Alternatives

Volatility & Tail Hedges ETFs

VIX futures funds bleed steadily in calm markets because the curve is usually upward sloping — they are trading tools, not holdings. Tail-risk funds buy far out-of-the-money puts and are designed to lose small amounts most years.

Theme performance

Equal-weighted across every fund in this objective

1Y: -41.8%
5Y ann.: -38.3%
10Y ann.: —
All-time ann.: —

Sort4 funds

UVXY

ProShares Ultra VIX Short-Term Futures ETF

ProShares

1.5x daily VIX futures. Decay is compounded by leverage; strictly a day-trading instrument.

Fee: 0.95%
AUM: $400M
Yield: 0.0%

1Y: -64.1%
5Y ann.: -59.6%
10Y ann.: —
Max ann.: —

VXX

iPath Series B S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures ETN

Barclays

The best-known VIX product, structured as a note so it also carries issuer credit risk.

Fee: 0.89%
AUM: $300M
Yield: 0.0%

1Y: -47.1%
5Y ann.: -42.1%
10Y ann.: —
Max ann.: —

VIXY

ProShares VIX Short-Term Futures ETF

ProShares

Front-month VIX futures. Spikes hard in crashes and decays relentlessly the rest of the time.

Fee: 0.85%
AUM: $200M
Yield: 0.0%

1Y: -46.4%
5Y ann.: -41.6%
10Y ann.: —
Max ann.: —

TAIL

Cambria Tail Risk ETF

Cambria

Treasuries plus a rolling ladder of out-of-the-money S&P puts. Designed to lose a little most years.

Fee: 0.59%
AUM: $100M
Yield: 3.9%

1Y: -9.4%
5Y ann.: -9.9%
10Y ann.: —
Max ann.: —