet flow% of AUM
1VOOVanguard S&P 500 ETFEquity US Large Cap Core+$12.68B+1.3%
2EWYiShares MSCI South Korea ETFEquity Emerging Markets+$5.95B+25.7%
3SPYMState Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 ETFEquity US Large Cap Core+$5.82B+3.6%
4DRAMRoundhill Memory ETFOther+$5.14B+21.3%
5SGOViShares 0-3 Month Treasury Bond ETFCash+$4.69B+4.7%
6VTIVanguard Morningstar Total Stock Market ETFEquity US Total Market+$4.1B+0.6%
7SCHDSchwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETFEquity Dividend Income+$3.4B+3.4%
8EFViShares MSCI EAFE Value ETFEquity International Developed Broad+$3.12B+11.1%
9QQQMInvesco NASDAQ 100 ETFEquity US Nasdaq Growth+$2.99B+3.0%
10XLFState Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETFEquity Broad Sector+$2.59B+4.6%
Largest outflows
#TickerNameTypeNet flow% of AUM
1IVViShares Core S&P 500 ETFEquity US Large Cap Core-$13.62B-1.5%
2IQMMProShares - GENIUS Money Market ETFOther-$2.95B-16.3%
3IWMiShares Russell 2000 ETFEquity US Small Cap Core-$2.18B-2.7%
4LQDiShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETFBond Intermediate Corporate-$1.79B-5.2%
5IWDiShares Russell 1000 Value ETFEquity US Large Value-$1.08B-1.3%
6SCZiShares MSCI EAFE Small-Cap ETFEquity International Small Cap-$1.05B-7.9%
7SOXXiShares Semiconductor ETFEquity Industry Subsector-$1.01B-2.2%
8IWRiShares Russell Mid-Cap ETFEquity US Mid Cap Core-$988M-1.8%
9MTUMiShares MSCI USA Momentum Factor ETFEquity Factor Smart Beta-$889M-3.5%
10IWFiShares Russell 1000 Growth ETFEquity US Large Growth-$874M-0.7%

Largest ETF fund flows across ~2605 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/Discount6.5%7.8%7.8%6.0%3.8%4.7%6.3%
Distribution Yield0.3%0.2%0.3%0.2%0.4%0.0%0.2%
Sales Yield29.6%7.0%7.3%12.8%8.9%28.5%10.8%
Earnings Yield2.4%2.2%2.0%1.9%1.0%2.5%2.1%

Valuation

MISLSMHSOXXIBBXBIITAMedian
NameFirst Trus.VanEck Sem.iShares Se.iShares Bi.State Stre.iShares U.. 
P/S (TTM)3.4x14.3x13.7x7.8x11.3x3.5x9.5x
P/E (TTM)42.2x45.4x50.1x51.8x101.2x39.8x47.8x
P/FCF (TTM)54.0x51.1x56.2x129.3x-41.3x54.0x
Forward P/E34.4x---59.6x33.2x34.4x
Forward P/S3.0x---8.9x3.2x3.2x

Risk

MISLSMHSOXXIBBXBIITAMedian
NameFirst Trus.VanEck Sem.iShares Se.iShares Bi.State Stre.iShares U.. 
Volatility (1Y)25.2%38.8%44.8%20.5%27.1%22.7%26.2%
Volatility (3Y)20.7%36.8%39.3%20.4%27.6%19.9%24.1%
Volatility (5Y)19.9%36.5%38.3%22.1%32.3%20.3%27.2%
Beta (1Y)1.182.372.590.781.051.021.11
Beta (3Y)0.861.972.050.811.020.850.94
Beta (5Y)0.811.761.810.861.160.811.01
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)0.922.032.092.102.371.192.06
Sharpe Ratio (3Y)1.261.401.190.830.931.431.22
Sharpe Ratio (5Y)1.231.010.870.280.310.970.92
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 Return5.4%-4.1%-6.6%0.2%-4.2%4.6%-2.0%
3M Return7.1%7.9%10.3%16.2%17.7%12.7%11.5%
6M Return0.5%52.9%64.3%16.4%30.4%10.9%23.4%
YTD Return10.4%61.8%80.5%17.2%29.1%16.9%23.1%
1Y Return22.2%103.9%130.3%50.7%83.4%27.6%67.0%
2Y Return62.7%168.8%165.8%37.8%63.8%84.9%74.3%
3Y Return104.7%281.9%222.6%56.5%92.8%122.1%113.4%

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