PSFJ vs PSFM

PSFJBPacer Swan SOS Flex (July) ETF

PSFMBPacer Swan SOS Flex (April) ETF

In short

PSFJ A 20% cushion against the S&P 500's first losses, paid for with a ceiling on the upside, reset every July 1. Pacer runs the trade for less than most of the deep-buffer crowd charges.

PSFM A one-year hedge on the S&P 500, reset every April: PSFM buffers the first 20% of the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust's losses and gives up gains above a cap set at each period's start. At 0.49%, it undercuts most 20%-buffer rivals.

Stated mandate

PSFJ The Fund seeks to match, before fees and expenses, the returns of the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust up to a predetermined cap while buffering the first 20% of downside losses over an approximate one-year period.

PSFM The Fund seeks to match the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust’s return before fees and expenses, subject to a predetermined upside cap, while providing a downside-loss buffer over approximately one year.

Why people hold it

• PSFJ Costs 0.49% a year against a 0.74% median for 20% S&P 500 buffer funds, and undercuts the 0.74% AllianzIM month-series funds (JUNW, AUGW, DECW) built on the same reference.
• Deep cushion by design: it aims to absorb the first 20% of a decline in the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust over each roughly one-year period, before fees and expenses.paceretfs.com
• Live since 2021, with several annual reset cycles behind it and sibling funds (PSFM, PSFD) covering other start months. One of the stronger builds in a crowded 20% buffer field.

• PSFM Charges 0.49% a year against a 0.74% median for its 20%-buffer peer group, matching the cheapest fee in the Pacer Swan lineup and undercutting rivals like APRW and JUNW at 0.74%.
• The 20% buffer is deep for the category: it absorbs the first fifth of a decline in the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust over the roughly one-year outcome period, before fees and expenses.paceretfs.com
• Top-quartile standing in its deep-buffer cohort, and April is one of several Pacer Swan start months (PSFJ runs July), so entry dates can be staggered across the calendar.paceretfs.com

Worth knowing

• PSFJ The price of the cushion is a ceiling. Upside is capped at a level set when each July outcome period begins, so a roaring market leaves gains on the table.paceretfs.com
• Buffer and cap are designed to work over the full outcome period. Buy mid-period and the cushion remaining and the room left to run differ from the stated terms.paceretfs.com
• A smaller, thinly traded fund, so spreads can run wider than in the biggest names in the group. Income is not part of the design either.

• PSFM Upside is capped, and the cap is set fresh at the start of each April period, so the ceiling for a given year is not known in advance and changes from period to period.paceretfs.com
• Buffer and cap are designed to work over the full outcome period. Mid-period buyers get a different effective cap and remaining buffer than the headline terms.paceretfs.com
• One of the smaller, more thinly traded funds in its category, so spreads can run wider than at the largest buffer shops, and income is not part of the design.

Full PSFJ profile⁠

Full PSFM profile⁠