Data as of Nov 4, 2026.

vsOpen in the appCompare their flowsaskIQ about these two fundsAsk the committee about these two funds
Alternative ETFs

CTA vs FFUT: Correlation to the S&P 500

Share
Share on XDownload as PDF

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, CTA moved less with the S&P 500 than FFUT: correlation −0.14 against +0.09.

askIQ about this page

askIQ about CTA and FFUT

Net assets: $1.3bn on Nov 3, 2026 for Simplify Managed Futures Strategy ETF, and $394m on Sep 30, 2026 for Fidelity Managed Futures ETF.

At a glance
−0.14
CTA correlation with the S&P 500
+0.09
FFUT correlation with the S&P 500
5.3%
CTA down-week capture
13.6%
FFUT down-week capture
CTA Fell 5% as much as the S&P 500
Fell 5% as much as the S&P 500CTA in the 26 weeks SPY fell, year to Nov 4, 2026: SPY averaged −1.07%, CTA −0.06%.SPY−1.07%CTA−0.06%Average week when SPY fell: 26 of 52, year to Nov 4, 2026Fell 5% as much as the S&P 500CTA in the 26 weeks SPY fell, year to Nov 4, 2026: SPY averaged −1.07%, CTA −0.06%.SPY−1.07%CTA−0.06%Average week when SPY fell

CTA in the 26 weeks SPY fell, year to Nov 4, 2026: SPY averaged −1.07%, CTA −0.06%.

FFUT Fell 14% as much as the S&P 500
Fell 14% as much as the S&P 500FFUT in the 26 weeks SPY fell, year to Nov 4, 2026: SPY averaged −1.07%, FFUT −0.15%.SPY−1.07%FFUT−0.15%Average week when SPY fell: 26 of 52, year to Nov 4, 2026Fell 14% as much as the S&P 500FFUT in the 26 weeks SPY fell, year to Nov 4, 2026: SPY averaged −1.07%, FFUT −0.15%.SPY−1.07%FFUT−0.15%Average week when SPY fell

FFUT in the 26 weeks SPY fell, year to Nov 4, 2026: SPY averaged −1.07%, FFUT −0.15%.

Pair scorecard

FFUT costs 0.06 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 12.6 points.

CTA vs FFUT: Correlation to the S&P 500
MeasureCTAFFUT
Return
Total return, 1 year+4.6%+17.2%
Against its benchmark
Treasury bills, 52 weeks+3.7%
Cost and size
Expense ratio0.86%0.80%
Net assets, CTA as of Nov 3, 2026 and FFUT as of Sep 30, 2026$1.3bn$394m
Holdings
Holdings in commonnot published
Risk
Beta to the S&P 500−0.30: about 0.30% for each 1%+0.08: about 0.08% for each 1%
Its average week when the S&P 500 fellfell 0.06%fell 0.15%
ETFIQ Stock Diversification Score · CTA scores higher How much does it diversify a stock portfolio?
IQ Alternatives Score94.2CTA79.4FFUT

How much it diversifies a stock portfolio, ranked against 17 systematic trend alternatives ETFs with a full year. 100 is best. How it is computed

2.9, the lowest in this set 94.2, the highest

One year of weekly moves against the S&P 500, within one strategy; it ignores what the fund returned. All alternatives ETFs ranked by it →

Method

Risk and return

Jun 13, 2025 to Oct 30, 2026 · 72 weekly returns
CTA FFUT
Return
Total return edge FFUT +15.5% +27.4%
Annualized edge FFUT +11.0% +19.1%
Price return edge FFUT +7.2% +24.7%
Risk
Volatility edge FFUT 20.9% 9.3%
Max drawdown edge FFUT −19.0% −4.2%
Risk-adjusted
Sharpe edge FFUT 0.41 1.52
Sortino edge FFUT 0.62 2.61
Calmar edge FFUT 0.58 4.54
Reading

From Jun 2025 to Oct 2026, FFUT returned more: +27.4% to +15.5%. FFUT swung less: 9.3% to 20.9%. FFUT fell less at its worst: −4.2% to −19.0%.

Full scorecard

9 measures, with how each is measured
Open ↓
Risk and return: CTA vs FFUT: Correlation to the S&P 500
MeasureCTAFFUTEdgeHow it is measured
Return
Total return+15.5%+27.4%FFUTPrice change plus distributions, reinvested.
Annualized+11.0%+19.1%FFUTTotal return as a yearly rate.
Price return+7.2%+24.7%FFUTPrice change alone, distributions left out.
Risk
Volatility20.9%9.3%FFUTSpread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier.
Downside deviation14.0%5.4%FFUTLike volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate.
Max drawdown−19.0%−4.2%FFUTDeepest fall from a high to the low after it.
Risk-adjusted
Sharpe0.411.52FFUTReturn above Treasury bills per unit of volatility.
Sortino0.622.61FFUTReturn above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation.
Calmar0.584.54FFUTAnnualized return divided by the max drawdown.

Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 72 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.

Window by window

Window by window: CTA vs FFUT: Correlation to the S&P 500
Total return
WindowCTAFFUT
3 months+6.2%+0.9%
6 months−10.8%+3.2%
1 year+4.6%+17.2%
3 years+22.3%–
Since launchNot the same days: CTA Mar 2022 · FFUT Jun 2025+37.8%+22.4%

– means no data for this window. Open this comparison in the app →

Side by side

CTA Simplify Managed Futures Strategy ETF · Managed futures fund: follows price trends in futures on stocks, bonds, currencies and commodities, and can bet on falls as well as rises FFUT Fidelity Managed Futures ETF · Managed futures fund: follows price trends in futures on stocks, bonds, currencies and commodities, and can bet on falls as well as rises
Strategy Managed futures Managed futures
Correlation with the S&P 500 −0.14 +0.09
Beta to the S&P 500 −0.30 +0.08
Down-week capture 5.3% 13.6%
Average week when the S&P 500 fell −0.06% −0.15%
The S&P 500 in those weeks −1.07% −1.07%
Total return, same 52 weeks +3.6% +17.0%
Against T-bills, percentage points 0.0 pts +13.4 pts
Expense ratio 0.86% 0.80%
First traded Mar 8, 2022 Jun 5, 2025
Net assets, CTA as of Nov 3, 2026 and FFUT as of Sep 30, 2026 $1.3bn $394m

As of Nov 4, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

One strategy, two funds

CTA and FFUT both run a managed futures strategy. Over the same 52 weeks to Nov 4, 2026, CTA’s weekly returns had a correlation of −0.14 with the S&P 500 and FFUT’s +0.09. In the 26 weeks the index fell, by 1.07% a week on average, CTA averaged −0.06% and FFUT −0.15%. Over the same weeks, CTA finished level with cash and FFUT finished 13.4 points ahead of cash.

Client brief:

The two-page PDF for this pair is coming. Save the comparison to follow its changes. Free. It needs an email sign-in, once.

Your saved page · Privacy.

Alert

The week's ETF fund flows, by email on Sundays.

One-click unsubscribe. See Privacy.

About each fund
CTA

CTA is a managed futures fund. ETFIQ measures what every alternatives fund is sold on: whether it moves differently from the stock market. Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, its weekly returns had a correlation of −0.14 with the S&P 500’s and a beta of −0.30, so for each 1% the index moved it moved about 0.30% the other way. The S&P 500 fell in 26 of those 52 weeks, by 1.07% on average. In the same weeks CTA fell 0.06% on average, a down-week capture of 5.3%. Over the same 52 weeks CTA returned +3.6% and a Treasury bill fund +3.7%, so it finished level with cash.

FFUT

FFUT is a managed futures fund. Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, its weekly returns had a correlation of +0.09 with the S&P 500’s and a beta of +0.08, so for each 1% the index moved it moved about 0.08% the same way. In the same weeks FFUT fell 0.15% on average, a down-week capture of 13.6%. Over the same 52 weeks FFUT returned +17.0% and a Treasury bill fund +3.7%, so it finished 13.4 percentage points ahead of cash.

Questions people ask

Which moved less with the S&P 500, CTA or FFUT?
Over the 52 weeks to Nov 4, 2026, CTA’s weekly returns had a correlation of −0.14 with the S&P 500 and FFUT’s +0.09, so CTA moved less with the index.
Which did better when the S&P 500 fell, CTA or FFUT?
In the 26 weeks the S&P 500 fell, by 1.07% a week on average, CTA averaged −0.06% and FFUT −0.15%, so CTA returned more in those weeks.
Which earned more than cash, CTA or FFUT?
Over the same weeks, CTA finished level with cash and FFUT finished 13.4 percentage points ahead of cash. Cash here is BIL, a fund of Treasury bills.
Which is cheaper, CTA or FFUT?
CTA charges 0.86% a year and FFUT charges 0.80%, so FFUT is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Other comparisons
Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown

ETFIQ, CTA against FFUT, data as of Nov 4, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/alternatives/cta-vs-ffut

Open data →

Free to use with attribution for data ETFIQ computes; issuer data stays under its owner's terms.