UGL vs UYG

UGLCProShares Ultra Gold

UYGAProShares Ultra Financials

In short

UGL A 2x gold trade in ETF clothing: UGL targets twice the daily move of the Bloomberg Gold Subindex using futures and swaps, no bullion in a vault. It has run this playbook since 2008, a long life for a leveraged commodity fund.

UYG Listed in January 2007, a year before the banking crash, UYG targets 2x the daily move of the financial stocks in the S&P 500. A veteran of the leveraged shelf, priced at 0.93% with no fee waiver propping that number up.

Stated mandate

UGL UGL seeks to deliver approximately twice the daily performance of the Bloomberg Gold Subindex before fees and expenses. It obtains this exposure through futures and swaps rather than direct ownership of gold.

UYG UYG seeks pre-expense daily results equal to 2x the daily performance of the S&P Financial Select Sector Index. It is designed to provide magnified financials-sector exposure on a daily basis.

Why people hold it

• UGL Charges 0.95% a year, below the typical leveraged fund's fee, so the cost drag on a levered gold position is a little lighter.
• Trading since December 2008, it has been through full gold cycles, boom and bust. That is an unusually long run for a leveraged commodity product.
• Actively traded rather than a forgotten ticker, which matters when your holding period is measured in days.
• Stands among the stronger implementations in a crowded leveraged-bull field that includes names like UDOW and QLD.

• UYG One of the originals: on the tape since January 30, 2007, still running the same mandate of 2x the daily performance of the S&P Financial Select Sector Index.proshares.com
• At 0.93% with no waiver doing the work, it sits near the median fee of its leveraged peer group and level with sibling ROM (0.93%). QLD is 0.89%, but net of a waiver through September 30, 2027.
• The whole sector in one ticker: banks, insurers and capital-markets firms from the S&P 500, roughly 80 names, geared daily.proshares.com
• Stands in the top tier of the leveraged bull funds we grade, a group of close to a hundred tickers.

Worth knowing

• UGL The 2x target resets every day. Over longer holds, results can differ from twice the index's move for the period, and choppy gold tape works against you.proshares.com
• Exposure comes from futures and swaps, not gold sitting in a vault, so contract roll costs and swap counterparties are part of the package.proshares.com
• Organized as a commodity pool rather than a conventional stock fund, so its structure and tax paperwork differ from an equity ETF's. It is not built to pay income.

• UYG The 2x target is a one-day target and resets each day. Over longer holds the result comes from compounding daily moves, and in choppy markets that can land well off twice the index's return for the period.proshares.com
• One sector, doubled. Financials move with rates, credit conditions and deal flow, and UYG amplifies that daily swing in both directions.
• It changes hands less than the headline leveraged funds, so the spread is worth a look before you place an order.

Full UGL profile⁠

Full UYG profile⁠