P
MYF`F.QXZS^;A3)>5^2WKW32FR894>0-56\E?<"M7XV\<[E_P246^&/W7[0@2
MOX_-ZH,'8[5T1312E2I-(8WJ^/X%:?6.0%YV&_@J:0/B=L7%-I42/_DR0QA2
M6$%K$[KB$F!'1MT+'XXJ=BS1"_HO6R3=5:!@RE9$1Q4U6M$-`A1/'&.."@$>
M[^$2ZM*!<;O(PM:&[K@.:\"NT5]2E0#[]\V[313JN;]=(%B,-49]P/&;\FL6
M]9,(8`'?9^+;5J5&*U8C6^8[U."N9N$U!48,*YFF'".,U`[RN^(&0A 4TA5]FXV$Q-1``9?O?$9'SL`1
M:DWXS*',$:\RF0\_F(^M%<)Y>OO6FX@W>B0<$UP@X-?)IVQ;;:\2
M"D[.N1'=5*+Y>7YI-4\`N>;*-KID]^\!@F_I;MQ#Z0]?*[UA80.S+5G]9_WI
M[&7_^8!7\$4S"U9V8=0\DB[IFM:1#!]?#]$<#5>.!4'XQHM!S]N717$X'0Q.
M!XVU/<(`O+[/G5_8N`VZ:$VVOL<*AD=7T#&=2+L,L?]O9=ZA0.TW;_86^MXS
M.RJS[K8\[^AX'@R_V0S1^#F8WZ`VN\X)?/YW>1H74;B5\"54Q?P@R.T:_ET@T_CIU.E\\BI(G5_EG
M^0,^Q"4O_5O0J<6$Y7.S2O9YG58&(7XW,@[QW(?X0L3)CZPIE8F
GJ%
MVENP_2,I@#G=[NC2=5-"/4Y49>@>>PTL'4Q;3[VS\:^QK'%5Q*)(TCPN7E;5
MYUS=F)XMY1@8[E@V*"IP'[]Q90<]_N1R*.#]O>;!T4"_56:R2-8K>+!4]2>4ID+Y\+/N-J^YQZ
MZT;XA_J>,@-C^OW5'X"\>8&44/_N6H`GPS:KRV9MX4R7SE;%,Y4CUOD"MOJ&
M=L]0]%-&+_:
"+ text.join( "
\n" ) +"
" + text[p] + "
\n"; } } }else{ formatted = '' + raw + '
'; } html = ''+ "\n"+''+ "\n"+''+ "\n"+' formatted: '+ ( this.Default == 'raw' ? 'as Filed' : 'with Text Wrapped' ) +''+ "\n"+' | '+ "\n"+'
'+ "\n"+' | '+ "\n"+' '+ "\n"+'
'+ "\n"+' | '+ "\n"+' '+ "\n"+'
First Trust Senior Loan Fund | |||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY INFORMATION |
|||||||||||||||||||
INVESTMENT OBJECTIVES |
|||||||||||||||||||
The Fund's primary investment objective is to provide high current income. The Fund's secondary investment objective is the preservation of capital. |
|||||||||||||||||||
FEES AND EXPENSES OF THE FUND |
|||||||||||||||||||
The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy and hold shares of the Fund. Investors purchasing and selling shares may be subject to costs (including customary brokerage commissions) charged by their broker. |
|||||||||||||||||||
SHAREHOLDER FEES (FEES PAID DIRECTLY FROM YOUR INVESTMENT) |
|||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||
ANNUAL FUND OPERATING EXPENSES (Expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) |
|||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||
EXAMPLE |
|||||||||||||||||||
The example below is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. This example does not take into account customary brokerage commissions that you pay when purchasing or selling shares of the Fund in the secondary market. The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund's operating expenses remain at current levels until _____, 20__ and thereafter at ___% to represent the imposition of the 12b-1 fee of 0.25% per annum of the Fund's average daily net assets(1). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: |
|||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER |
|||||||||||||||||||
The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or "turns over" its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund's performance. |
|||||||||||||||||||
PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES |
|||||||||||||||||||
Under normal market conditions, the Fund seeks to outperform each of the Primary Index and Secondary Index (as defined below) by investing at least 80% of its net assets (plus the amount of any borrowing for investment purposes) in first lien senior floating rate bank loans ("Senior Loans"). The S&P/LSTA U.S. Leveraged Loan 100 Index (the "Primary Index") is a market value-weighted index designed to measure the performance of the largest segment of the U.S. syndicated leveraged loan market. The Primary Index consists of 100 loan facilities drawn from a larger benchmark, the S&P/LSTA Leveraged Loan Index. The Markit iBoxx USD Leveraged Loan Index (the "Secondary Index") selects the 100 most liquid Senior Loans in the market. The Fund does not seek to track either the Primary or Secondary Index, but rather seeks to outperform each of the indices. It is anticipated that the Fund, in accordance with its principal investment strategy, will invest approximately 50% to 75% of its net assets in Senior Loans that are eligible for inclusion in and meet the liquidity thresholds of the Primary and/or the Secondary Indices, at the time of investment. During the initial invest-up period, the Fund may depart from its principal investment strategies and invest a larger amount or all of its assets in cash equivalents or it may hold cash. A Senior Loan is an advance or commitment of funds made by one or more banks or similar financial institutions to one or more corporations, partnerships or other business entities and typically pays interest at a floating or adjusting rate that is determined periodically at a designated premium above a base lending rate, most commonly the London-Interbank Offered Rate ("LIBOR"). A Senior Loan is considered senior to all other unsecured claims against the borrower, senior to or pari passu with all other secured claims, meaning that in the event of a bankruptcy the Senior Loan, together with other first lien claims, is entitled to be the first to be repaid out of proceeds of the assets securing the loans, before other existing unsecured claims or interests receive repayment. However, in bankruptcy proceedings, there may be other claims, such