BUFF vs PBFR: Grades, Fees and Holdings Compared

Innovator Laddered Allocation Power Buffer ETF

BUFFBCboe

PGIM Laddered S&P 500 Buffer 20 ETF

PBFRBCboe

Overlap

0.0%by weight

Expense ratio

PBFR −0.39pt a year

BUFF0.89%PBFR0.50%

Avg volume · 30D

BUFF 2.1×the volume

BUFF101KPBFR48.7K

BUFF vs PBFR Performance

Oct 31, 2025 – Oct 30, 2026

+9.5%BUFF+8.4%PBFR

Expense ratio: BUFF 0.89%; PBFR 0.50%, better
Fund size: BUFF $1.11B; PBFR $244M
1Y total return: BUFF +9.5%, better; PBFR +8.4%
Yield (12M): BUFF 0.00%; PBFR 0.01%, better
Holdings: BUFF 13; PBFR 14
Avg volume (30D): BUFF 101K sh, better; PBFR 48.7K sh
NAV per share: BUFF $53.76; PBFR $31.47
52W range

ETF.net Grade

Pillar letters and Scores for BUFF, PBFR, with each pillar’s weight
Pillar	BUFF	PBFR
Cost30% weight	C47	A85Higher
Mission25% weight	Not scored	Not scored
Risk15% weight	B63	B69Higher
Tradability15% weight	B62Higher	C41
Holdings10% weight	A71	A71
Durability5% weight	A77Higher	C53

Rank among S&P 500 Laddered Buffer funds

How we build Categories ›

Same Category. BUFF and PBFR are both graded against the same 18 S&P 500 Laddered Buffer funds, so their Grades compare head to head.

S&P 500 Laddered Buffer⁠

Category · 18 funds

See all 18 ›

PBFR ranks 2nd and BUFF 5th of 18 funds in the S&P 500 Laddered Buffer Category.

Rank 1BBUFPPGIM Laddered S&P 500 Buffer 12 ETFScore 69
Rank 2BPBFRPGIM Laddered S&P 500 Buffer 20 ETFScore 68
Rank 3BALDBAptus Laddered Deep Buffer ETFScore 65
Rank 4BIVVMiShares Large Cap Moderate Quarterly Laddered ETFScore 64
Rank 5BBUFFInnovator Laddered Allocation Power Buffer ETFScore 58
Rank 6BIVVBiShares Large Cap Deep Quarterly Laddered ETFScore 55

Our read on each fund

ETF.net Research

BUFFBInnovator Laddered Allocation Power Buffer ETF

PBFRBPGIM Laddered S&P 500 Buffer 20 ETF

In short

BUFF Buffer ETFs usually make you pick a start month. BUFF skips the choice: equal slices of 12 Innovator Power Buffer ETFs, one resetting every month, each buffering the first 15% of a 12-month SPY drop in exchange for a capped upside.

PBFR Most buffer ETFs make you pick a start month. PBFR skips that: one ticker holding twelve monthly vintages of PGIM's 20% S&P 500 buffer funds, so caps and buffers are staggered across the calendar.

Stated mandate

BUFF The fund seeks exposure to the FTSE Laddered Power Buffer Strategy Index, which equally allocates among 12 U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETFs. Those underlying ETFs seek U.S. equity upside subject to caps while buffering the first 15% of losses.

PBFR The Fund seeks capital appreciation through U.S. large-cap equity exposure obtained through a laddered portfolio of twelve PGIM S&P 500 Buffer 20 ETFs, each intended to limit downside risk.

Why people hold it

BUFF One ticket, twelve vintages. Each underlying Power Buffer ETF resets in a different month, so your entry date matters less than with a single-vintage buffer fund.innovatoretfs.com
Each sleeve seeks SPY's return up to a cap while absorbing the first 15% of an SPY decline over that sleeve's outcome period, before fees and expenses.innovatoretfs.com
Built to sit still: the index rebalances semi-annually and Innovator states the fund can be held indefinitely, with no outcome period for you to roll.innovatoretfs.com
Listed in 2016, running this laddered strategy since its August 2020 conversion, and now a billion-dollar-plus fund sitting in the upper half of its peer group.innovatoretfs.com

PBFR At 0.50%, it prices below the typical 20%-buffer fund in its group, and ranks among the stronger implementations in that group.
One ticker does the ladder work: twelve underlying PGIM Buffer 20 ETFs, rebalanced back to equal weight (8 1/3% each) quarterly as caps reset.pgim.com
Each underlying fund aims to absorb the first 20% of SPY's price decline over a one-year outcome period, in exchange for an upside cap.pgim.com
Launched in 2024 and stocked entirely with PGIM's own monthly Buffer 20 funds, so one manager runs the whole chain.pgim.com

Worth knowing

BUFF At 0.89% it sits near the category median, but some laddered rivals run cheaper: ALDB at 0.30%, PBFR at 0.50% (and PBFR tracks the same declared index).
Caps cut both ways. Laddering smooths the caps across twelve vintages, and in a roaring market the capped sleeves leave upside on the table.innovatoretfs.com
Not an income vehicle: it has not been paying regular distributions, so returns have to come from price.

PBFR You hold a blend, not one vintage, so no single stated buffer or cap applies to your position at any given moment.pgim.com
The 20% buffer is measured before fees and expenses and covers only the first 20% of SPY's drop; deeper declines come through.pgim.com
A fund of funds in a niche corner: the underlying ETFs' fees flow through pro rata, and it trades less actively than the category's biggest names.pgim.com

Full BUFF profile⁠

Full PBFR profile⁠

BUFF vs PBFR Holdings

How BUFF and PBFR differ

Overlap by weight

0.0%

Shared holdings make up 0.0% of BUFF and 0.0% of PBFR.

