First Trust Managed Futures Strategy Fund: Platform Profile

Overview

FMF is an actively managed ETF seeking positive returns that are not directly correlated to broad equity or fixed-income returns.

Current state:

• Ticker: FMF
• Registered ETF: Yes
• Adviser: First Trust Advisors L.P.
• Inception: 2013-08-01
• Total expense ratio: 0.98%

May fit better for

• investors seeking managed futures through an ETF;
• investors wanting long/short exposure across commodities, currencies, equity indexes and rates;
• users comfortable with an actively managed futures process;
• investors who prefer one liquid fund rather than direct CTA accounts;
• portfolios seeking potential diversification from stocks and bonds;
• investors comfortable with collateral-heavy ETF structures.

May fit less well for

• investors seeking a low-cost passive index ETF;
• users wanting no leverage;
• investors uncomfortable with frequent futures repositioning;
• users who assume positive-return objective means positive every year;
• investors who want the fund limited to one quantitative model;
• investors who want no Cayman subsidiary.

FMF combines quantitative and qualitative methods

Current 2026 prospectus:

• Quantitative methods: Yes
• Qualitative methods: Yes
• Long short: Yes
• Positioning can change daily: Yes

The fund and subsidiary seek to identify futures markets expected to rise or fall.

Current asset classes are broad

Current disclosures identify futures on:

• equity indexes;
• other financial indexes;
• currencies;
• global debt;
• U.S. Treasuries;
• commodities.

Current holdings can vary substantially.

Current annual operating expenses are 0.98%

Current May 1, 2026 prospectus:

• Management fee: 0.95%
• 12b1 fee: 0%
• Other expenses: 0%
• Acquired fund fees and expenses: 0.03%
• Total annual fund operating expenses: 0.98%

Futures notional can exceed fund assets

Current prospectus:

• Aggregate futures notional can exceed total assets: Yes
• Significant portfolio leverage possible: Yes

The prospectus warns that leverage can magnify losses.

The FT Cayman Subsidiary carries much of the futures exposure

Current prospectus:

• Cayman subsidiary: FT Cayman Subsidiary
• Maximum total assets in subsidiary: 25%

The current fund page states futures investments are held indirectly through the wholly owned subsidiary.

The collateral book is material

The remainder of fund assets can include:

• short U.S. government and agency securities;
• repurchase agreements;
• money-market instruments;
• cash.

These assets support the futures strategy and can contribute interest income.

A large collateral allocation does not mean low derivative exposure.

Current fiscal year changed in 2026

Current August 5, 2026 supplement:

• Former fiscal year end: December 31
• Current fiscal year end: September 30
• Effective around: 2026-07-31

The investment objective and strategies did not change solely because of the fiscal-year change.

Current fund size is dated

Current September 4, 2026 First Trust page:

• Net assets: $278.3M
• Net assets as of: 2026-09-04

Assessment

FMF is a more discretionary/active interpretation of managed futures than a pure index-trend product.

The key current economics are simple:

0.95% management + 0.03% acquired-fund expenses = 0.98% total annual operating expenses.

The portfolio mechanics are not simple.

The fund can reposition frequently, use both qualitative and quantitative inputs, and maintain futures notional exposure above NAV.