as taxes or additional advances which take precedence. The Fund invests in Senior Loans that are made predominantly to businesses operating in North America, but may also invest in Senior Loans made to businesses operating outside of North America. The Fund may invest in Senior Loans directly, either from the borrower as part of a primary issuance or in the secondary market through assignments of portions of Senior Loans from third parties, or participations in Senior Loans, which are contractual relationships with an existing lender in a loan facility whereby the Fund purchases the right to receive principal and interest payments on a loan but the existing lender remains the record holder of the loan. The Senior Loans included in the Fund's portfolio often maintain an average interest rate duration of less than 90 days. When identifying prospective investment opportunities in Senior Loans, First Trust Advisors L.P. (the "Advisor") currently intends to invest primarily in Senior Loans that are below investment grade quality, at the time of investment, and relies on fundamental credit analysis in an effort to attempt to minimize the loss of the Fund's capital and to select assets that provide attractive relative value. Securities rated below investment grade, commonly referred to as "junk" or "high yield" securities, include securities that are rated Ba1/BB+/BB+ or below by Moody's Investors Service, Inc. ("Moody's"), Fitch Inc., or Standard & Poor's, Inc. ("S&P"), respectively. The Fund may also invest in unrated securities deemed by the Advisor to be of comparable quality to those securities rated below investment grade. The Advisor does not intend to purchase Senior Loans that are in default. However, the Fund may hold a Senior Loan that has defaulted subsequent to its purchase by the Fund. The Fund may also invest up to 20% of its net assets in (1) non-Senior Loan debt securities, which may be fixed-rate or floating-rate income producing securities (including, without limitation, U.S. government debt securities and corporate debt securities), (2) warrants and equity securities issued by a borrower or its affiliates and (3) securities of other investment companies. In selecting securities for the Fund, the Advisor seeks to construct a portfolio of loans that it believes is less volatile than the general loan market. In addition, when making investments, the Advisor seeks to maintain appropriate liquidity and price transparency for the Fund. On an on-going basis, the Advisor adds or removes those individual loans that it believes will cause the Fund to outperform or underperform, respectively, either the Primary or Secondary Index. The Fund will include borrowers that the Advisor believes have strong credit metrics, based on its evaluation of cash flows, collateral coverage and management teams. The key considerations of portfolio construction include liquidity, diversification and relative value. |
|||||||||||||||||||
PRINCIPAL RISKS |
|||||||||||||||||||
You could lose money by investing in the Fund. An investment in the Fund is not a deposit of a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other governmental agency. There can be no assurance that the Fund's investment objectives will be achieved. CASH TRANSACTIONS RISK. The Fund currently intends to effect a significant portion of creations and redemptions for cash, rather than in-kind securities. As a result, an investment in the Fund may be less tax-efficient than an investment in an exchange-traded fund that effects its creations and redemption for in-kind securities. Because the Fund principally effects redemptions for cash, it may be required to sell portfolio securities in order to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds. A sale of shares may result in capital gains or losses, and may also result in higher brokerage costs. CREDIT RISK. Credit risk is the risk that an issuer of a security will be unable or unwilling to make dividend, interest and/or principal payments when due and the related risk that the value of a security may decline because of concerns about the issuer's ability to make such payments. Credit risk may be heightened for the fund because it may invest a substantial portion of its net assets in high yield or "junk" debt; such securities, while generally offering higher yields than investment-grade debt with similar maturities, involve greater risks, including the possibility of dividend or interest deferral, default or bankruptcy, and are regarded as predominantly speculative with respect to the issuer's capacity to pay dividends or interest and repay principal. Credit risk is heightened for loans in which the Fund invests because companies that issue such loans tend to be highly leveraged and thus are more susceptible to the risks of interest deferral, default and/or bankruptcy. CURRENCY RISK. Because the Fund's net asset value is determined on the basis of U.S. dollars and the Fund invests in foreign securities, you may lose money if the local currency of a foreign market depreciates against the U.S. dollar, even if the local currency value of the Fund's holdings goes up. The Fund intends to hedge its