DNOV vs PSCQ

DNOVCFT Vest U.S. Equity Deep Buffer ETF - November

PSCQBPacer Swan SOS Conservative (October) ETF

In short

DNOV A deep-buffer take on the S&P 500: you absorb the first 5% of a drop, the fund's design targets the next 25 points of losses, and your upside is capped for the year. The terms reset every November.

PSCQ A deep buffer with a deductible: you take the first 5% of an S&P 500 slide, then the next 25 points get cushioned, up to a cap reset each October. At 0.49% a year, it is a low-cost way to run that trade.

Stated mandate

DNOV The Fund seeks returns matching the price return of the State Street® SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust up to a 12.93% upside cap, while buffering Underlying ETF losses between -5% and -30% during the November 24, 2025–November 20, 2026 outcome period.

PSCQ The Fund seeks to match the returns of the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust before fees and expenses up to a predetermined cap while providing a downside buffer over approximately one year.

Why people hold it

• DNOV Deep buffer, not the entry-level kind: the design targets absorbing reference-fund losses from -5% down to -30% over each one-year outcome period, a 25-point band of cushion.ftportfolios.com
• One of twelve monthly siblings (DFEB, DMAR, DJUN and the rest), so entry dates can be laddered across the calendar instead of hinging on a single November start.
• Live since 2019 and through multiple full outcome periods, with a 0.85% fee that sits right at the median for deep-buffer funds.
• A multi-hundred-million-dollar fund from First Trust, one of the more established names running defined-outcome strategies.

• PSCQ 0.49% a year, at the cheap end of the SPY deep-buffer group. In a capped strategy, fees come straight out of the upside you are allowed to keep.
• Real depth of cushion: underlying losses from 5% down to 30% are absorbed by the options package, 25 percentage points of protection across a full one-year outcome period.paceretfs.com
• October start date. Pacer runs the same conservative recipe in January, April and July windows, so you choose which twelve months (and which cap) you live with.
• Plain plumbing: FLEX options on the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust, no stock picking, no leverage. It sits in the upper half of its deep-buffer peer group.paceretfs.com

Worth knowing

• DNOV The cap is the price of the cushion, and it resets each November. Buy mid-period and your actual cap and remaining buffer differ from the headline terms.ftportfolios.com
• It references the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust's price return, so index dividends are outside the payoff, and the fund itself has not been making regular distributions.
• The first 5% of losses and anything past -30% land on you. Shares trade lightly, so spreads matter, and cheaper deep-buffer options exist (PSCX, PSCW at 0.49%).

• PSCQ The cap is the price of the cushion. Upside stops at a level set when the October period begins, so a roaring S&P year leaves money on the table.
• The 5% to 30% math is built for holders of the full period. Buy mid-period and your effective buffer and cap depend on the price you pay.paceretfs.com
• A small fund that trades thinly, so spreads can run wider than on big index ETFs. It holds options, not dividend payers, so income is not part of the design.

Full DNOV profile⁠

Full PSCQ profile⁠