Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
PFF vs XLF: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, PFF returned −4.2% to XLF's +7.6%; 14% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $11.8bn for iShares Preferred and Income Securities ETF and $51.6bn for State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF.
Pair scorecard
XLF costs 0.37 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 11.8 points; XLF is 4.4 times larger.
| Measure | PFF | XLF |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | −4.2% | +7.6% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 7.1%, high on May 8, 2026 | 3.8%, high on Sep 3, 2026 |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | ICE Exchange-Listed Preferred & Hybrid Securities Index | Financial Select Sector Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.45% | 0.08% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 | $11.8bn | $51.6bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 14% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 22.7% | 57.4% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Apr 5, 2007 to Oct 23, 2026 · 1,020 weekly returnsXLF returned more: +181.4% to +94.0%. PFF swung less: 20.9% to 27.7%. PFF fell less at its worst: −65.4% to −82.7%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | PFF | XLF | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +94.0% | +181.4% | XLF | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +3.4% | +5.4% | XLF | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | −42.8% | +56.3% | XLF | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 20.9% | 27.7% | PFF | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 14.0% | 19.1% | PFF | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −65.4% | −82.7% | PFF | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.19 | 0.27 | XLF | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.28 | 0.40 | XLF | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.05 | 0.07 | XLF | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 1,020 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, PFF and XLF hold 14% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Oct 27, 2026.
half
14% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
PFF and XLF on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
PFF and XLF do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. PFF follows ICE Exchange-Listed Preferred & Hybrid Securities Index and XLF follows Financial Select Sector Index.
- Holdings in common. 14% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Oct 27, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 PFF returned −4.2% and XLF +7.6% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 11.8 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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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.
XLF
XLF tracks an index of Financials. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +7.6% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.08% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 100% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 77 positions, with the top ten at 57.4%. It sat 3.8% below its high of Sep 3, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, PFF or XLF?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, PFF returned −4.2% and XLF +7.6%.
- Which is cheaper, PFF or XLF?
- XLF is cheaper, by 0.37 percentage points a year. That is about $37 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, PFF against XLF, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/pff-vs-xlf
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). PFF against XLF. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/pff-vs-xlf
[PFF against XLF (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/pff-vs-xlf)
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