non-U.S. dollar holdings. HIGH YIELD SECURITIES RISK. High yield securities, or "junk" bonds, are subject to greater market fluctuations and risk of loss than securities with higher ratings, and therefore, may be highly speculative. These securities are issued by companies that may have limited operating history, narrowly focused operations, and/or other impediments to the timely payment of periodic interest and principal at maturity. If the economy slows down or dips into recession, the issuers of high yield securities may not have sufficient resources to continue making timely payment of periodic interest and principal at maturity. The market for high yield securities is smaller and less liquid than that for investment grade securities. High yield securities are generally not listed on a national securities exchange but trade in the over-the-counter markets. Due to the smaller, less liquid market for high yield securities, the bid-offer spread on such securities is generally greater than it is for investment grade securities and the purchase or sale of such securities may take longer to complete. INCOME RISK. If interest rates fall, the income from the Fund's portfolio will likely decline if the Fund holds floating rate debt that will adjust lower with falling interest rates. For loans, interest rates typically reset periodically. INTEREST RATE RISK. Interest rate risk is the risk that the value of the debt securities in the Fund will decline because of rising market interest rates. Interest rate risk is generally lower for shorter-term investments and higher for longer-term investments. Duration is a common measure of interest rate risk, which measures a bond's expected life on a present value basis, taking into account the bond's yield, interest payments and final maturity. Duration is a reasonably accurate measure of a bond's price sensitivity to changes in interest rates. The longer the duration of a bond, the greater the bond's price sensitivity is to changes in interest rates. LIQUIDITY RISK. The Fund invests a substantial portion of its assets in lower-quality debt issued by companies that are highly leveraged. Lower-quality debt tends to be less liquid than higher-quality debt. Moreover, smaller debt issues tend to be less liquid than larger debt issues. If the economy experiences a sudden downturn, or if the debt markets for such companies become distressed, the Fund may have particular difficulty selling its assets in sufficient amounts, at reasonable prices and in a sufficiently timely manner to raise the cash necessary to meet any potentially heavy redemption requests by Fund shareholders. MANAGEMENT RISK. The Fund is subject to management risk because it is an actively managed portfolio. In managing the Fund's investment portfolio, the Advisor will apply investment techniques and risk analyses that may not have the desired result. There can be no guarantee that the Fund will meet its investment objectives. MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security owned by the Fund or shares of the Fund in general may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Overall securities values could decline generally or could underperform other investments. NEW FUND RISK. The Fund currently has fewer assets than larger funds, and like other relatively new funds, large inflows and outflows may impact the Fund's market exposure for limited periods of time. This impact may be positive or negative, depending on the direction of market movement during the period affected. NON-DIVERSIFICATION RISK. The Fund is classified as "non-diversified" under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended. As a result, the Fund is only limited as to the percentage of its assets that may be invested in the securities of any one issuer by the diversification requirements imposed by the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. The Fund may invest a relatively high percentage of its assets in a limited number of issuers. As a result, the Fund may be more susceptible to a single adverse economic or regulatory occurrence affecting one or more of these issuers, experience increased volatility and be highly concentrated in certain issuers. NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments; restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities; lack of liquidity; currency exchange rates; excessive taxation; government seizure of assets; different legal or accounting standards; and less government supervision and regulation of exchanges in foreign countries. OTHER DEBT SECURITIES RISK. Secured loans that are not first lien, loans that are unsecured and debt securities are subject to many of the same risks that affect Senior Loans; however they are often unsecured and/or lower in the issuer's capital structure than Senior Loans, and thus may be exposed to greater risk of default and lower recoveries in the event of a default. This risk can be further heightened in the case of below investment grade instruments. Additionally, most fixed-income securities are fixed-rate and thus are generally more susceptible than floating rate loans to price volatility related to changes in prevailing