DECW vs PSFJ

DECWCAllianzIM U.S. Equity Buffer20 Dec ETF

PSFJBPacer Swan SOS Flex (July) ETF

In short

DECW SPY's price move for a year, with the first 20% of losses absorbed and a ceiling on the upside. DECW is the December door in AllianzIM's Buffer20 ladder: the clock starts December 1, resets each November 30, and a fresh cap is set annually.

PSFJ A 20% cushion against the S&P 500's first losses, paid for with a ceiling on the upside, reset every July 1. Pacer runs the trade for less than most of the deep-buffer crowd charges.

Stated mandate

DECW The Fund seeks to match the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust’s share-price return at the end of each one-year Outcome Period, subject to an upside Cap, while buffering the first 20% of losses. It implements this strategy mainly with FLEX Options referencing that ETF.

PSFJ The Fund seeks to match, before fees and expenses, the returns of the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust up to a predetermined cap while buffering the first 20% of downside losses over an approximate one-year period.

Why people hold it

• DECW Deep end of the buffer world: the first 20 percentage points of the reference ETF's decline over the Dec 1 to Nov 30 period are absorbed, built with FLEX options rather than manager judgment.
• At 0.74%, it charges exactly the median fee for deep-buffer funds. You're not paying a premium for the December start date.
• One of twelve AllianzIM Buffer20 funds, one per starting month (MAYW, JUNW, AUGW and the rest), so start dates can be staggered across the calendar instead of concentrated in one.
• No mystery about the terms: outcome period dates, the cap and the buffer are posted daily on the fund's own website, before you commit.sec.gov

• PSFJ Costs 0.49% a year against a 0.74% median for 20% S&P 500 buffer funds, and undercuts the 0.74% AllianzIM month-series funds (JUNW, AUGW, DECW) built on the same reference.
• Deep cushion by design: it aims to absorb the first 20% of a decline in the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust over each roughly one-year period, before fees and expenses.paceretfs.com
• Live since 2021, with several annual reset cycles behind it and sibling funds (PSFM, PSFD) covering other start months. One of the stronger builds in a crowded 20% buffer field.

Worth knowing

• DECW It targets the reference ETF's share-price return, not total return. Index dividends aren't part of the payoff, and income isn't what this structure is built to produce.
• The same 20% buffer sells cheaper in the neighborhood: PSFJ and PSFM at 0.49%, BALT at 0.69%.
• Thinly traded, so entry and exit costs deserve a look. The cap and buffer apply in full only from the December start to the November finish; mid-period buyers get different math.sec.gov

• PSFJ The price of the cushion is a ceiling. Upside is capped at a level set when each July outcome period begins, so a roaring market leaves gains on the table.paceretfs.com
• Buffer and cap are designed to work over the full outcome period. Buy mid-period and the cushion remaining and the room left to run differ from the stated terms.paceretfs.com
• A smaller, thinly traded fund, so spreads can run wider than in the biggest names in the group. Income is not part of the design either.

Full DECW profile⁠

Full PSFJ profile⁠