Which returned more over the last year, PFFA or PFFD?

In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, PFFA returned −3.4% and PFFD −6.2%.

Which is cheaper, PFFA or PFFD?

PFFD is cheaper, by 1.88 percentage points a year. That is about $188 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

How much do PFFA and PFFD overlap with the S&P 500?

By their latest filed holdings, 1% of PFFA and 0% of PFFD by weight is stocks the S&P 500 already holds.

Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

Across categories

PFFA vs PFFD: Differences, Returns & Fees

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Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, PFFA returned −3.4% to PFFD's −6.2%, and PFFD charges 0.23% to PFFA's 2.11%.

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Net assets: $2.5bn on Jul 31, 2026 for Virtus InfraCap U.S. Preferred Stock ETF, and $2.0bn on Oct 12, 2026 for Global X U.S. Preferred ETF.

PFFA on its own →PFFD on its own →

At a glance

−3.4%

PFFA total return, 1 year

−6.2%

PFFD total return, 1 year

2.11%

PFFA expense ratio

0.23%

PFFD expense ratio

Pair scorecard

PFFD costs 1.88 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 2.8 points.

PFFA vs PFFD: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	PFFA	PFFD
Return
Measure	PFFA	PFFD
Total return, 1 year	−3.4%	−6.2%
Drawdown
Measure	PFFA	PFFD
Below its high	9.2%, high on May 8, 2026	10.5%, high on Nov 5, 2021
Benchmark
Measure	PFFA	PFFD
What it tracks	No index, actively managed	ICE BofA Diversified Core U.S. Preferred Securities Index
Cost and size
Measure	PFFA	PFFD
Expense ratio	2.11%	0.23%
Net assets, PFFA as of Jul 31, 2026 and PFFD as of Oct 12, 2026	$2.5bn	$2.0bn
Holdings
Measure	PFFA	PFFD
Holdings in common	15%
Top ten holdings, share of the fund	22.9%	21.2%

Holdings in common uses holdings dated May 31, 2026 and Jul 31, 2026. Method

Risk and return

May 25, 2018 to Oct 23, 2026 · 439 weekly returns

PFFA PFFD

Return

Total return edge PFFA +64.9% +16.7%

Annualized edge PFFA +6.1% +1.8%

Price return edge PFFA −25.2% −29.1%

Risk

Volatility edge PFFD 27.3% 13.3%

Max drawdown edge PFFD −59.0% −26.1%

Risk-adjusted

Sharpe edge PFFA 0.25 −0.01

Sortino edge PFFA 0.37 −0.01

Calmar edge PFFA 0.10 0.07

Reading

PFFA returned more: +64.9% to +16.7%. PFFD swung less: 13.3% to 27.3%. PFFD fell less at its worst: −26.1% to −59.0%.

Full scorecard

9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓

Risk and return: PFFA vs PFFD: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	PFFA	PFFD	Edge	How it is measured
Return
Total return	+64.9%	+16.7%	PFFA	Price change plus distributions, reinvested.
Annualized	+6.1%	+1.8%	PFFA	Total return as a yearly rate.
Price return	−25.2%	−29.1%	PFFA	Price change alone, distributions left out.
Risk
Volatility	27.3%	13.3%	PFFD	Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier.
Downside deviation	18.6%	9.4%	PFFD	Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate.
Max drawdown	−59.0%	−26.1%	PFFD	Deepest fall from a high to the low after it.
Risk-adjusted
Sharpe	0.25	−0.01	PFFA	Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility.
Sortino	0.37	−0.01	PFFA	Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation.
Calmar	0.10	0.07	PFFA	Annualized return divided by the max drawdown.

Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 439 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.

What they share

15%

By the books each fund has filed, PFFA and PFFD hold 15% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated May 31, 2026 and Jul 31, 2026.

50%

0 half 100%

half

15% in common

Positions both hold · largest shared weight first PFFA PFFD

HEWLETT PACKARD ENTERPRISE COMPANY 7.625% SERIES C MANDATORY CONVERTIBLE PREFERRED STOCK 1.99% 2.71%

KKR & CO. INC 6.25% SERIES D MANDATORY CONVERTIBLE PREFERRED STOCK 2.54% 1.70%

BOEING COMPANY (THE) 6% SER A DEP SHS REPSTG 1/20TH INT MANDATORY CONV PFD 1.22% 4.70%

ARES MANAGEMENT CORP 6.75% SERIES B MANDATORY CONVERTIBLE PREFERRED STOCK 1.04% 1.01%

MICROCHIP TECHNOLOGY INC 7.50 % DEP SHS REPSTG 1/20TH PFD CONV SER A 0.72% 1.76%

XCEL ENERGY INC 6.25% NOTES ISSUED DUE ON OCTOBER 15, 2085 1.84% 0.70%

DTE ENERGY COMPANY 6.250% JUNIOR SUBORDINATED DEBENTURES DUE ON OCTOBER 1, 2085 1.40% 0.49%

STRATEGY INC 8.00% SERIES A PERPETUAL STRIKE PREFERRED STOCK 0.47% 0.82%

COREBRIDGE FINANCIAL INC 6.375% JUNIOR SUBORDINATED NOTES DUE DECEMBER 15,2064. 1.18% 0.45%

TELEPHONE & DATA SYSTEMS INC DEPOSITARY SHARES EACH REPRESENTING A 1/1,000 INTEREST IN A SHARE OF TELEPHONE AND DATA SYSTEMS, INC.S 6.000% SERIES VV C 2.38% 0.45%