interest rates. PREPAYMENT RISK. Loans are subject to pre-payment risk. The degree to which borrowers prepay loans, whether as a contractual requirement or at their election, may be affected by general business conditions, the financial condition of the borrower and competitive conditions among loan investors, among others. As such, prepayments cannot be predicted with accuracy. Upon a prepayment, either in part or in full, the actual outstanding debt on which the Fund derives interest income will be reduced. The Fund may not be able to reinvest the proceeds received on terms as favorable as the prepaid loan. SENIOR LOANS RISK. An investment in Senior Loans subjects the Fund to credit risk, which is heightened for Senior Loans in which the Fund invests because companies that issue such loans tend to be highly leveraged and thus are more susceptible to the risks of interest deferral, default and/or bankruptcy. Senior Loans are usually rated below investment grade but may also be unrated. An economic downturn would generally lead to a higher non-payment rate, and a Senior Loan may lose significant market value before a default occurs. Moreover, any specific collateral used to secure a Senior Loan may decline in value or become illiquid, which would adversely affect the loan's value. Unlike the securities markets, there is no central clearinghouse for Senior Loan trades, and the Senior Loan market has not established enforceable settlement standards or remedies for failure to settle. Therefore, portfolio transactions in Senior Loans may have uncertain settlement time periods. Senior Loans are subject to a number of risks described elsewhere in this prospectus, including liquidity risk and the risk of investing in below investment grade fixed-income instruments. |
|||||||||||||||||||
PERFORMANCE |
|||||||||||||||||||
The Fund has not yet commenced operations and, therefore, does not have a performance history. Once available, the Fund's performance information will be available on the Fund's website at www.ftportfolios.com. |
Label | Element | Value | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Risk/Return: | rr_RiskReturnAbstract | |||||
Document Type | dei_DocumentType | 485BPOS | ||||
Document Period End Date | dei_DocumentPeriodEndDate | Apr. 19, 2013 | ||||
Registrant Name | dei_EntityRegistrantName | First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund IV | ||||
Central Index Key | dei_EntityCentralIndexKey | 0001517936 | ||||
Amendment Flag | dei_AmendmentFlag | false | ||||
Document Creation Date | dei_DocumentCreationDate | Apr. 19, 2013 | ||||
Document Effective Date | dei_DocumentEffectiveDate | Apr. 19, 2013 | ||||
Prospectus Date | rr_ProspectusDate | Apr. 01, 2013 | ||||
First Trust Senior Loan Fund
|
||||||
Risk/Return: | rr_RiskReturnAbstract | |||||
Risk/Return [Heading] | rr_RiskReturnHeading | SUMMARY INFORMATION |
||||
Objective [Heading] | rr_ObjectiveHeading | INVESTMENT OBJECTIVES |
||||
Objective, Primary [Text Block] | rr_ObjectivePrimaryTextBlock | The Fund's primary investment objective is to provide high current income. The Fund's secondary investment objective is the preservation of capital. |
||||
Expense [Heading] | rr_ExpenseHeading | FEES AND EXPENSES OF THE FUND |
||||
Expense Narrative [Text Block] | rr_ExpenseNarrativeTextBlock | The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy and hold shares of the Fund. Investors purchasing and selling shares may be subject to costs (including customary brokerage commissions) charged by their broker. |
||||
Shareholder Fees Caption [Text] | rr_ShareholderFeesCaption | SHAREHOLDER FEES (FEES PAID DIRECTLY FROM YOUR INVESTMENT) |
||||
Operating Expenses Caption [Text] | rr_OperatingExpensesCaption | ANNUAL FUND OPERATING EXPENSES (Expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) |
||||
Portfolio Turnover [Heading] | rr_PortfolioTurnoverHeading | PORTFOLIO TURNOVER |
||||
Portfolio Turnover [Text Block] | rr_PortfolioTurnoverTextBlock | The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or "turns over" its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund's performance. |
||||
Expense Example [Heading] | rr_ExpenseExampleHeading | EXAMPLE |
||||
Expense Example Narrative [Text Block] | rr_ExpenseExampleNarrativeTextBlock | The example below is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. This example does not take into account customary brokerage commissions that you pay when purchasing or selling shares of the Fund in the secondary market. The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund's operating expenses remain at current levels until _____, 20__ and thereafter at ___% to represent the imposition of the 12b-1 fee of 0.25% per annum of the Fund's average daily net assets(1). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: |
||||
Strategy [Heading] | rr_StrategyHeading | PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES |
||||
