American Strength Portfolio, Series 12

Determining which areas of the market provide the best investment opportunities can be a daunting task and sometimes economic climates break with tradition, making investment decisions even more arduous. These situations have historically offered opportunities for patient shareholders to increase their exposure in great companies.

Our goal with the American Strength Portfolio is to invest in undervalued companies with strong market positions that have the following qualities:

• Strong balance sheets;


• Skilled management;


• Highly liquid;


• Ability to generate earnings growth; and


• Record of financial strength and profit growth.

Portfolio Selection Process

This unit investment trust invests in a diversified portfolio of common stocks of companies that exhibit financial strength from three distinct segments of the market. The three market segments are weighted based on the below allocation.

Through our selection process we seek to find the companies that we believe have the best prospects for above-average capital appreciation.

Identify the Universe | The first step in our selection process is to identify each universe from which we will select the stocks for the three market segments. Each universe contains stocks selected specifically for each component of the allocation.

Screen for Financial Strength | The next step in our process is to evaluate companies based on multiple factors. These factors are designed to identify those stocks which exhibit strong fundamental characteristics and to eliminate those that do not meet our investment criteria.

Examine Historical Financial Results | The next step in our process is to look for those companies that have earned a net cash flow return on investment that is above the average of their peers. Historically, companies that have increased their cash flows at a higher rate have rewarded shareholders with superior total returns.

Select Companies with Attractive Valuations | The final step in our process is to select companies based on the fundamental analysis of our team of research analysts. The stocks selected for the portfolio are those that meet our investment objective, trade at attractive valuations and, in our opinion, are likely to exceed market expectations of future cash flows.

Portfolio Objective

This unit investment trust seeks above-average capital appreciation; however, there is no assurance the objective will be met.

Three Markets Segments

Capital Strength | Companies with sizeable cash positions tend to be mature companies that dominate their industries. A company with a significant amount of cash on its balance sheet is attractive for many reasons. Cash enables companies to bypass the credit markets and provides the means to:

• Make strategic cash-financed mergers and acquisitions;


• Begin to pay dividends or increase dividend payments to boost returns;


• Repurchase undervalued shares;


• Reinvest cash to grow their business;


• Fund research and development projects, even in a down market.

Dividend Strength | Due to the fact that corporations are not obligated to share their earnings with stockholders, dividends may be viewed as a sign of a company’s profitability as well as management’s assessment of the future, in our opinion. Additionally, dividends have historically been one of the few constants in the world of investing, helping to buffer volatility in both good and bad markets. When markets decline, dividends have the potential to offset losses, and when markets rise, dividends have the potential to enhance returns.

SMid Capital Strength | SMid refers to both small and mid-size companies. Because smaller companies are often less reliant on the capital markets for credit, they can be more nimble and better able to adjust in periods of economic change than large companies. Additionally, this results in generally better balance sheet integrity than large companies. These companies are more likely to be in an earlier stage of their economic life cycle than mature large-cap companies. In addition, the ability to take advantage of share price discrepancies is likely to be greater with smaller stocks than with more widely followed large-cap stocks.

You should consider the portfolio's investment objectives, risks, and charges and expenses carefully before investing. Contact your financial professional or call First Trust Portfolios, L.P. at 1.800.621.1675 to request a prospectus, which contains this and other information about the portfolio. Read it carefully before you invest.

Risk Considerations
An investment in this unmanaged unit investment trust should be made with an understanding of the risks involved with owning common stocks, such as an economic recession and the possible deterioration of either the financial condition of the issuers of the equity securities or the general condition of the stock market.

Securities of non-U.S. issuers are subject to additional risks, including currency fluctuations, political risks, withholding, the lack of adequate financial information, and exchange control restrictions impacting non-U.S. issuers.

An investment in a portfolio containing small-cap and mid-cap companies is subject to additional risks, as the share prices of small-cap companies and certain mid-cap companies are often more volatile than those of larger companies due to several factors, including limited trading volumes, products, financial resources, management inexperience and less publicly available information.

Large capitalization companies may grow at a slower rate than the overall market.

As the use of Internet technology has become more prevalent in the course of business, the trust has become more susceptible to potential operational risks through breaches in cybersecurity.

The value of the securities held by the trust may be subject to steep declines or increased volatility due to changes in performance or perception of the issuers.

Ongoing armed conflicts between Russia and Ukraine in Europe and among Israel, Hamas and other militant groups in the Middle East, have caused and could continue to cause significant market disruptions and volatility within the markets in Russia, Europe, the Middle East and the United States. The hostilities and sanctions resulting from those hostilities could have a significant impact on certain investments as well as performance.

The ongoing effects of the COVID-19 global pandemic, or the potential impacts of any future public health crisis, may cause significant volatility and uncertainty in global financial markets. While vaccines have been developed, there is no guarantee that vaccines will be effective against future variants of the disease.

This UIT is a buy and hold strategy and investors should consider their ability to hold the trust until maturity. There may be tax consequences unless units are purchased in an IRA or other qualified plan.