SJB vs SVXY

SJBBProShares Short High Yield

SVXYBProShares Short VIX Short-Term Futures ETF

In short

SJB One of the few single-ticker ways to take the other side of the junk bond market: SJB aims for the inverse (-1x) of the daily move in the Markit iBoxx $ Liquid High Yield Index, for 0.95% net of a waiver through September 30, 2027.

SVXY Short volatility, half dose. SVXY targets one-half the inverse of a VIX short-term futures index each day, a deliberately de-tuned take on the short-vol trade, and it has run that mandate since 2011.

Stated mandate

SJB The fund seeks daily investment results, before fees and expenses, that correspond to the inverse (-1x) of the daily performance of the Markit iBoxx $ Liquid High Yield Index.

SVXY SVXY seeks daily results equal to one-half the inverse of the S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures Index. Its objective is measured daily, so returns over longer periods can differ from the stated daily target.

Why people hold it

• SJB Short exposure to high yield credit through one ticker in an ordinary brokerage account: no margin account, no bond borrow, no short-sale plumbing.proshares.com
• 0.95% net of a waiver through September 30, 2027, near the category median and level with ProShares stablemates DOG and PSQ (both 0.95% net of waivers to the same date).
• Trading since 2011, so it is a seasoned tool rather than a recent launch, and it stands among the stronger implementations in its inverse-fund peer group.
• The reference point is the liquid high yield benchmark itself, the Markit iBoxx $ Liquid High Yield Index, not a proxy basket of credit-sensitive stocks.proshares.com

• SVXY The half-strength design is the whole idea: a -0.5x daily target rather than full inverse, so a jump in VIX futures lands with half the force of a one-for-one short.proshares.com
• 0.95% a year sits below the typical leveraged and inverse fund, and among that crowd this is one of the stronger implementations in its peer group.
• Launched in 2011 and actively traded, so it has a long operating history and a working market for getting in and out.

Worth knowing

• SJB The -1x objective is a one-day objective. Hold longer and daily compounding pushes results away from -1x of the index move, most of all after choppy credit markets.proshares.com
• The 0.95% rate depends on the waiver. The gross expense ratio is 1.05%, which is what applies if the waiver is not extended past September 30, 2027.
• A smaller, moderately traded fund, so spreads and order size deserve attention in a way they would not on a mega-cap index tracker.

• SVXY The objective resets daily. Hold longer and compounding takes over, so results over weeks or months can look nothing like half the inverse of the index.proshares.com
• It is a commodity pool holding VIX futures, not a basket of stocks. Reporting and tax treatment follow different rules than a standard equity ETF.proshares.com
• Pure price vehicle with no distribution stream, and volatility spikes arrive fast, which is exactly what a short-vol position is on the wrong side of.

Full SJB profile⁠

Full SVXY profile⁠