GJUL vs PSMJ

GJULCFT Vest U.S. Equity Moderate Buffer ETF - July

PSMJBPacer Swan SOS Moderate (July) ETF

In short

GJUL The July door into First Trust's moderate-buffer lineup: it aims to absorb the first 15% of an S&P 500 ETF price decline over a one-year outcome period, and in exchange your upside stops at a cap set when that period begins.

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

GJUL The Fund seeks to match the price return of the State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust before fees and expenses, subject to a 13.82% upside cap, while buffering the first 15% of losses during the July 20, 2026–July 16, 2027 target 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

• GJUL The first 15% of the reference ETF's price loss over each outcome period is absorbed by the option structure, not by a manager's judgment call.
• Twelve month-stamped siblings run the same 15% recipe, so the calendar start is your choice. This one resets in July.
• The reference is the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust, so the only moving parts are the buffer and the cap. No sector tilts, no stock picking.

• 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

• GJUL At 0.85%, it runs above the buffer-cohort median of 0.79%. Laddered peers like BUFF charge 0.10% and spread start dates for you.
• Buffer and cap apply to the full outcome period. Buy or sell partway through and you own part of a buffer and part of a cap, priced by the options.
• It targets price return, so S&P 500 dividends are not part of the package.

• 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 GJUL profile⁠

Full PSMJ profile⁠