Strategy Narrative [Text Block] | rr_StrategyNarrativeTextBlock | Under normal market conditions, the Fund seeks to outperform each of the Primary Index and Secondary Index (as defined below) by investing at least 80% of its net assets (plus the amount of any borrowing for investment purposes) in first lien senior floating rate bank loans ("Senior Loans"). The S&P/LSTA U.S. Leveraged Loan 100 Index (the "Primary Index") is a market value-weighted index designed to measure the performance of the largest segment of the U.S. syndicated leveraged loan market. The Primary Index consists of 100 loan facilities drawn from a larger benchmark, the S&P/LSTA Leveraged Loan Index. The Markit iBoxx USD Leveraged Loan Index (the "Secondary Index") selects the 100 most liquid Senior Loans in the market. The Fund does not seek to track either the Primary or Secondary Index, but rather seeks to outperform each of the indices. It is anticipated that the Fund, in accordance with its principal investment strategy, will invest approximately 50% to 75% of its net assets in Senior Loans that are eligible for inclusion in and meet the liquidity thresholds of the Primary and/or the Secondary Indices, at the time of investment. During the initial invest-up period, the Fund may depart from its principal investment strategies and invest a larger amount or all of its assets in cash equivalents or it may hold cash. A Senior Loan is an advance or commitment of funds made by one or more banks or similar financial institutions to one or more corporations, partnerships or other business entities and typically pays interest at a floating or adjusting rate that is determined periodically at a designated premium above a base lending rate, most commonly the London-Interbank Offered Rate ("LIBOR"). A Senior Loan is considered senior to all other unsecured claims against the borrower, senior to or pari passu with all other secured claims, meaning that in the event of a bankruptcy the Senior Loan, together with other first lien claims, is entitled to be the first to be repaid out of proceeds of the assets securing the loans, before other existing unsecured claims or interests receive repayment. However, in bankruptcy proceedings, there may be other claims, such as taxes or additional advances which take precedence. The Fund invests in Senior Loans that are made predominantly to businesses operating in North America, but may also invest in Senior Loans made to businesses operating outside of North America. The Fund may invest in Senior Loans directly, either from the borrower as part of a primary issuance or in the secondary market through assignments of portions of Senior Loans from third parties, or participations in Senior Loans, which are contractual relationships with an existing lender in a loan facility whereby the Fund purchases the right to receive principal and interest payments on a loan but the existing lender remains the record holder of the loan. The Senior Loans included in the Fund's portfolio often maintain an average interest rate duration of less than 90 days. When identifying prospective investment opportunities in Senior Loans, First Trust Advisors L.P. (the "Advisor") currently intends to invest primarily in Senior Loans that are below investment grade quality, at the time of investment, and relies on fundamental credit analysis in an effort to attempt to minimize the loss of the Fund's capital and to select assets that provide attractive relative value. Securities rated below investment grade, commonly referred to as "junk" or "high yield" securities, include securities that are rated Ba1/BB+/BB+ or below by Moody's Investors Service, Inc. ("Moody's"), Fitch Inc., or Standard & Poor's, Inc. ("S&P"), respectively. The Fund may also invest in unrated securities deemed by the Advisor to be of comparable quality to those securities rated below investment grade. The Advisor does not intend to purchase Senior Loans that are in default. However, the Fund may hold a Senior Loan that has defaulted subsequent to its purchase by the Fund. The Fund may also invest up to 20% of its net assets in (1) non-Senior Loan debt securities, which may be fixed-rate or floating-rate income producing securities (including, without limitation, U.S. government debt securities and corporate debt securities), (2) warrants and equity securities issued by a borrower or its affiliates and (3) securities of other investment companies. In selecting securities for the Fund, the Advisor seeks to construct a portfolio of loans that it believes is less volatile than the general loan market. In addition, when making investments, the Advisor seeks to maintain appropriate liquidity and price transparency for the Fund. On an on-going basis, the Advisor adds or removes those individual loans that it believes will cause the Fund to outperform or underperform, respectively, either the Primary or Secondary Index. The Fund will include borrowers that the Advisor believes have strong credit metrics, based on its evaluation of cash flows, collateral coverage and management teams. The key considerations of portfolio construction include liquidity, diversification and relative value. |
||||
Risk [Heading] | rr_RiskHeading | PRINCIPAL RISKS |
||||
