First Trust Alternative Opportunities I (VFLEX) Analysis | Morningstar

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Will VFLEX outperform in the future?

Get our overall rating based on a fundamental assessment of the pillars below.

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Process Pillar
The Process Pillar is our assessment of how sensible, clearly defined, and repeatable VFLEX’s performance objective and investment process is for both security selection and portfolio construction.
People Pillar
The People Pillar is our evaluation of the VFLEX management team’s experience and ability. We find that high-quality management teams deliver superior performance relative to their benchmarks and/or peers.
Parent Pillar
The Parent Pillar is our rating of VFLEX’s parent organization’s priorities and whether they’re in line with investors’ interests.

Delivering its objective.

Senior Principal Jason Kephart

Jason Kephart

Senior Principal

Summary

First Trust Alternative Opportunities is led by an experienced team that has delivered on its mandate, but outperformance over a public market equivalent benchmark is a high bar over a full market cycle. In August 2026, Morningstar downgraded First Trust’s Parent rating to Below Average from Average, following concerns over its sales-first culture.

by Jason Kephart

Rated on Oct 16, 2026 Published on Oct 16, 2026

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