Behind the Ticker: FMTM & MarketDesk

Why It Matters

FMTM demonstrates how a data‑driven, tax‑efficient ETF can deliver active momentum exposure, giving advisors a scalable tool to capture emerging market themes while mitigating traditional ETF drawbacks.

Key Takeaways

• Market Desk founders leveraged equity research to launch ETF business.
• FMTM uses six‑month momentum algorithm for active, tax‑efficient trading.
• ETF holds 30‑50 equal‑weight U.S. large/mid‑cap stocks monthly.
• Shorter look‑back period captures fresh trends, reduces lag in volatile markets.
• Price‑path quality, not just returns, drives stock selection in FMTM.

Summary

The interview spotlights Brad and Matt, former Goldman Sachs and accounting professionals, who turned their research expertise into Market Desk, a platform serving 200 wealth managers and family offices before launching the FMTM actively managed ETF in March 2025. FMTM leverages a six‑month momentum screen on liquid U.S. equities, selecting 30‑50 names on an equal‑weight basis and rebalancing monthly, which yields 60‑70% turnover and benefits from the tax‑efficient in‑kind creation/redemption structure of an ETF wrapper. The hosts highlight concrete holdings—AI‑related data‑center suppliers and defense contractors—illustrating how the model captures emerging themes, while emphasizing that the algorithm evaluates not just raw returns but the quality of the price path, distinguishing steady climbs from late‑spike rallies. By shortening the traditional 12‑month momentum window, FMTM aims to reduce lag, adapt quickly to market shifts, and offer advisors a turnkey, tax‑aware vehicle that blends quantitative rigor with active management, potentially reshaping how advisors access momentum strategies.

Original Description

Jon Clements, Managing Director and Co-founder of MarketDesk Research, joins Brad Roth on Behind the Ticker to break down FMTM, the MarketDesk Focused U.S. Momentum ETF launched in March 2025, and the decade-plus of quantitative research behind it.

Clements started his career in equity research at Goldman Sachs covering U.S. large-cap financials before moving to JP Morgan and Guggenheim. In 2020, he and his brother Matt co-founded MarketDesk Research, a model portfolio and research platform now serving roughly 200 of the largest wealth managers in the US along with family offices in Switzerland and the Middle East. The ETF business followed in 2022.

This conversation gets into exactly how FMTM works, including the $1B+ market cap and $25M/day liquidity screen, the quality filter that narrows the universe to ~300 names, and the equal-weighted, 30-to-50 security portfolio that rebalances monthly. Clements explains the two design choices that separate it from legacy momentum products and why price is a better signal than most analysts admit.

Tun into to learn how FMTM manages risk entirely through holdings selection rather than allocation overlays, what ~2% overlap with the S&P 500 actually means for a portfolio, and who this fund is — and isn't — built for.

Follow along with the conversation over at https://www.etf.com/sections/podcasts/behind-ticker-fmtm-marketdesk.

You can also listen to this podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or any of your preferred streaming platforms.

To learn more about MarketDesks’s ETFs or sign up for the quarterly letters, go here: https://www.marketdeskindices.com.