Risk Narrative [Text Block] | rr_RiskNarrativeTextBlock | You could lose money by investing in the Fund. An investment in the Fund is not a deposit of a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other governmental agency. There can be no assurance that the Fund's investment objectives will be achieved. CASH TRANSACTIONS RISK. The Fund currently intends to effect a significant portion of creations and redemptions for cash, rather than in-kind securities. As a result, an investment in the Fund may be less tax-efficient than an investment in an exchange-traded fund that effects its creations and redemption for in-kind securities. Because the Fund principally effects redemptions for cash, it may be required to sell portfolio securities in order to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds. A sale of shares may result in capital gains or losses, and may also result in higher brokerage costs. CREDIT RISK. Credit risk is the risk that an issuer of a security will be unable or unwilling to make dividend, interest and/or principal payments when due and the related risk that the value of a security may decline because of concerns about the issuer's ability to make such payments. Credit risk may be heightened for the fund because it may invest a substantial portion of its net assets in high yield or "junk" debt; such securities, while generally offering higher yields than investment-grade debt with similar maturities, involve greater risks, including the possibility of dividend or interest deferral, default or bankruptcy, and are regarded as predominantly speculative with respect to the issuer's capacity to pay dividends or interest and repay principal. Credit risk is heightened for loans in which the Fund invests because companies that issue such loans tend to be highly leveraged and thus are more susceptible to the risks of interest deferral, default and/or bankruptcy. CURRENCY RISK. Because the Fund's net asset value is determined on the basis of U.S. dollars and the Fund invests in foreign securities, you may lose money if the local currency of a foreign market depreciates against the U.S. dollar, even if the local currency value of the Fund's holdings goes up. The Fund intends to hedge its non-U.S. dollar holdings. HIGH YIELD SECURITIES RISK. High yield securities, or "junk" bonds, are subject to greater market fluctuations and risk of loss than securities with higher ratings, and therefore, may be highly speculative. These securities are issued by companies that may have limited operating history, narrowly focused operations, and/or other impediments to the timely payment of periodic interest and principal at maturity. If the economy slows down or dips into recession, the issuers of high yield securities may not have sufficient resources to continue making timely payment of periodic interest and principal at maturity. The market for high yield securities is smaller and less liquid than that for investment grade securities. High yield securities are generally not listed on a national securities exchange but trade in the over-the-counter markets. Due to the smaller, less liquid market for high yield securities, the bid-offer spread on such securities is generally greater than it is for investment grade securities and the purchase or sale of such securities may take longer to complete. INCOME RISK. If interest rates fall, the income from the Fund's portfolio will likely decline if the Fund holds floating rate debt that will adjust lower with falling interest rates. For loans, interest rates typically reset periodically. INTEREST RATE RISK. Interest rate risk is the risk that the value of the debt securities in the Fund will decline because of rising market interest rates. Interest rate risk is generally lower for shorter-term investments and higher for longer-term investments. Duration is a common measure of interest rate risk, which measures a bond's expected life on a present value basis, taking into account the bond's yield, interest payments and final maturity. Duration is a reasonably accurate measure of a bond's price sensitivity to changes in interest rates. The longer the duration of a bond, the greater the bond's price sensitivity is to changes in interest rates. LIQUIDITY RISK. The Fund invests a substantial portion of its assets in lower-quality debt issued by companies that are highly leveraged. Lower-quality debt tends to be less liquid than higher-quality debt. Moreover, smaller debt issues tend to be less liquid than larger debt issues. If the economy experiences a sudden downturn, or if the debt markets for such companies become distressed, the Fund may have particular difficulty selling its assets in sufficient amounts, at reasonable prices and in a sufficiently timely manner to raise the cash necessary to meet any potentially heavy redemption requests by Fund shareholders. MANAGEMENT RISK. The Fund is subject to management risk because it is an actively managed portfolio. In managing the Fund's investment portfolio, the Advisor will apply investment techniques and risk analyses that may not have the desired result. There can be no guarantee that the Fund will meet its investment objectives. MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security owned by the Fund or shares of the Fund in general may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Overall