FT Vest U.S. Small Cap Moderate Buffer ETF - August is an exchange-traded fund that seeks to provide investors with buffered exposure to the price return of the iShares Russell 2000 ETF, using an options-based strategy that aims to deliver upside participation up to a stated cap while limiting losses over a defined annual outcome period. The fund is managed and distributed by First Trust Portfolios L.P. through First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund VIII, lists and principally trades on the Cboe BZX Exchange, and was launched in 2023 with an August-dated target outcome cycle.
The fund’s core offering centers on a systematic defined-outcome structure built around small-cap U.S. equity exposure, with the portfolio designed to track the underlying ETF’s positive price returns up to a pre-set cap and provide a buffer against the first 15% of losses before fees and expenses. Current fund materials show the new target outcome period running from August 24, 2026 through August 20, 2027, with a 17.75% upside cap and a 15% buffer for that cycle, reflecting the latest annual reset in the strategy.
Recent company changes are primarily product-level and include the current annual outcome-period refresh for 2026-2027, which updates the cap, buffer, and reference dates; ongoing fund reporting updates showing assets under management of about $118.96 million to $122.12 million in September 2026; and continued trading and pricing updates on major market-data platforms. No separate acquisition, rebranding, or corporate restructuring is indicated in the latest public materials reviewed.