BANC OF CALIFORNIA INC DEPOSITARY SHARES EACH REPRESENTING A 1/40TH INTEREST IN A SHARE OF 7.75% NON CUMULATIVE PERPETUAL PREFERRED STOCK SERIES F 2.16% 0.42%

SYNCHRONY FINANCIAL DEPOSITARY SHARES EACH REPRESENTING A 1/40TH INTEREST IN A SHARE OF 5.625% FIXED RATE NON-CUMULATIVE PERPETUAL PREFERRED STOCK, SE 0.37% 0.48%

Only in one fund ↓

Only in PFFA

STRATEGY INC VARIABLE RATE SERIES A PERPETUAL STRETCH PREFERRED STOCK 2.63%

FLAGSTAR BANK NA DEPOSITARY SHARES, EACH REPRESENTING A 1/40TH INTEREST IN A SHARE OF WFIXED-TO-FLOATING RATE SERIES A NONCUMULATIVE PERPETUAL PREFERR 2.56%

ENERGY TRANSFER LP 9.250% SERIES I FIXED RATE PERPETUAL PREFERRED UNITS 2.34%

GLOBAL NET LEASE INC 7.50% CUM RED PFD SER D 2.07%

ORACLE CORP DEPOSITARY SHARES EACH REPRESENTING A 1/2,000TH INTEREST IN A SHARE OF 6.50% SERIES D MANDATORY CONVERTIBLE PREFERRED STOCK 2.05%

TWO HARBORS INVESTMENTS CORP SER C FIXED TO FLOATING RATE CUMULATIVE REDEEMABLE PREFERRED STOCK 2.04%

BABCOCK & WILCOX ENTERPRISES INC 7.75% SERIES A CUMULATIVE PERPETUAL PREFERRED 2.04%

FIRST CITIZENS BANCSHARES INC DEPOSITARY SHARES, EACH REPRESENTING A 1/40TH INTEREST IN A SHARE OF 6.625% NON-CUMULATIVE PERPETUAL PREFERRED STOCK SER 1.98%

Only in PFFD

Wells Fargo & Co PREFERRED STOCK 2.25%

Citigroup Capital XIII PREFERRED STOCK 2.20%

NextEra Energy Inc PREFERRED STOCK 1.71%

Southern Co/The PREFERRED STOCK 1.64%

Bank of America Corp PREFERRED STOCK 1.30%

NextEra Energy Inc PREFERRED STOCK 1.20%

AT&T Inc PREFERRED STOCK 1.07%

JPMorgan Chase & Co PREFERRED STOCK 1.02%

Check overlap with more funds →

Side by side

PFFA Virtus InfraCap U.S. Preferred Stock ETF PFFD Global X U.S. Preferred ETF

Where it sits Bond ETF Bond ETF

Issuer Virtus Global X

What it is Actively managed Tracks an index

Total return, 1 year −3.4% −6.2%

Expense ratio 2.11% 0.23%

Already in the S&P 500 0.8% 0.0%

Holdings 194 224

Net assets, PFFA as of Jul 31, 2026 and PFFD as of Oct 12, 2026 $2.5bn $2.0bn

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

Client brief · page 1 of 2 Report BR-F3744A9831

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

What each follows. PFFA follows No index, actively managed and PFFD follows ICE BofA Diversified Core U.S. Preferred Securities Index.
Holdings in common. 15% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and May 31, 2026).
One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 PFFA returned −3.4% and PFFD −6.2% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 2.8 points.

Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

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About each fund

PFFA

PFFA is actively managed and tracks no index. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned −3.4% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 2.11% a year. By its holdings filed for Jul 31, 2026, 1% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 194 positions, with the top ten at 22.9%. It sat 9.2% below its high of May 8, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.

PFFD

PFFD tracks an index. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned −6.2% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.23% a year. By its holdings filed for May 31, 2026, 0% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 224 positions, with the top ten at 21.2%. It sat 10.5% below its high of Nov 5, 2021 on Oct 28, 2026.

Questions people ask

Which returned more over the last year, PFFA or PFFD?: In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, PFFA returned −3.4% and PFFD −6.2%.
Which is cheaper, PFFA or PFFD?: PFFD is cheaper, by 1.88 percentage points a year. That is about $188 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
How much do PFFA and PFFD overlap with the S&P 500?: By their latest filed holdings, 1% of PFFA and 0% of PFFD by weight is stocks the S&P 500 already holds.

Other comparisons

PFFA vs PREF PFFA vs PFXF FPEI vs PFFA PFFA vs VRP PFFD vs PFXF PFFD vs VRP PFFD vs PREF PFFD vs PGX

Where to next

PFFA on its own →PFFD on its own →Hold both: look the portfolio through →Rankings →PFFA dividend history →PFFA holdings →PFFD dividend history →PFFD holdings →Standards and sources →

Sources and dates

PFFA filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

PFFA prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

Virtus website ↗

PFFD filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

PFFD prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

Global X page for PFFD ↗

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, PFFA against PFFD, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/pffa-vs-pffd

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