Data as of .
CBLS vs FTLS: which moved less with stocks?
Over the year to Sep 18, 2026, CBLS moved less with the S&P 500 than FTLS: correlation +0.36 against +0.77.
ETFIQ Diversifier Score: CBLS scores higher
How much does it diversify a stock portfolio?
A percentile among the 63 alternatives ETFs with a full year. It is a position in a set, not a rating, and neither end of it is a recommendation. All alternatives ETFs ranked by it · How it is computed
One strategy, two funds
CBLS and FTLS both run a long-short equity strategy. Over the same 52 weeks to Sep 18, 2026, CBLS’s weekly returns had a correlation of +0.36 with the S&P 500 and FTLS’s +0.77. In the 22 weeks the index fell, by 1.24% a week on average, CBLS averaged −0.18% and FTLS −0.52%. Over the same weeks, CBLS finished 5.7 percentage points ahead of cash and FTLS finished 7.7 points ahead of cash.
Performance, window by window
| Window | Total return | vs the S&P 500 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CBLS | FTLS | CBLS | FTLS | |
| 3 months | −7.1% | +3.2% | −9.3 pts | +0.9 pts |
| 6 months | +7.6% | +10.9% | −10.4 pts | −7.1 pts |
| 1 year | +9.9% | +11.9% | −6.7 pts | −4.7 pts |
| 3 years | +64.1% | +47.7% | −14.3 pts | −30.7 pts |
| Since launch | +55.5% | +183.9% | −75.2 pts | −183.2 pts |
| CBLS Clough Hedged Equity ETF Long-short equity fund: owns stocks and sells others short, so part of its exposure to the stock market cancels out | FTLS First Trust Long/Short Equity Long-short equity fund: owns stocks and sells others short, so part of its exposure to the stock market cancels out | |
|---|---|---|
| Issuer | Clough | First Trust |
| Strategy | Long-short equity | Long-short equity |
| Correlation with the S&P 500 | +0.36 | +0.77 |
| Beta to the S&P 500 | +0.40 | +0.44 |
| Down-week capture | 14.5% | 42.3% |
| Average week when the S&P 500 fell | −0.18% | −0.52% |
| The S&P 500 in those weeks | −1.24% | −1.24% |
| Total return, same 52 weeks | +9.3% | +11.4% |
| Against T-bills, percentage points | +5.7 pts | +7.7 pts |
| Expense ratio | 1.89% | 1.38% |
| Listed | Nov 13, 2020 | Sep 10, 2014 |
| Net assets | $53m | $2.6bn |
CBLS in plain words
CBLS is a long-short equity fund. ETFIQ measures what every alternatives fund is sold on: whether it moves differently from the stock market. Over the year to Sep 18, 2026, its weekly returns had a correlation of +0.36 with the S&P 500’s and a beta of +0.40, so for each 1% the index moved it moved about 0.40% the same way. The S&P 500 fell in 22 of those 52 weeks, by 1.24% on average. In the same weeks CBLS fell 0.18% on average, a down-week capture of 14.5%. Over the same 52 weeks CBLS returned +9.3% and a Treasury bill fund +3.6%, so it finished 5.7 percentage points ahead of cash.
FTLS in plain words
FTLS is a long-short equity fund. Over the year to Sep 18, 2026, its weekly returns had a correlation of +0.77 with the S&P 500’s and a beta of +0.44, so for each 1% the index moved it moved about 0.44% the same way. In the same weeks FTLS fell 0.52% on average, a down-week capture of 42.3%. Over the same 52 weeks FTLS returned +11.4% and a Treasury bill fund +3.6%, so it finished 7.7 percentage points ahead of cash.
Questions people ask
- Which moved less with the S&P 500, CBLS or FTLS?
- Over the 52 weeks to Sep 18, 2026, CBLS’s weekly returns had a correlation of +0.36 with the S&P 500 and FTLS’s +0.77, so CBLS moved less with the index.
- Which did better when the S&P 500 fell, CBLS or FTLS?
- In the 22 weeks the S&P 500 fell, by 1.24% a week on average, CBLS averaged −0.18% and FTLS −0.52%, so CBLS returned more in those weeks.
- Which earned more than cash, CBLS or FTLS?
- Over the same weeks, CBLS finished 5.7 percentage points ahead of cash and FTLS finished 7.7 percentage points ahead of cash. Cash here is BIL, a fund of Treasury bills.
- Which is cheaper, CBLS or FTLS?
- CBLS charges 1.89% a year and FTLS charges 1.38%, so FTLS is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Other comparisons
Where these figures came from
ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure. It is not affiliated with any issuer, and a link is not an endorsement.
Cite this page. ETFIQ, CBLS against FTLS, data as of Sep 18, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/alternatives/cbls-vs-ftls Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.