RAFE vs. UNOV

Last updated Apr 1, 2026

Compare and contrast key facts about PIMCO RAFI ESG U.S. ETF (RAFE) and Innovator U.S. Equity Ultra Buffer ETF - November (UNOV).

RAFE and UNOV are both exchange-traded funds (ETFs), meaning they are traded on stock exchanges and can be bought and sold throughout the day. RAFE is a passively managed fund by PIMCO that tracks the performance of the RAFI ESG US Index. It was launched on Dec 18, 2019. UNOV is a passively managed fund by Innovator that tracks the performance of the Cboe S&P 500 30% (-5% to -35%) Buffer Protect November Series Index. It was launched on Nov 1, 2019. Both RAFE and UNOV 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

RAFE vs. UNOV - Performance Comparison

The chart below illustrates the hypothetical performance of a $10,000 investment in PIMCO RAFI ESG U.S. ETF (RAFE) and Innovator U.S. Equity Ultra Buffer ETF - November (UNOV). The values are adjusted to include any dividend payments, if applicable.

RAFE vs. UNOV - Yearly Performance Comparison

	2026 (YTD)	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019
RAFE PIMCO RAFI ESG U.S. ETF	-0.90%	17.60%	13.81%	18.80%	-13.76%	30.16%	5.29%	0.55%
UNOV Innovator U.S. Equity Ultra Buffer ETF - November	-2.07%	9.92%	9.42%	14.18%	-6.23%	4.45%	8.31%	0.23%

Returns By Period

In the year-to-date period, RAFE achieves a -0.90% return, which is significantly higher than UNOV's -2.07% return.

RAFE

• 1D: 2.17%
• 1M: -4.75%
• YTD: -0.90%
• 6M: 3.09%
• 1Y: 16.61%
• 3Y*: 15.03%
• 5Y*: 9.22%
• 10Y*: —

UNOV

• 1D: 1.34%
• 1M: -2.51%
• YTD: -2.07%
• 6M: -0.53%
• 1Y: 9.78%
• 3Y*: 8.77%
• 5Y*: 5.34%
• 10Y*: —

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

RAFE vs. UNOV - Expense Ratio Comparison

RAFE has a 0.30% expense ratio, which is lower than UNOV's 0.79% expense ratio.

UNOV

Innovator U.S. Equity Ultra Buffer ETF - November

RAFE

PIMCO RAFI ESG U.S. ETF

Return for Risk

RAFE vs. UNOV — Risk / Return Rank

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

RAFE

RAFE Risk / Return Rank: 61
RAFE Sharpe Ratio Rank: 59
RAFE Sortino Ratio Rank: 59
RAFE Omega Ratio Rank: 59
RAFE Calmar Ratio Rank: 60
RAFE Martin Ratio Rank: 67

UNOV

UNOV Risk / Return Rank: 70
UNOV Sharpe Ratio Rank: 65
UNOV Sortino Ratio Rank: 67
UNOV Omega Ratio Rank: 73
UNOV Calmar Ratio Rank: 67
UNOV Martin Ratio Rank: 76

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.

RAFE vs. UNOV - Risk-Adjusted Trends Comparison

This table presents a comparison of risk-adjusted performance metrics for PIMCO RAFI ESG U.S. ETF (RAFE) and Innovator U.S. Equity Ultra Buffer ETF - November (UNOV). 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.

	RAFE	UNOV	Difference
Sharpe ratio Return per unit of total volatility	1.03	1.16	-0.13
Sortino ratio Return per unit of downside risk	1.51	1.71	-0.20
Omega ratio Gain probability vs. loss probability	1.22	1.27	-0.06
Calmar ratio Return relative to maximum drawdown	1.52	1.73	-0.21
Martin ratio Return relative to average drawdown	6.68	8.24	-1.56
Data is calculated on a 1-year rolling basis and updated daily. The trend shows the change in the indicator over the past month.

RAFE vs. UNOV - Sharpe Ratio Comparison

The current RAFE Sharpe Ratio is 1.03, which is comparable to the UNOV Sharpe Ratio of 1.16. The chart below compares the historical Sharpe Ratios of RAFE and UNOV, 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

	RAFE	UNOV	Difference
Sharpe Ratio (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	1.03	1.16	-0.13
Sharpe Ratio (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period	0.61	0.79	-0.18
Sharpe Ratio (All Time) Calculated using the full available price history	0.54	0.78	-0.24

Correlation

The correlation between RAFE and UNOV is 0.75, 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

RAFE vs. UNOV - Dividend Comparison

RAFE's dividend yield for the trailing twelve months is around 1.68%, while UNOV has not paid dividends to shareholders.

	TTM	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020
RAFE PIMCO RAFI ESG U.S. ETF	1.68%	1.67%	1.79%	1.81%	2.22%	1.42%	2.36%
UNOV Innovator U.S. Equity Ultra Buffer ETF - November	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%

Drawdowns

RAFE vs. UNOV - Drawdown Comparison

The maximum RAFE drawdown since its inception was -35.74%, which is greater than UNOV's maximum drawdown of -13.84%. Use the drawdown chart below to compare losses from any high point for RAFE and UNOV.

Drawdown Indicators

	RAFE	UNOV	Difference
Max Drawdown Largest peak-to-trough decline	-35.74%	-13.84%	-21.90%
Max Drawdown (1Y) Largest decline over 1 year	-11.57%	-5.78%	-5.79%
Max Drawdown (5Y) Largest decline over 5 years	-24.28%	-9.10%	-15.18%
Current Drawdown Current decline from peak	-5.45%	-3.25%	-2.20%
Average Drawdown Average peak-to-trough decline	-6.37%	-1.69%	-4.68%
Ulcer Index Depth and duration of drawdowns from previous peaks	2.63%	1.21%	+1.42%

Volatility

RAFE vs. UNOV - Volatility Comparison

PIMCO RAFI ESG U.S. ETF (RAFE) has a higher volatility of 4.53% compared to Innovator U.S. Equity Ultra Buffer ETF - November (UNOV) at 2.74%. This indicates that RAFE's price experiences larger fluctuations and is considered to be riskier than UNOV based on this measure. The chart below showcases a comparison of their rolling one-month volatility.

Volatility by Period

	RAFE	UNOV	Difference
Volatility (1M) Calculated over the trailing 1-month period	4.53%	2.74%	+1.79%
Volatility (6M) Calculated over the trailing 6-month period	8.69%	4.55%	+4.14%
Volatility (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	16.25%	8.50%	+7.75%
Volatility (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period, annualized	15.09%	6.77%	+8.32%
Volatility (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period, annualized	19.61%	7.77%	+11.84%