FAZ vs. SPXU

Last updated Apr 1, 2026

Compare and contrast key facts about Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ) and ProShares UltraPro Short S&P500 (SPXU).

FAZ and SPXU are both exchange-traded funds (ETFs), meaning they are traded on stock exchanges and can be bought and sold throughout the day. FAZ is a passively managed fund by Direxion that tracks the performance of the Russell 1000 Financial Services Index (-300%). It was launched on Nov 6, 2008. SPXU is a passively managed fund by ProShares that tracks the performance of the S&P 500 Index (-300%). It was launched on Jun 25, 2009. Both FAZ and SPXU are passive ETFs, meaning that they are not actively managed but aim to replicate the performance of the underlying index as closely as possible.

Performance

FAZ vs. SPXU - Performance Comparison

The chart below illustrates the hypothetical performance of a $10,000 investment in Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ) and ProShares UltraPro Short S&P500 (SPXU). The values are adjusted to include any dividend payments, if applicable.

FAZ vs. SPXU - Yearly Performance Comparison

	2026 (YTD)	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018	2017
FAZ Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares	33.01%	-37.21%	-51.01%	-26.67%	1.16%	-67.05%	-73.90%	-58.62%	16.84%	-46.18%
SPXU ProShares UltraPro Short S&P500	15.02%	-41.73%	-43.31%	-46.02%	36.05%	-57.94%	-70.39%	-56.27%	3.97%	-44.23%

Returns By Period

In the year-to-date period, FAZ achieves a 33.01% return, which is significantly higher than SPXU's 15.02% return. Over the past 10 years, FAZ has underperformed SPXU with an annualized return of -43.10%, while SPXU has yielded a comparatively higher -39.74% annualized return.

FAZ

• 1D: -6.11%
• 1M: 11.41%
• YTD: 33.01%
• 6M: 26.95%
• 1Y: -7.23%
• 3Y*: -36.21%
• 5Y*: -29.62%
• 10Y*: -43.10%

SPXU

• 1D: -8.57%
• 1M: 16.03%
• YTD: 15.02%
• 6M: 7.93%
• 1Y: -41.50%
• 3Y*: -36.61%
• 5Y*: -31.42%
• 10Y*: -39.74%

*Multi-year figures are annualized to reflect compound growth (CAGR)

FAZ vs. SPXU - Expense Ratio Comparison

FAZ has a 1.07% expense ratio, which is higher than SPXU's 0.93% expense ratio.

FAZ

Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares

SPXU

ProShares UltraPro Short S&P500

Return for Risk

FAZ vs. SPXU — Risk / Return Rank

Compare risk-adjusted metric ranks to identify better-performing investments over the past 12 months.

FAZ

FAZ Risk / Return Rank: 11
FAZ Sharpe Ratio Rank: 9
FAZ Sortino Ratio Rank: 14
FAZ Omega Ratio Rank: 14
FAZ Calmar Ratio Rank: 9
FAZ Martin Ratio Rank: 10

SPXU

SPXU Risk / Return Rank: 3
SPXU Sharpe Ratio Rank: 2
SPXU Sortino Ratio Rank: 2
SPXU Omega Ratio Rank: 1
SPXU Calmar Ratio Rank: 2
SPXU Martin Ratio Rank: 6

The rank (0–100) shows how this investment's returns compare to the risk taken. Higher = better. Based on the past 12 months of data, combining Sharpe, Sortino, and other metrics used by quantitative funds and institutional investors.

FAZ vs. SPXU - Risk-Adjusted Trends Comparison

This table presents a comparison of risk-adjusted performance metrics for Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ) and ProShares UltraPro Short S&P500 (SPXU). Risk-adjusted metrics are performance indicators that assess an investment's returns in relation to its risk, enabling a more accurate comparison of different investment options.

	FAZ	SPXU	Difference
Sharpe ratio Return per unit of total volatility	-0.12	-0.76	+0.64
Sortino ratio Return per unit of downside risk	0.24	-0.95	+1.19
Omega ratio Gain probability vs. loss probability	1.03	0.86	+0.17
Calmar ratio Return relative to maximum drawdown	-0.20	-0.65	+0.45
Martin ratio Return relative to average drawdown	-0.26	-0.76	+0.51
Data is calculated on a 1-year rolling basis and updated daily. The trend shows the change in the indicator over the past month.

FAZ vs. SPXU - Sharpe Ratio Comparison

The current FAZ Sharpe Ratio is -0.12, which is higher than the SPXU Sharpe Ratio of -0.76. The chart below compares the historical Sharpe Ratios of FAZ and SPXU, offering insights into how both investments have performed under varying market conditions. These values are calculated using daily returns over the previous 12 months.

Sharpe Ratios by Period

	FAZ	SPXU	Difference
Sharpe Ratio (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	-0.12	-0.76	+0.64
Sharpe Ratio (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period	-0.53	-0.63	+0.10
Sharpe Ratio (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period	-0.70	-0.75	+0.05
Sharpe Ratio (All Time) Calculated using the full available price history	-0.72	-0.81	+0.09

Correlation

The correlation between FAZ and SPXU is 0.83, which is considered to be high. That indicates a strong positive relationship between their price movements. Having highly-correlated positions in a portfolio may signal a lack of diversification, potentially leading to increased risk during market downturns.

Dividends

FAZ vs. SPXU - Dividend Comparison

FAZ's dividend yield for the trailing twelve months is around 2.56%, less than SPXU's 5.10% yield.

	TTM	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018	2017
FAZ Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares	2.56%	5.07%	7.34%	4.88%	0.00%	0.00%	0.62%	1.63%	0.56%	0.00%
SPXU ProShares UltraPro Short S&P500	5.10%	7.02%	9.53%	7.06%	0.39%	0.00%	0.70%	2.14%	1.41%	0.10%

Drawdowns

FAZ vs. SPXU - Drawdown Comparison

The maximum FAZ drawdown since its inception was -100.00%, roughly equal to the maximum SPXU drawdown of -99.99%. Use the drawdown chart below to compare losses from any high point for FAZ and SPXU.

Drawdown Indicators

	FAZ	SPXU	Difference
Max Drawdown Largest peak-to-trough decline	-100.00%	-99.99%	-0.01%
Max Drawdown (1Y) Largest decline over 1 year	-54.53%	-65.13%	+10.60%
Max Drawdown (5Y) Largest decline over 5 years	-88.14%	-87.51%	-0.63%
Max Drawdown (10Y) Largest decline over 10 years	-99.78%	-99.51%	-0.27%
Current Drawdown Current decline from peak	-100.00%	-99.99%	-0.01%
Average Drawdown Average peak-to-trough decline	-99.13%	-93.26%	-5.87%
Ulcer Index Depth and duration of drawdowns from previous peaks	42.00%	55.70%	-13.70%

Volatility

FAZ vs. SPXU - Volatility Comparison

The current volatility for Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ) is 13.94%, while ProShares UltraPro Short S&P500 (SPXU) has a volatility of 16.07%. This indicates that FAZ experiences smaller price fluctuations and is considered to be less risky than SPXU based on this measure. The chart below showcases a comparison of their rolling one-month volatility.

Volatility by Period

	FAZ	SPXU	Difference
Volatility (1M) Calculated over the trailing 1-month period	13.94%	16.07%	-2.13%
Volatility (6M) Calculated over the trailing 6-month period	33.73%	28.19%	+5.54%
Volatility (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	58.30%	54.48%	+3.82%
Volatility (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period, annualized	56.10%	50.35%	+5.75%
Volatility (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period, annualized	62.13%	53.33%	+8.80%