GMAY vs PSMR

GMAYCFT Vest U.S. Equity Moderate Buffer ETF - May

PSMRBPacer Swan SOS Moderate (April) ETF

In short

GMAY First Trust runs a buffer fund for every month of the calendar, and GMAY holds the May slot: a 15% cushion on SPY's price return over a one-year outcome period, paid for with a cap on the upside set when the period begins.

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

GMAY The Fund seeks returns corresponding to the price return of the State Street® SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust, subject to an upside cap and protection against the first 15% of losses during the stated 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

• GMAY The deal is spelled out in the fund's own documents: protection against the first 15% of losses on SPY's price return, plus a stated cap, across a defined one-year outcome period.ftportfolios.com
• May is just one rung. GJAN through GDEC run the same 15% structure on a rolling monthly schedule, so start dates can be staggered instead of hostage to one entry point.
• The reference asset is the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust itself. Plain large-cap US equity price return, no custom index or factor tilt to decode.
• One of the easier funds in its buffer peer group to get in and out of, with a mid-sized asset base standing behind 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

• GMAY At 0.85%, it sits above the 0.79% median for its buffer cohort. Downside protection is a purchased feature, and the sticker shows it.
• The cap works both ways: big SPY years get trimmed. And the 15% buffer is measured from the start of the outcome period to its end, not day by day in between.
• Not an income vehicle. The options package is built to shape the payoff, not to pay out along the way.

• 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 GMAY profile⁠

Full PSMR profile⁠