Tactical funds ranged from a 32.2% gain to a 12.5% loss
In the year through Monday, September 28, tactical funds with a full year ranged from a 32.2% gain to a 12.5% loss, and only 9 of those 34 finished within 2 percentage points of iShares' 60/40 fund.
Key takeaways
Tactical allocation funds with a full year finished the year through Monday, September 28, anywhere from a 32.2% gain to a 12.5% loss. Only 9 of those 34, out of 46 in the category, came within 2 percentage points of AOR, iShares' fund built as a set 60/40 mix of stocks and bonds.
AHLT returned 32.2%; BITC lost 12.5%
The middle of the group still looked like the balanced mix. It returned 10.8%, a little ahead of AOR and 6.1 percentage points behind SPY, a fund that holds the S&P 500. These figures are what a holder earned, with payouts reinvested.
Eighteen of the 34 beat the balanced fund over the year. The middle is the center of the list, not a description of the funds.
Tactical allocation funds are built to move. They can shift among stocks, bonds, cash and other assets as conditions change, instead of holding one mix all year. Over this stretch, stocks rose and bonds lost money. AGG, a fund of the broad US bond market, lost 1.6%.
In both windows the middle finished near the balanced fund, behind stocks and clear of the bond loss.
Fund fees are already taken out of these returns. The middle of the fee list is 0.91% a year, against 0.2% for AOR and 0.09% for SPY.
The bets were not the same
LGH, the largest fund, has $601 million. It generally holds large US stocks and can cut that exposure down to cash. As of Sunday, September 27, about a fifth of it sat in SPXL, Direxion's fund that seeks three times the daily move of the S&P 500.
Over the past year it returned 10.8%, the same as the middle of the group. Over the three months through Monday it gained 3.6%, ahead of the 2.8% gain in SPY.
MDAA, the second-largest fund, launched in October 2025, so it has no full year alongside the others.
The 32.2% came from AHLT, a trend-following fund in more than 20 global markets that can bet on falling prices as well as rising ones. The 12.5% loss came from BITC, a $14 million fund that switches between bitcoin futures and US Treasuries.
Nine of the 34 funds with a full year finished near the cheaper balanced mix. The other 25 did not.
Frequently asked
Which fund gained 32.2%?
The 32.2% came from AHLT, a trend-following fund in more than 20 global markets that can bet on falling prices as well as rising ones.
Which fund lost 12.5%?
The 12.5% loss came from BITC, a $14 million fund that switches between bitcoin futures and US Treasuries.
How did they compare with a 60/40 fund?
Only 9 of the 34 funds with a full year came within 2 percentage points of AOR, iShares' set 60/40 mix of stocks and bonds.
What did the middle of the group return?
The middle returned 10.8%, a little ahead of AOR and 6.1 percentage points behind SPY, a fund that holds the S&P 500.