Level by level

Asset classEquity, Alternatives0.0%
Holdings0 in both0.0%
Countryby domicile99.5%
Sector11 Sectors100%

Sector

Sector weights in BUFF and PBFR, widest gap first
Sector	More in BUFFMore in PBFR	BUFF	PBFR
Financials	Same weight	11.3%	11.3%
Industrials	Same weight	7.6%	7.6%
Technology	Same weight	40.1%	40.1%
Communication	Same weight	9.9%	9.9%
Health Care	Same weight	9.4%	9.4%
Consumer Discretionary	Same weight	8.7%	8.7%
Consumer Staples	Same weight	4.4%	4.4%
Energy	Same weight	3.4%	3.4%
Utilities	Same weight	1.9%	1.9%
Real Estate	Same weight	1.7%	1.7%
Materials	Same weight	1.6%	1.6%

Country, concentration and asset class

Country by domicile

Country weights in BUFF and PBFR, widest gap first
Country	More in BUFFMore in PBFR	BUFF	PBFR
United States	PBFR +0.5 points	99.5%	100.0%
Switzerland	BUFF +0.3 points	0.3%	0.0%
China	BUFF +0.1 points	0.1%	0.0%
Mexico	BUFF +0.1 points	0.1%	0.0%
Ireland	Same weight	0.0%	0.0%
United Kingdom	Same weight	0.0%	0.0%

Concentration

Weight in the 10 largest Holdings

BUFF83.3%
PBFR83.3%

Securities held

BUFF13
PBFR13

Asset class

BUFF: Equity
PBFR: Alternatives

Holdings

Only in BUFF13
In both0
Only in PBFR13

Only in BUFF

13 securities, 100% of BUFF by weight

Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - April8.37%
Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - January8.33%
Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - September8.33%
Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - February8.33%
Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - May8.32%
Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - October8.32%
Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - March8.32%
Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - August8.32%
Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - December8.31%
Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - November8.30%
Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - June8.30%
Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - July8.30%
Us Bank Mmda - Usbgfs 9 09/01/20370.14%

Only in PBFR

13 securities, 100% of PBFR by weight

Pgim S&P 500 Buffer 20 Etf - July8.35%
Pgim S&P 500 Buffer 20 Etf - November8.34%
Pgim S&P 500 Buffer 20 Etf - January8.33%
Pgim S&P 500 Buffer 20 Etf - February8.33%
Pgim S&P 500 Buffer 20 Etf - September8.33%
Pgim S&P 500 Buffer 20 Etf - December8.33%
Pgim S&P 500 Buffer 20 Etf - October8.33%
Pgim S&P 500 Buffer 20 Etf - August8.33%
Pgim S&P 500 Buffer 20 Etf - June8.33%
Pgim S&P 500 Buffer 20 Etf - April8.33%
Pgim S&P 500 Buffer 20 Etf - May8.32%
Pgim S&P 500 Buffer 20 Etf - March8.32%
Net Current Assets0.00%

Weight gaps

BUFF and PBFR share no securities.

All 13 BUFF holdings⁠All PBFR holdings⁠

How we measure overlap

Each holding counts at its smaller weight in the two funds, summed over the full Holdings. Sector, country and asset class use the same rule on each fund’s split. Cash, FX and derivative lines stay out of the counts. Two bond funds get no overlap figure.

BUFF vs PBFR Cost

Overpaying BUFF vs PBFR

$6,893

On $10,000 over 30 years. 7% growth a year before fees, expense ratio only.

BUFF 0.89%
$16,872
PBFR 0.50%
$9,979

Amount$10,000

Years30 years

Cost over time

BUFF 0.89%
PBFR 0.50%
Overpaying

Year by year

Year	BUFF	PBFR	Overpaying
10	$1,576	$900	$676
20	$5,953	$3,460	$2,493
30	$16,872	$9,979	$6,893

Expense ratio

0.89%BUFF
0.50%PBFR, cheaper

PBFR0.50%BUFF0.89%

0.30%1.21%

Middle half of S&P 500 Laddered Buffer funds
Median 0.89%

PBFR 2nd cheapest of 18 funds

BUFF 9th cheapest of 18 funds

BUFF vs PBFR Dividends

Last 12 months to Oct 30, 2026

Yield (12M): BUFF 0.00%; PBFR 0.01%, better
Payout (12M): BUFF None; PBFR $0.0025
Last payment: BUFF No data; PBFR $0.0025
Ex-dividend: BUFF No data; PBFR Dec 30, 2025
Paid on: BUFF No data; PBFR Jan 2, 2026
Frequency: BUFF No data; PBFR Irregular

Distribution history

Per share, 2017 to 2026, same scale for both

BUFF15 paymentsAll BUFF payments⁠

PBFRIrregular · 2 paymentsAll PBFR payments⁠

BUFF vs PBFR Risk

Fall from peak · 5 years

This chart needs five years of history for both funds.

Risk facts

VolatilityStd dev, 3 years: BUFF 5.8%PBFR 4.2%since Jul 2024
Return per unit of riskSharpe ratio, 3 years: BUFF 1.45PBFR 1.22since Jul 2024
Worst fallMax drawdown, 5 years: BUFF −10.2%PBFR −8.5%since Jun 2024
Market sensitivityBeta, 5 years: BUFF 0.47PBFR 0.34; Market = 1

Popular comparisons

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