GDEC vs PSMJ

GDECCFT Vest U.S. Equity Moderate Buffer ETF - December

PSMJBPacer Swan SOS Moderate (July) ETF

In short

GDEC The December door into First Trust's moderate-buffer lineup: 15% of downside on the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust absorbed over a one-year outcome period, in exchange for an upside cap reset each December.

PSMJ Pacer's July-dated stop on the Swan SOS ladder: FLEX options on SPY that buffer the first 15% of a fall over a roughly one-year period, with upside capped in return. At 0.49%, it undercuts most of the buffer aisle.

Stated mandate

GDEC The Fund seeks returns matching the price return of the stated S&P 500 ETF, subject to a 12.08% upside cap and protection against the first 15% of losses during the specified outcome period.

PSMJ The Fund seeks to track the returns of the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust up to a predetermined cap while providing a downside buffer over an approximately one-year period.

Why people hold it

• GDEC Absorbs the first 15% of a decline in the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust over each outcome period, the middle setting between shallow and deep buffers.
• The clock resets every December, and sibling funds run the same design in other months, so a ladder can be built without picking one start date.
• The reference asset is plain large-cap US equity, not a niche index. All the shaping happens in the options overlay wrapped around it.

• PSMJ Charges 0.49% a year against a 0.79% median for its buffered-SPY cohort, the same 0.79% Innovator's Power Buffer funds (PJUL, PJAN, POCT) charge for a similar job.
• The deal is legible: FLEX options on SPY absorb the first 15% of a decline over the outcome period, and match the ETF's gains up to a cap struck each July.paceretfs.compaceretfs.com 2
• Those FLEX options are customizable exchange-traded contracts settled through the Options Clearing Corporation, and Durango-based Swan Global Management sub-advises the strategy.paceretfs.com
• One of four Moderate-series funds with staggered start months (PSMD, PSMR, PSMJ, PSMO), so a July reset can be stacked against other entry points rather than standing alone.paceretfs.com

Worth knowing

• GDEC Fees run 0.85% a year against a 0.79% median for buffer peers, and the laddered BUFF charges 0.10%. Cost is the main gap in this group.
• Upside stops at a cap set fresh each December, and the fund follows price return, so S&P 500 dividends stay outside the deal.
• Thinly traded next to the category's largest buffer funds, which puts more weight on limit orders and avoiding the open and close.

• PSMJ The 15% buffer and the cap belong to the full outcome period. Step in mid-period and you inherit whatever cap and buffer remain, not the starting terms.paceretfs.com
• Thinly traded next to the largest buffer funds, so spreads and limit orders deserve more of your attention at the point of entry.
• No regular income stream here: the options structure delivers its result through share price rather than distributions.paceretfs.com

Full GDEC profile⁠

Full PSMJ profile⁠