PTBD vs TDSC

PTBDAPacer Trendpilot US Bond ETF

TDSCBETC Cabana Target Drawdown 10 ETF

In short

PTBD Trend following, pointed at bonds instead of stocks. A published rulebook shifts PTBD between high yield corporates and intermediate Treasuries as their relative strength changes, dialing credit risk up or down by formula rather than by opinion.

TDSC Most funds bury risk in the disclosures; this one puts it in the name. TDSC steers toward a 10% peak-to-trough drawdown target, with an algorithm rotating among stocks, bonds, real estate, currencies and commodities and cash as its hatch.

Stated mandate

PTBD The Fund seeks to track, before fees and expenses, the total return of the Pacer Trendpilot US Bond Index through a rules-based strategy that alternates between high-yield corporate bonds and U.S. Treasury bonds.

TDSC The Fund seeks long-term growth while managing its portfolio toward a specified drawdown, or targeted downside-risk, parameter.

Why people hold it

• PTBD The rulebook is public and mechanical: high yield measured against Treasuries, compared to its 100-day average, with five straight closes needed to confirm. No manager hunch involved.paceretfs.com
• 0.60% a year, comfortably below the median for tactical multi-asset funds. Cheap for a strategy that does the reallocating for you.
• Holds roughly 1,000 bonds in whichever sleeve the signal points to, so no single issuer carries much weight. Income is distributed monthly.
• Trading since 2019, long enough to have run the rules through a rate shock and a credit wobble, and it sits in the upper tier of the tactical funds we cover.

• TDSC Risk is defined upfront: the mandate is long-term growth managed toward a 10% drawdown target, with drawdown measured on monthly returns from a rolling high-water mark.sec.govthecabanagroup.com
• 0.86% net of a waiver through August 31, 2027, which sits below the median fee in its tactical allocation category.
• Five asset classes, one dial: equities, bonds, real estate, currencies and commodities, with signals that can move the portfolio to cash or cash equivalents in sharp downturns.sec.gov
• Trading since 2020, so the algorithm has a live public record, not just a backtest.

Worth knowing

• PTBD Trend rules react, they don't anticipate. A sharp reversal can flip the signal after the move has happened, and the confirmation window means the switch lands days later.paceretfs.com
• In its risk-on position the portfolio is high yield corporate debt, full stop. That is credit risk, a different animal from Treasury rate risk.paceretfs.com
• Not one of the heavily traded names in its category, so the spread and a limit order matter more here than with a mega-fund.

• TDSC The 10% figure is a target, not a floor. The prospectus states it may not be maintained, and losses can run past it.sec.gov
• Thinly traded next to big index funds, so spreads and order type matter more here.
• Fee ceiling: the gross rate is 0.97%, where the cost lands if the waiver lapses after August 31, 2027. Cheaper tactical options exist, such as ENDW at 0.22%.

Full PTBD profile⁠

Full TDSC profile⁠