The First Trust NASDAQ-100 Ex-Technology Sector ETF (QQXT) was launched on 02/08/2007, and is a smart beta exchange traded fund designed to offer broad exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Growth category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
For a long time now, the ETF industry has been flooded with products based on market capitalization weighted indexes, which are designed to represent the broader market or a particular market segment.
Market cap weighted indexes offer a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, and are a good option for investors who believe in market efficiency.
If you're the kind of investor who would rather try and beat the market through good stock selection, then smart beta funds are your best choice; this fund class is known for tracking non-cap weighted strategies.
Non-cap weighted indexes try to choose stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, which is based on specific fundamental characteristics, or a mix of other such characteristics.
The smart beta space gives investors many different choices, from equal-weighting, one of the simplest strategies, to more complicated ones like fundamental and volatility/momentum based weighting. However, not all of these methodologies have been able to deliver remarkable returns.
Fund Sponsor & Index
Because the fund has amassed over $1.11 billion, this makes it one of the average sized ETFs in the Style Box - Large Cap Growth. QQXT is managed by First Trust Advisors. Before fees and expenses, QQXT seeks to match the performance of the NASDAQ-100 Ex-Tech Sector Index.
The NASDAQ-100 Ex-Tech Sector Index is an equal-weighted index based on the securities of the NASDAQ-100 Index that are not classified as technology and, as a result, is a subset of the NASDAQ-100 Index. The NASDAQ-100 Index includes 100 of the largest domestic and international non-financial companies listed on NASDAQ based on market capitalization.
Cost & Other Expenses
For ETF investors, expense ratios are an important factor when considering a fund's return; in the long-term, cheaper funds actually have the ability to outperform their more expensive cousins if all other things remain the same.
Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.60%, making it one of the more expensive products in the space.
It's 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 0.73%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure that minimizes single stock risk, investors should also look at the actual holdings inside the fund. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
Representing 19.4% of the portfolio, the fund has heaviest allocation to the Industrials sector; Healthcare and Consumer Discretionary round out the top three.
Looking at individual holdings, Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. (ODFL) accounts for about 1.89% of total assets, followed by Paypal Holdings, Inc. (PYPL) and Honeywell International Inc. (HON).
The top 10 holdings account for about 18.65% of total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
Year-to-date, the First Trust NASDAQ-100 Ex-Technology Sector ETF has added roughly 6.69% so far, and was up about 9.72% over the last 12 months (as of 08/20/2025). QQXT has traded between $84.34 $101.22 in this past 52-week period.
The fund has a beta of 0.93 and standard deviation of 15.98% for the trailing three-year period, which makes QQXT a medium risk choice in this particular space. With about 57 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .
Alternatives
First Trust NASDAQ-100 Ex-Technology Sector ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - Large Cap Growth segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
Vanguard Growth ETF (VUG) tracks CRSP U.S. Large Cap Growth Index and the Invesco QQQ (QQQ) tracks NASDAQ-100 Index. Vanguard Growth ETF has $183.46 billion in assets, Invesco QQQ has $366.75 billion. VUG has an expense ratio of 0.04% and QQQ changes 0.20%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Style Box - Large Cap Growth
Bottom Line
To learn more about this product and other ETFs, screen for products that match your investment objectives and read articles on latest developments in the ETF investing universe, please visit Zacks ETF Center.
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First Trust NASDAQ-100 Ex-Technology Sector ETF (QQXT): ETF Research ReportsThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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