JETU vs. ITA

Last updated Apr 1, 2026

Compare and contrast key facts about MAX Airlines 3X Leveraged ETN (JETU) and iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF (ITA).

JETU and ITA are both exchange-traded funds (ETFs), meaning they are traded on stock exchanges and can be bought and sold throughout the day. JETU is a passively managed fund by Max that tracks the performance of the Prime Airlines Index - Benchmark TR Net. It was launched on Jun 20, 2023. ITA is a passively managed fund by iShares that tracks the performance of the Dow Jones U.S. Select Aerospace & Defense Index. It was launched on May 5, 2006. Both JETU and ITA 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

JETU vs. ITA - Performance Comparison

The chart below illustrates the hypothetical performance of a $10,000 investment in MAX Airlines 3X Leveraged ETN (JETU) and iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF (ITA). The values are adjusted to include any dividend payments, if applicable.

JETU vs. ITA - Yearly Performance Comparison

	2026 (YTD)	2025	2024	2023
JETU MAX Airlines 3X Leveraged ETN	-20.15%	3.88%	38.00%	-16.85%
ITA iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF	1.96%	48.64%	15.81%	9.46%

Returns By Period

In the year-to-date period, JETU achieves a -20.15% return, which is significantly lower than ITA's 1.96% return.

JETU

• 1D: 13.01%
• 1M: -33.96%
• YTD: -20.15%
• 6M: 8.40%
• 1Y: 26.97%
• 3Y*: —
• 5Y*: —
• 10Y*: —

ITA

• 1D: 3.78%
• 1M: -10.19%
• YTD: 1.96%
• 6M: 4.60%
• 1Y: 43.64%
• 3Y*: 24.84%
• 5Y*: 16.89%
• 10Y*: 15.24%

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

JETU vs. ITA - Expense Ratio Comparison

JETU has a 0.95% expense ratio, which is higher than ITA's 0.42% expense ratio.

JETU

MAX Airlines 3X Leveraged ETN

ITA

iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF

Return for Risk

JETU vs. ITA — Risk / Return Rank

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

JETU

JETU Risk / Return Rank: 27
JETU Sharpe Ratio Rank: 20
JETU Sortino Ratio Rank: 37
JETU Omega Ratio Rank: 35
JETU Calmar Ratio Rank: 23
JETU Martin Ratio Rank: 22

ITA

ITA Risk / Return Rank: 89
ITA Sharpe Ratio Rank: 90
ITA Sortino Ratio Rank: 90
ITA Omega Ratio Rank: 89
ITA Calmar Ratio Rank: 89
ITA Martin Ratio Rank: 89

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.

JETU vs. ITA - Risk-Adjusted Trends Comparison

This table presents a comparison of risk-adjusted performance metrics for MAX Airlines 3X Leveraged ETN (JETU) and iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF (ITA). 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.

	JETU	ITA	Difference
Sharpe ratio Return per unit of total volatility	0.30	1.88	-1.58
Sortino ratio Return per unit of downside risk	1.09	2.51	-1.42
Omega ratio Gain probability vs. loss probability	1.14	1.35	-0.21
Calmar ratio Return relative to maximum drawdown	0.50	2.75	-2.25
Martin ratio Return relative to average drawdown	1.50	10.65	-9.16
Data is calculated on a 1-year rolling basis and updated daily. The trend shows the change in the indicator over the past month.

JETU vs. ITA - Sharpe Ratio Comparison

The current JETU Sharpe Ratio is 0.30, which is lower than the ITA Sharpe Ratio of 1.88. The chart below compares the historical Sharpe Ratios of JETU and ITA, 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

	JETU	ITA	Difference
Sharpe Ratio (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	0.30	1.88	-1.58
Sharpe Ratio (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period	—	0.86	—
Sharpe Ratio (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period	—	0.67	—
Sharpe Ratio (All Time) Calculated using the full available price history	-0.03	0.51	-0.53

Correlation

The correlation between JETU and ITA is 0.59, which is considered to be moderate. This suggests that the two assets have some degree of positive relationship in their price movements. Moderate correlation can be acceptable for portfolio diversification, offering a balance between risk and potential returns.

Dividends

JETU vs. ITA - Dividend Comparison

JETU has not paid dividends to shareholders, while ITA's dividend yield for the trailing twelve months is around 0.49%.

	TTM	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018	2017	2016	2015
JETU MAX Airlines 3X Leveraged ETN	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%
ITA iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF	0.49%	0.55%	0.85%	0.93%	0.95%	0.82%	1.07%	1.54%	1.13%	0.91%	1.07%	1.04%

Drawdowns

JETU vs. ITA - Drawdown Comparison

The maximum JETU drawdown since its inception was -68.64%, which is greater than ITA's maximum drawdown of -59.72%. Use the drawdown chart below to compare losses from any high point for JETU and ITA.

Drawdown Indicators

	JETU	ITA	Difference
Max Drawdown Largest peak-to-trough decline	-68.64%	-59.72%	-8.92%
Max Drawdown (1Y) Largest decline over 1 year	-49.39%	-15.82%	-33.57%
Max Drawdown (5Y) Largest decline over 5 years	—	-18.72%	—
Max Drawdown (10Y) Largest decline over 10 years	—	-51.00%	—
Current Drawdown Current decline from peak	-42.80%	-12.65%	-30.15%
Average Drawdown Average peak-to-trough decline	-29.27%	-9.45%	-19.82%
Ulcer Index Depth and duration of drawdowns from previous peaks	16.47%	4.09%	+12.38%

Volatility

JETU vs. ITA - Volatility Comparison

MAX Airlines 3X Leveraged ETN (JETU) has a higher volatility of 26.72% compared to iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF (ITA) at 7.93%. This indicates that JETU's price experiences larger fluctuations and is considered to be riskier than ITA based on this measure. The chart below showcases a comparison of their rolling one-month volatility.

Volatility by Period

	JETU	ITA	Difference
Volatility (1M) Calculated over the trailing 1-month period	26.72%	7.93%	+18.79%
Volatility (6M) Calculated over the trailing 6-month period	49.58%	16.01%	+33.57%
Volatility (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	89.16%	23.28%	+65.88%
Volatility (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period, annualized	68.70%	19.67%	+49.03%
Volatility (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period, annualized	68.70%	22.95%	+45.75%