GDEC vs PSMR

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

PSMRBPacer Swan SOS Moderate (April) 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.

PSMR A 15-point cushion on SPY, reset every April, for 0.49% a year while the typical buffer fund charges more. Pacer and Swan's moderate tier trades away some upside (a cap set each period) for a floor you know going in.

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.

PSMR The Fund seeks to match 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.

• PSMR Charges 0.49% a year against a 0.79% median in its buffered-SPY cohort, and undercuts Pacer's own single-month siblings like PJUL and POCT at 0.79%.
• The contract is spelled out: a 15-point buffer against SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust losses over roughly a one-year period, with upside capped at a level set when the period begins.paceretfs.com
• Terms reset on April 1 each year, so the new buffer and cap arrive on a known calendar date instead of whenever you happened to buy in.paceretfs.com
• Running since 2021, so this April series has cycled through several complete outcome periods rather than being a fresh launch with a paper track record.

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.

• PSMR Thinly traded next to the biggest names in buffer land, so spreads and order size are worth a look before you place a trade.
• The cap cuts both ways: big SPY years get trimmed, and the stated buffer and cap only line up in full for a holder who rides one April reset to the next.
• Not an income vehicle. It has not been paying a regular distribution, so whatever the strategy delivers shows up in the share price.

Full GDEC profile⁠

Full PSMR profile⁠