securities values could decline generally or could underperform other investments. NEW FUND RISK. The Fund currently has fewer assets than larger funds, and like other relatively new funds, large inflows and outflows may impact the Fund's market exposure for limited periods of time. This impact may be positive or negative, depending on the direction of market movement during the period affected. NON-DIVERSIFICATION RISK. The Fund is classified as "non-diversified" under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended. As a result, the Fund is only limited as to the percentage of its assets that may be invested in the securities of any one issuer by the diversification requirements imposed by the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. The Fund may invest a relatively high percentage of its assets in a limited number of issuers. As a result, the Fund may be more susceptible to a single adverse economic or regulatory occurrence affecting one or more of these issuers, experience increased volatility and be highly concentrated in certain issuers. NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. Non-U.S. securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments; restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities; lack of liquidity; currency exchange rates; excessive taxation; government seizure of assets; different legal or accounting standards; and less government supervision and regulation of exchanges in foreign countries. OTHER DEBT SECURITIES RISK. Secured loans that are not first lien, loans that are unsecured and debt securities are subject to many of the same risks that affect Senior Loans; however they are often unsecured and/or lower in the issuer's capital structure than Senior Loans, and thus may be exposed to greater risk of default and lower recoveries in the event of a default. This risk can be further heightened in the case of below investment grade instruments. Additionally, most fixed-income securities are fixed-rate and thus are generally more susceptible than floating rate loans to price volatility related to changes in prevailing interest rates. PREPAYMENT RISK. Loans are subject to pre-payment risk. The degree to which borrowers prepay loans, whether as a contractual requirement or at their election, may be affected by general business conditions, the financial condition of the borrower and competitive conditions among loan investors, among others. As such, prepayments cannot be predicted with accuracy. Upon a prepayment, either in part or in full, the actual outstanding debt on which the Fund derives interest income will be reduced. The Fund may not be able to reinvest the proceeds received on terms as favorable as the prepaid loan. SENIOR LOANS RISK. An investment in Senior Loans subjects the Fund to credit risk, which is heightened for Senior Loans in which the Fund invests because companies that issue such loans tend to be highly leveraged and thus are more susceptible to the risks of interest deferral, default and/or bankruptcy. Senior Loans are usually rated below investment grade but may also be unrated. An economic downturn would generally lead to a higher non-payment rate, and a Senior Loan may lose significant market value before a default occurs. Moreover, any specific collateral used to secure a Senior Loan may decline in value or become illiquid, which would adversely affect the loan's value. Unlike the securities markets, there is no central clearinghouse for Senior Loan trades, and the Senior Loan market has not established enforceable settlement standards or remedies for failure to settle. Therefore, portfolio transactions in Senior Loans may have uncertain settlement time periods. Senior Loans are subject to a number of risks described elsewhere in this prospectus, including liquidity risk and the risk of investing in below investment grade fixed-income instruments. |
||||
Bar Chart and Performance Table [Heading] | rr_BarChartAndPerformanceTableHeading | PERFORMANCE |
||||
Performance Narrative [Text Block] | rr_PerformanceNarrativeTextBlock | The Fund has not yet commenced operations and, therefore, does not have a performance history. Once available, the Fund's performance information will be available on the Fund's website at www.ftportfolios.com. |
||||
First Trust Senior Loan Fund | First Trust Senior Loan Fund
|
||||||
Risk/Return: | rr_RiskReturnAbstract | |||||
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price) | rr_MaximumSalesChargeImposedOnPurchasesOverOfferingPrice | none | ||||
Management Fees | rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets | none | ||||
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees | rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets | none | [1] | |||
Other Expenses | rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets | none | [2] | |||
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses | rr_ExpensesOverAssets | none | ||||
Expense Example, No Redemption, 1 Year | rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear01 | none | ||||
3 Years | rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear03 | none | ||||
|