BUFC vs GMAY

BUFCBAB Conservative Buffer ETF

GMAYCFT Vest U.S. Equity Moderate Buffer ETF - May

In short

BUFC Most buffer funds lock you into a 12-month outcome period. BUFC resets every three months, targeting 15% downside protection against the S&P 500 with roughly 3% of the upside per period. Deep cushion, short leash.

GMAY First Trust runs a buffer fund for every month of the calendar, and GMAY holds the May slot: a 15% cushion on SPY's price return over a one-year outcome period, paid for with a cap on the upside set when the period begins.

Stated mandate

BUFC The Fund is an actively managed equity ETF seeking conservative capital appreciation with potential partial downside protection. It uses options to establish an upside cap and downside protection over rolling three-month periods, targeting 15% downside protection and about 3% upside participation to the S&P 500.

GMAY The Fund seeks returns corresponding to the price return of the State Street® SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust, subject to an upside cap and protection against the first 15% of losses during the stated outcome period.

Why people hold it

• BUFC Uses options to target 15% downside protection against the S&P 500 over rolling three-month periods, so the cushion resets four times a year instead of once.alliancebernstein.com
• At 0.69%, it costs less than Innovator's 0.79% Power Buffer funds (PJUL, PJAN, POCT) and less than the typical fund in its buffer cohort.
• Actively managed rather than pinned to a calendar index series, running since 2023, and among the stronger implementations in its buffer peer group.

• GMAY The deal is spelled out in the fund's own documents: protection against the first 15% of losses on SPY's price return, plus a stated cap, across a defined one-year outcome period.ftportfolios.com
• May is just one rung. GJAN through GDEC run the same 15% structure on a rolling monthly schedule, so start dates can be staggered instead of hostage to one entry point.
• The reference asset is the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust itself. Plain large-cap US equity price return, no custom index or factor tilt to decode.
• One of the easier funds in its buffer peer group to get in and out of, with a mid-sized asset base standing behind it.

Worth knowing

• BUFC The price of that deep cushion: upside participation is targeted near 3% per three-month period, so big rallies mostly pass you by.
• Protection is partial and period-based. Losses past the targeted 15% pass through, and buying mid-period shifts your effective buffer and cap.alliancebernstein.com
• Thinly traded for its size, so spreads and limit orders deserve attention.

• GMAY At 0.85%, it sits above the 0.79% median for its buffer cohort. Downside protection is a purchased feature, and the sticker shows it.
• The cap works both ways: big SPY years get trimmed. And the 15% buffer is measured from the start of the outcome period to its end, not day by day in between.
• Not an income vehicle. The options package is built to shape the payoff, not to pay out along the way.

Full BUFC profile⁠

Full GMAY profile⁠