GNOV vs PSMJ

GNOVCFT Vest U.S. Equity Moderate Buffer ETF - November

PSMJBPacer Swan SOS Moderate (July) ETF

In short

GNOV First Trust's November rung in a 12-month buffer ladder: it follows SPY's price return (dividends excluded), absorbs the first 15% of a period's losses, and caps the upside in exchange.

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

GNOV The Fund seeks to match the price return of the State Street® SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust, subject to a predetermined upside cap and protection against the first 15% of losses during the stated 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

• GNOV The cushion is written into the fund's terms: the first 15% of SPY's price decline over the outcome period is absorbed before losses reach you.
• The outcome period runs November to November and resets annually, so it slots in as one rung of First Trust's monthly moderate-buffer ladder (GJAN, GAPR, GJUL and the rest).
• Reference asset is SPY itself, plain vanilla US large caps, not a bespoke options index. And it comes in a registered 1940 Act fund, not a bank-issued note.

• 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

• GNOV At 0.85%, the fee sits above the 0.79% median for its buffer peer group and far above laddered options like BUFF at 0.10%.
• Buffer and cap are engineered for the full November-to-November stretch. Buy mid-period and you get whatever cushion and headroom are left, not the stated terms.
• It trades lightly next to the biggest buffer ETFs, which can mean wider spreads; limit orders are the standard approach.

• 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 GNOV profile⁠

Full PSMJ profile⁠