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Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

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PFF vs PREF: Differences, Returns & Fees

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Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, PFF returned −4.2% to PREF's +0.6%, and PFF charges 0.45% to PREF's 0.55%.

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Net assets: $11.8bn on Oct 27, 2026 for iShares Preferred and Income Securities ETF, and $1.9bn on Oct 26, 2026 for Principal Spectrum Preferred Securities Active ETF.

PFF on its own →PREF on its own →
At a glance
−4.2%
PFF total return, 1 year
+0.6%
PREF total return, 1 year
0.45%
PFF expense ratio
0.55%
PREF expense ratio

Pair scorecard

PFF costs 0.10 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 4.8 points; PFF is 6.2 times larger.

PFF vs PREF: Differences, Returns & Fees
MeasurePFFPREF
Return
Total return, 1 year−4.2%+0.6%
Drawdown
Below its high7.1%, high on May 8, 2026
Benchmark
What it tracksICE Exchange-Listed Preferred & Hybrid Securities IndexNo index, actively managed
Cost and size
Expense ratio0.45%0.55%
Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026$11.8bn$1.9bn
Holdings
Holdings in common0%
Top ten holdings, share of the fund22.7%20.1%

Holdings in common uses holdings dated Jun 30, 2026. Method

Risk and return

Aug 4, 2017 to Oct 23, 2026 · 481 weekly returns
PFF PREF
Return
Total return edge PREF +23.5% +39.8%
Annualized edge PREF +2.3% +3.7%
Price return edge PREF −26.4% −9.7%
Risk
Volatility edge PREF 12.8% 8.4%
Max drawdown edge PREF −27.2% −23.0%
Risk-adjusted
Sharpe edge PREF 0.03 0.16
Sortino edge PREF 0.05 0.20
Calmar edge PREF 0.09 0.16
Reading

PREF returned more: +39.8% to +23.5%. PREF swung less: 8.4% to 12.8%. PREF fell less at its worst: −23.0% to −27.2%.

Full scorecard

9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
Risk and return: PFF vs PREF: Differences, Returns & Fees
MeasurePFFPREFEdgeHow it is measured
Return
Total return+23.5%+39.8%PREFPrice change plus distributions, reinvested.
Annualized+2.3%+3.7%PREFTotal return as a yearly rate.
Price return−26.4%−9.7%PREFPrice change alone, distributions left out.
Risk
Volatility12.8%8.4%PREFSpread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier.
Downside deviation9.2%6.8%PREFLike volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate.
Max drawdown−27.2%−23.0%PREFDeepest fall from a high to the low after it.
Risk-adjusted
Sharpe0.030.16PREFReturn above Treasury bills per unit of volatility.
Sortino0.050.20PREFReturn above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation.
Calmar0.090.16PREFAnnualized return divided by the max drawdown.

Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 481 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.

What they share

0%

By the books each fund has filed, PFF and PREF hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Jun 30, 2026.

0 half 100%

half

0% in common

Positions both hold · largest shared weight first PFF PREF
Only in one fund ↓
Only in PFF
BOEING COMPANY (THE) 6% SER A DEP SHS REPSTG 1/20TH INT MANDATORY CONV PFD 3.93%
STRATEGY INC VARIABLE RATE SERIES A PERPETUAL STRETCH PREFERRED STOCK 2.95%
WELLS FARGO & COMPANY 7.5% NON-CUMULATIVE PERPETUAL CONVERTIBLE CLASS A PREFERRED STOCK, SERIES L 2.33%
ORACLE CORP DEPOSITARY SHARES EACH REPRESENTING A 1/2,000TH INTEREST IN A SHARE OF 6.50% SERIES D MANDATORY CONVERTIBLE PREFERRED STOCK 2.28%
HEWLETT PACKARD ENTERPRISE COMPANY 7.625% SERIES C MANDATORY CONVERTIBLE PREFERRED STOCK 1.76%
BANK OF AMERICA CORP 7.25% NON-CUMULATIVE PERPETUAL CONVERTIBLE PREFERRED STOCK SERIES L 1.45%
CITIGROUP CAPITAL XIII FIXED/FLOAT TRUST PREFERRED SECURITIES 1.31%
ALBEMARLE CORP DEPOSITARY SHARES EACH REPRESENTING A 1/20TH INTEREST IN A SHARE OF 7.25% SERIES A MANDATORY CONVERTIBLE PREFERRED STOCK 1.29%
Only in PREF
Bank of America Corp., due Jul 26, 2030 2.73%
MetLife, Inc., due Mar 15, 2056 2.40%
Enbridge, Inc., due Jan 15, 2084 2.35%
Toronto-Dominion Bank, due Oct 31, 2082 2.07%
JPMorgan Chase & Co., due Apr 1, 2030 1.97%
PNC Financial Services Group, Inc., due Mar 15, 2030 1.84%
Bank of Nova Scotia, due Oct 27, 2082 1.83%
Charles Schwab Corp., due Jun 1, 2031 1.68%
Check overlap with more funds →

Side by side

PFF iShares Preferred and Income Securities ETF PREF Principal Spectrum Preferred Securities Active ETF
Where it sits Bond ETF Bond ETF
Issuer iShares Principal
What it is Tracks an index of Preferred and Income Securities Actively managed
Total return, 1 year −4.2% +0.6%
Its benchmark over the same days +13.6% (MLRG) not measured
Gap to its benchmark −17.8 pts vs MLRG not measured
Expense ratio 0.45% 0.55%
Already in the S&P 500 0.0% 0.0%
Holdings 453 160
Net assets, PFF as of Oct 27, 2026 and PREF as of Oct 26, 2026 $11.8bn $1.9bn

PFF and PREF on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

Client brief · page 1 of 2 Report BR-C425F00F2E

PFF and PREF are built for the same job. How do they differ in cost, holdings and results?

  1. What each follows. PFF follows ICE Exchange-Listed Preferred & Hybrid Securities Index and PREF follows No index, actively managed.
  2. Holdings in common. 0% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Jun 30, 2026).
  3. One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 PFF returned −4.2% and PREF +0.6% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 4.8 points.

Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

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About each fund
PFF

PFF tracks an index of Preferred and Income Securities. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned −4.2% with distributions reinvested, against +13.6% for its benchmark, the MSCI USA Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.45% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 0% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 453 positions, with the top ten at 22.7%. It sat 7.1% below its high of May 8, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.

PREF

PREF is actively managed and tracks no index. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +0.6% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.55% a year. By its holdings filed for Jun 30, 2026, 0% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 160 positions, with the top ten at 20.1%.

Questions people ask

Which returned more over the last year, PFF or PREF?
In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, PFF returned −4.2% and PREF +0.6%.
Which is cheaper, PFF or PREF?
PFF is cheaper, by 0.10 percentage points a year. That is about $10 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
How much do PFF and PREF overlap with the S&P 500?
By their latest filed holdings, 0% of PFF and 0% of PREF by weight is stocks the S&P 500 already holds.
Other comparisons
PFF vs PGXPFF vs PFFDFPEI vs PFFPFF vs PFXFPREF vs VRPPFFA vs PREFPFFD vs PREFFPE vs PREF
Where to next
PFF on its own →PREF on its own →Hold both: look the portfolio through →Rankings →PFF dividend history →PFF holdings →PREF dividend history →PREF holdings →Standards and sources →
Sources and dates
PFF filings on SEC EDGAR ↗
PFF prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗
iShares page for PFF ↗
PREF filings on SEC EDGAR ↗
PREF prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗
Principal website ↗

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.

Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown

ETFIQ, PFF against PREF, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/pff-vs-pref

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