Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
COWZ vs GDX: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, COWZ returned +24.4% to GDX's +19.0%, and COWZ charges 0.49% to GDX's 0.51%.
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Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $19.5bn for Pacer US Cash Cows 100 ETF and $25.6bn for VanEck Gold Miners ETF.
Pair scorecard
COWZ costs 0.02 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 5.4 points; GDX is 1.3 times larger.
| Measure | COWZ | GDX |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +24.4% | +19.0% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its all-time high | 27.5%, high on Feb 27, 2026 | |
| Against its benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | Pacer US Cash Cows 100 Index | Gold miners |
| Against its benchmark, 1 year | ahead by 5.6 pts | |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.49% | 0.51% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 | $19.5bn | $25.6bn |
| Active share vs the S&P 500 | 100% | |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 3% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 20.4% | 60% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Dec 30, 2016 to Oct 23, 2026 · 512 weekly returnsGDX returned more: +321.3% to +251.9%. COWZ swung less: 19.6% to 36.3%. COWZ fell less at its worst: −36.3% to −46.5%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | COWZ | GDX | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +251.9% | +321.3% | GDX | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +13.6% | +15.7% | GDX | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +188.5% | +283.4% | GDX | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 19.6% | 36.3% | COWZ | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 13.8% | 24.5% | COWZ | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −36.3% | −46.5% | COWZ | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.62 | 0.52 | COWZ | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.89 | 0.77 | COWZ | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.38 | 0.34 | COWZ (slight) | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 512 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, COWZ and GDX hold 3% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026.
half
3% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
COWZ and GDX on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
COWZ and GDX do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. COWZ follows Pacer US Cash Cows 100 Index and GDX follows Gold miners.
- Holdings in common. 3% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 COWZ returned +24.4% and GDX +19.0% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 5.4 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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COWZ
COWZ tracks an index of US Cash Cows 100. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +24.4% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.49% a year. By its holdings filed for Jul 31, 2026, 95% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 100 positions, with the top ten at 20.4%.
GDX
By weight, 12% of GDX's portfolio is stocks that are also in the S&P 500; its active share against the S&P 500 is 100%. The top ten holdings are 60% of the fund across 59 positions, as published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 the fund returned +19.0% with distributions reinvested against +13.4% for its benchmark, the MSCI ACWI Index, so a holder was ahead by 5.6 pts. It sits 27.5% below its all-time high of Feb 27, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Are COWZ and GDX in the same category?
- COWZ is a stock ETF and GDX is a thematic ETF, so they do different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and holdings.
- Which returned more over the last year, COWZ or GDX?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, COWZ returned +24.4% and GDX +19.0%.
- Which is cheaper, COWZ or GDX?
- COWZ is cheaper, by 0.02 percentage points a year. That is about $2 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Links are sources, not endorsements. A comparison is not a recommendation.
How this is computed
Overlap adds up the smaller of the two weights for each security both funds hold.
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ETFIQ, COWZ against GDX, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/cowz-vs-gdx
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). COWZ against GDX. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/cowz-vs-gdx
[COWZ against GDX (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/cowz-vs-gdx)
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