QDEF - FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund
For investors seeking a defensive approach to US quality. The Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Northern Trust Quality Dividend Defensive Index (Underlying Index).
As of May 15, 2026: spot at $86.60, ATM IV 16.4%, net GEX $0.
- Sector
- Financial Services
- Industry
- Asset Management
- Market Cap
- $531.4M
- Beta
- 0.78
- 52-Week Range
- 70.35-86.4
- Dividend Yield
- $1.40
- IPO Date
- Dec 19, 2012
- Exchange
- AMEX
What QDEF Looks Like to Options Traders Today
IV rank of 13.5% is subdued relative to the 1-year history, conditions that typically favor premium-buying or long-volatility structures (debit spreads, calendar spreads, long straddles); positive net gamma exposure ($0) means dealers hedge against trend, damping realized volatility and biasing price toward heavy-OI strikes; the 25-delta skew (0.034) prices calls richer than puts, often reflecting upside speculation or squeeze risk.
What This Page Covers
The QDEF overview links into per-metric analysis views: max pain, gamma exposure, volatility skew, expected move, options chain, open interest history, and aggregate Greeks. Microstructure data is available on short interest, short volume, fail-to-deliver, and market structure.
Frequently asked QDEF overview questions
- What is QDEF?
- QDEF is the ticker symbol for FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund, an listed exchange-traded fund. For investors seeking a defensive approach to US quality. The Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Northern Trust Quality Dividend Defensive Index (Underlying Index). Listed on AMEX. QDEF is the ETF ticker shown on this page; ETF traders use the fund for diversified exposure to its underlying basket, for sector and factor rotation, and for hedging or replication strategies via the listed options chain.
- What does the QDEF options snapshot look like today?
- As of May 15, 2026, the QDEF options snapshot shows spot at $86.60, ATM IV 16.4%, IV rank 13.5%, net GEX $0, expected move 4.70%. The full options chain, Greeks by strike and expiration, per-strike open-interest distribution, dealer gamma and delta exposure, and the volatility skew surface are linked from this overview page. Each per-metric route refreshes once per trading session and reflects the most recent close-of-business listed-options state.
- What are QDEF's key statistics?
- FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund (QDEF) carries a market capitalization of $531.4M, 52-week range of 70.35-86.4. Full holdings disclosure, expense ratio, and tracking-error history live on the per-ticker fundamentals page or the sponsor's site; daily NAV and premium/discount-to-NAV are accessible from the same view. These structural inputs frame how the ETF options market prices implied volatility relative to its constituents.
- What sector or industry does QDEF belong to?
- FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund operates in the Financial Services sector, in the Asset Management industry. Sector classification affects how the ticker correlates with sector ETFs, how it reacts to macro factors like rate moves and commodity prices, and how its options pricing compares to sector peers. Compare QDEF's implied volatility and skew against sector benchmarks to gauge whether the options market is pricing single-name or systemic risk relative to the broader peer group.
- How current is the QDEF data on this page?
- The options snapshot above is dated May 15, 2026 and refreshes once per session, with all per-strike Greeks and exposure aggregates recomputed at the daily close. Fund-level fields (sponsor, expense ratio, holdings concentration where available) refresh from the vendor feed nightly. ETF-specific filings (N-CSR, N-PX, N-CEN) update on the SEC EDGAR cadence. FINRA microstructure data refreshes on the source's cadence; for ETFs the off-exchange volume signal is dominated by authorized-participant creation and redemption rather than directional flow.