PAUG vs. DMAX

Last updated Apr 1, 2026

Compare and contrast key facts about Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - August (PAUG) and iShares Large Cap Max Buffer December ETF (DMAX).

PAUG and DMAX are both exchange-traded funds (ETFs), meaning they are traded on stock exchanges and can be bought and sold throughout the day. PAUG is a passively managed fund by Innovator that tracks the performance of the Cboe S&P 500 15% Buffer Protect August Series Index. It was launched on Aug 1, 2019. DMAX is a passively managed fund by iShares that tracks the performance of the S&P 500 Index. It was launched on Dec 31, 2024. Both PAUG and DMAX 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

PAUG vs. DMAX - Performance Comparison

The chart below illustrates the hypothetical performance of a $10,000 investment in Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - August (PAUG) and iShares Large Cap Max Buffer December ETF (DMAX). The values are adjusted to include any dividend payments, if applicable.

PAUG vs. DMAX - Yearly Performance Comparison

	2026 (YTD)	2025
PAUG Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - August	-1.23%	12.48%
DMAX iShares Large Cap Max Buffer December ETF	-0.37%	7.81%

Returns By Period

In the year-to-date period, PAUG achieves a -1.23% return, which is significantly lower than DMAX's -0.37% return.

PAUG

• 1D: 1.71%
• 1M: -1.97%
• YTD: -1.23%
• 6M: 0.59%
• 1Y: 13.08%
• 3Y*: 13.14%
• 5Y*: 8.07%
• 10Y*: —

DMAX

• 1D: 0.40%
• 1M: -0.84%
• YTD: -0.37%
• 6M: 1.76%
• 1Y: 7.76%
• 3Y*: —
• 5Y*: —
• 10Y*: —

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

PAUG vs. DMAX - Expense Ratio Comparison

PAUG has a 0.79% expense ratio, which is higher than DMAX's 0.50% expense ratio.

PAUG

Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - August

DMAX

iShares Large Cap Max Buffer December ETF

Return for Risk

PAUG vs. DMAX — Risk / Return Rank

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

PAUG

PAUG Risk / Return Rank: 79
PAUG Sharpe Ratio Rank: 73
PAUG Sortino Ratio Rank: 77
PAUG Omega Ratio Rank: 84
PAUG Calmar Ratio Rank: 73
PAUG Martin Ratio Rank: 88

DMAX

DMAX Risk / Return Rank: 96
DMAX Sharpe Ratio Rank: 94
DMAX Sortino Ratio Rank: 96
DMAX Omega Ratio Rank: 96
DMAX Calmar Ratio Rank: 95
DMAX Martin Ratio Rank: 97

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.

PAUG vs. DMAX - Risk-Adjusted Trends Comparison

This table presents a comparison of risk-adjusted performance metrics for Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - August (PAUG) and iShares Large Cap Max Buffer December ETF (DMAX). 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.

	PAUG	DMAX	Difference
Sharpe ratio Return per unit of total volatility	1.30	2.26	-0.96
Sortino ratio Return per unit of downside risk	1.94	3.38	-1.44
Omega ratio Gain probability vs. loss probability	1.33	1.51	-0.18
Calmar ratio Return relative to maximum drawdown	1.88	3.99	-2.11
Martin ratio Return relative to average drawdown	10.86	19.40	-8.55
Data is calculated on a 1-year rolling basis and updated daily. The trend shows the change in the indicator over the past month.

PAUG vs. DMAX - Sharpe Ratio Comparison

The current PAUG Sharpe Ratio is 1.30, which is lower than the DMAX Sharpe Ratio of 2.26. The chart below compares the historical Sharpe Ratios of PAUG and DMAX, 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

	PAUG	DMAX	Difference
Sharpe Ratio (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	1.30	2.26	-0.96
Sharpe Ratio (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period	0.94	—	—
Sharpe Ratio (All Time) Calculated using the full available price history	0.80	1.68	-0.88

Correlation

The correlation between PAUG and DMAX is 0.84, 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

PAUG vs. DMAX - Dividend Comparison

PAUG has not paid dividends to shareholders, while DMAX's dividend yield for the trailing twelve months is around 1.18%.

	TTM	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019
PAUG Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - August	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	1.33%
DMAX iShares Large Cap Max Buffer December ETF	1.18%	1.18%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%

Drawdowns

PAUG vs. DMAX - Drawdown Comparison

The maximum PAUG drawdown since its inception was -17.88%, which is greater than DMAX's maximum drawdown of -3.37%. Use the drawdown chart below to compare losses from any high point for PAUG and DMAX.

Drawdown Indicators

	PAUG	DMAX	Difference
Max Drawdown Largest peak-to-trough decline	-17.88%	-3.37%	-14.51%
Max Drawdown (1Y) Largest decline over 1 year	-7.15%	-2.00%	-5.15%
Max Drawdown (5Y) Largest decline over 5 years	-11.76%	—	—
Current Drawdown Current decline from peak	-2.31%	-0.97%	-1.34%
Average Drawdown Average peak-to-trough decline	-1.85%	-0.42%	-1.43%
Ulcer Index Depth and duration of drawdowns from previous peaks	1.24%	0.41%	+0.83%

Volatility

PAUG vs. DMAX - Volatility Comparison

Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - August (PAUG) has a higher volatility of 2.92% compared to iShares Large Cap Max Buffer December ETF (DMAX) at 0.98%. This indicates that PAUG's price experiences larger fluctuations and is considered to be riskier than DMAX based on this measure. The chart below showcases a comparison of their rolling one-month volatility.

Volatility by Period

	PAUG	DMAX	Difference
Volatility (1M) Calculated over the trailing 1-month period	2.92%	0.98%	+1.94%
Volatility (6M) Calculated over the trailing 6-month period	4.41%	1.81%	+2.60%
Volatility (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	10.14%	3.46%	+6.68%
Volatility (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period, annualized	8.67%	3.57%	+5.10%
Volatility (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period, annualized	10.71%	3.57%	+7.14%