5 Best Defensive ETFs to Buy Amid Recession Fears

2. First Trust Nasdaq Food & Beverage ETF (NASDAQ:FTXG)

First Trust Nasdaq Food & Beverage ETF (NASDAQ:FTXG) seeks to track the investment results of the Nasdaq US Smart Food & Beverage Index, which consists of the 30 most liquid food and beverage companies from the NASDAQ US Benchmark Index. The securities in the fund’s portfolio are weighted based on volatility, value, and growth prospects. Total net assets of First Trust Nasdaq Food & Beverage ETF (NASDAQ:FTXG) amount to approximately $843 million and the expense ratio came in at 0.60%. 

First Trust Nasdaq Food & Beverage ETF (NASDAQ:FTXG) owns 855,804 shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland Company (NYSE:ADM), worth $75.8 million, representing about 9% of the total holdings. Archer-Daniels-Midland Company (NYSE:ADM) is an American multinational food processing and agricultural commodities corporation. 

On April 27, Baird analyst Ben Kallo raised the price target on Archer-Daniels-Midland Company (NYSE:ADM) to $108 from $73 and maintained an Outperform rating on the shares. The analyst observed that Q1 results were very good and the solid performance will contribute towards achieving its 2025 target of $6.00-$7.00 earnings per share. He said that Archer-Daniels-Midland Company (NYSE:ADM) is a beneficiary of the dislocation across the agriculture supply chain. 

According to Insider Monkey’s Q1 data, 42 hedge funds were long Archer-Daniels-Midland Company (NYSE:ADM), compared to 41 funds in the last quarter. Ric Dillon’s Diamond Hill Capital is the leading shareholder of the company, with 4.75 million shares worth $429.15 million.