First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX Fund (FSZ) IV/HV History

Comparing implied volatility to historical (realized) volatility reveals whether options are priced rich or cheap relative to actual price movement. Persistent gaps can signal trading opportunities.

First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX Fund (FSZ) operates in the Financial Services sector, specifically the Asset Management - Global industry, with a market capitalization near $86.5M, listed on NASDAQ, carrying a beta of 0.85 to the broader market. The First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX Fund is an exchange-traded fund structured to mirror the price and income performance of the Nasdaq AlphaDEX Switzerland Index. public since 2012-02-16.

Snapshot as of Jul 14, 2026.

Spot Price

$82.94

ATM IV

29.2%

HV 20-Day

15.4%

HV 60-Day

22.5%

IV Rank

71.6%

IV Percentile

97.6%

As of Jul 14, 2026, First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX Fund (FSZ) ATM implied volatility is 29.2%. 20-day realized volatility is 15.4%, producing an IV-HV spread of +13.8 vol points. Options are pricing in more volatility than the stock has recently delivered, the volatility risk premium. IV rank is 71.6%.

How FSZ iv/hv history Data Feeds Strategy Selection

Strategy selection on First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX Fund options does not derive from any single metric in isolation. The iv/hv history view above sits inside a broader read: ATM IV currently sits at 29.2% and dealer gamma exposure is negative, so dealer hedging amplifies directional moves. Combine the iv/hv history data here with the volatility-skew surface, dealer-gamma exposure, max-pain level, and upcoming-events calendar to build a positioning thesis. Risk-defined structures (credit spreads, debit spreads, iron condors) are usually safer than naked positions while the regime is uncertain; the data on this page anchors the inputs but does not by itself constitute a trade thesis.

How to read the FSZ IV vs HV chart

The dual-line chart above tracks ATM implied volatility (forward-looking, what the chain is pricing) against 20-day realized historical volatility (backward-looking, what actually happened). ATM IV currently prints at 29.2%, 71.6% IV rank, against 15.4% realized over the trailing 20 trading days. Implied is pricing above realized by 13.8 vol points, the typical variance-risk-premium positive state in which premium sellers earn the gap. Persistent IV-above-HV is the variance-risk-premium-positive state typical of equity markets; persistent IV-below-HV is rare and usually marks underpriced vol that often expands.

FSZ IV/HV regimes and trade selection

FSZ sits in the top quartile of its 1-year IV range. High-IV-rank regimes statistically favor premium-selling - the elevated implied is more likely to mean-revert than to expand further. Iron condors, covered calls, and cash-secured puts collect more premium per unit of notional risk; size wings to the implied move and exit on first sign of HV catching up.

Using FSZ vol history alongside the term structure

The IV/HV gap on this page captures the level of premium; the term-structure slope on the volatility page captures its shape across expirations. Term structure is roughly flat at 0.003, no strong near vs far premium being priced. Pair the rank read with the slope read with the event calendar to choose the right tenor for the structure.

FSZ IV/HV signal in volatility-cycle context

Equity-vol cycles tend to compress and expand on multi-month timeframes: a typical sequence runs low-IV-rank consolidation (months of flat tape, decaying premium) into a vol-expansion catalyst (earnings miss, macro shock, regime change) into elevated-IV-rank stress (premiums fat, dispersion high) back to mean-reverting compression. FSZ's current 71.6% IV rank places the ticker in the expansion or stress phase of that cycle. Premium-selling carries the typical structural tailwind here, but the mean-reverting compression that completes the cycle has historically arrived sharply rather than gradually. The ratio of HV-20 (15.4%) to HV-60 (22.5%) gives a second cycle indicator: when 20-day exceeds 60-day, recent realization is running hotter than the trailing-quarter average - typically a sign that recent days have already started expanding vol regardless of where IV rank prints. Use the time series above to spot inflection points: meaningful IV/HV gap closures and openings tend to precede regime shifts by a few sessions.

Learn how implied vs realized volatility is reported and how to read the data →

Daily ATM implied volatility and 20-day realized (historical) volatility for FSZ over the last ~22 trading days. The IV-HV gap measures the variance risk premium - when IV trades persistently above realized HV, premium-sellers earn the spread; when IV dips below HV, vol is structurally underpriced.

Most recent 15 trading days (descending). Older history appears in the chart above.

Frequently asked FSZ iv/hv history questions

Is FSZ options pricing rich or cheap right now?

As of Jul 14, 2026, First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX Fund (FSZ) ATM IV is 29.2% against 20-day realized volatility of 15.4%. IV rank is 71.6%. FSZ options are pricing in more volatility than the stock has recently realized: a positive variance risk premium worth 13.8 vol points.

What is the FSZ variance risk premium?

The variance risk premium is the persistent gap between implied and subsequently realized volatility. In equity markets it averages positive because option sellers demand compensation for bearing variance shocks. FSZ is currently priced consistently with this premium, which is one input to whether short-vol or long-vol structures carry their typical edge.

What does FSZ IV rank mean for strategy selection?

IV rank normalizes the current ATM IV to its 1-year range: 0% is the low, 100% is the high. FSZ's current rank of 71.6% signals where current pricing sits in its own 1-year history. High-rank regimes typically favor premium-selling structures (credit spreads, condors, covered calls); low-rank regimes typically favor premium-buying or long-volatility structures.