DBE vs USO

DBEBInvesco DB Energy Fund

USOBUnited States Oil Fund, LP

In short

DBE Most energy ETFs buy the companies. DBE buys the barrels: a basket of energy futures tracking an Invesco commodity index, running since 2007.

USO The original US crude oil ETF, trading since 2006 and still one of the busiest ways to get WTI exposure without opening a futures account. It holds oil futures near the front of the curve, not barrels in a tank.

Stated mandate

DBE The fund seeks to follow both increases and decreases in the DBIQ Optimum Yield Energy Index Excess Return.

USO USO seeks daily NAV percentage changes that reflect changes in the spot price of light, sweet crude oil delivered to Cushing, Oklahoma, measured by the Benchmark Oil Futures Contract, plus collateral interest and less expenses.

Why people hold it

• DBE Holds energy futures tracking the DBIQ Optimum Yield Energy Index Excess Return, so it follows fuel prices themselves rather than oil-company earnings, buybacks or balance sheets.invesco.com
• Live since 2007, which puts multiple full commodity cycles behind it. That kind of run time is uncommon among futures-based funds.
• At 0.79% it sits right at the median for its energy peer group, and the fund handles the futures contracts, rolls and collateral you would otherwise manage yourself.

• USO Cheap for this corner of the market: 0.86% a year against a cohort median of 1.08%.
• Live since 2006 and one of the most actively traded funds in its category, so bids and offers are usually there when you need them.
• Targets daily moves in light, sweet crude delivered to Cushing, Oklahoma, via its benchmark futures contract. No margin account, no expiries to roll yourself.sec.gov
• Since April 2020 the portfolio has reached past pure front-month into later-dated contracts, a change the fund disclosed in its filings.sec.gov

Worth knowing

• DBE It is structured as a partnership, so tax time brings a Schedule K-1 instead of the usual 1099. Worth knowing before one shows up in the mail.invesco.com
• Futures plumbing costs more than owning stocks. Equity-based energy peers like XES (0.35%) and MLPX (0.45%) charge well under half of DBE's 0.79%.
• A single-commodity-complex bet that follows energy futures both up and down, with no company dividends underneath. Our overall read places it in the lower half of its energy cohort.

• USO It's a commodity pool, so tax season brings a Schedule K-1 rather than a 1099. Peer OILK is built specifically to skip that paperwork.uscfinvestments.com
• Futures, not barrels. Rolling contracts forward can cost when later months trade above nearer ones, which pulls results away from headline spot oil.sec.gov
• One commodity, one price driver, and no income stream: the fund hasn't been paying distributions, so everything rides on the oil move.

Full DBE profile⁠

Full USO profile⁠