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LTL vs XLCU: which held to its multiple?

LTL returns +2 times XLC each day and XLCU +3 times, and they share no window yet. ProShares Ultra Communication Services and MicroSectors 3x Long Communication Services (XLC) ETNs.

+0.5%
LTL returned, 3 months
−0.6%
XLCU returned, since launch
−2.4 pts
LTL from its stated multiple
−0.1 pts
XLCU from its stated multiple
LTL · 3 months to Sep 30, 20262.4 pts short of its stated multiple
2.4 pts short of its stated multipleLTL returned +0.5% while 2 times XLC's move would have been +2.9%XLC +1.4% ×2 implies+2.9%LTL returned+0.5%2.4 pts short of its stated multipleLTL returned +0.5% while 2 times XLC's move would have been +2.9%XLC +1.4% ×2 implies+2.9%LTL returned+0.5%

LTL returned +0.5% while 2 times XLC's move would have been +2.9%

XLCU · since launch to Sep 30, 2026On its stated multiple
On its stated multipleXLCU returned −0.6% while 3 times XLC's move would have been −0.5%XLC −0.2% ×3 implies−0.5%XLCU returned−0.6%On its stated multipleXLCU returned −0.6% while 3 times XLC's move would have been −0.5%XLC −0.2% ×3 implies−0.5%XLCU returned−0.6%

XLCU returned −0.6% while 3 times XLC's move would have been −0.5%

Performance, window by window

Total returnMultiple would giveDifference
WindowLTLXLCULTLXLCULTLXLCU
1 month−0.9%not published−0.2%not published−0.7 ptsnot published
3 months+0.5%not published+2.9%not published−2.4 ptsnot published
6 months−3.3%not published+0.7%not published−4.0 ptsnot published
1 year−17.1%not published−10.2%not published−6.9 ptsnot published
3 years+130.9%not published+150.3%not published−19.4 ptsnot published
Since launch
LTL Jun 2018 · XLCU Sep 2026
+181.7%−0.6%not meaningful−0.5%not meaningful−0.1 pts

LTL and XLCU over each window. Every figure is an ETFIQ calculation with distributions reinvested. Source: ETFIQ. Open the live comparison on ETFIQ →

On the same fields

LTL
ProShares Ultra Communication Services · Aims to return twice the daily move of State Street Communication Services Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLC)
XLCU
MicroSectors 3x Long Communication Services (XLC) ETNs · Aims to return three times the daily move of State Street Communication Services Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLC)
Issuer ProShares MicroSectors
Sets out to return +2x +3x
Underlying asset XLC XLC
Segment sector index
Fund returned, 3 months or since launch +0.5% −0.6%
Underlying returned, over that window +1.4% −0.2%
What the stated multiple implies, over that window +2.9% −0.5%
Difference from stated, over that window −2.4 pts −0.1 pts
Fund returned, 1 year or since launch −17.1% −0.6%
Difference from stated, over that window −6.9 pts −0.1 pts
Underlying volatility 20% 24%
Expense ratio 0.95% not published
Launched Jan 4, 2010 Sep 10, 2026
Net assets $5m not published

LTL and XLCU on the same fields, as of Sep 30, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

LTL in plain words

Three months to Sep 30, 2026: LTL returned +0.5% where its own daily promise gave +1.8%, 1.4 points short. Read the multiple against the whole window instead and 2 times XLC's 1.4% implies +2.9%, which makes LTL look 2.4 points short. 1.0 of that is daily compounding, which happens to any 2 times fund over the same path, and the rest is the fund. LTL aims to return +2 times XLC's move each day, then resets. Over one day it does that. Over longer, the daily results compound, so the total is not +2 times the period's move: in a market that falls and comes back it is reliably less, and in a steady run it can be more. XLC moved at 20% annualized over that window. That is what decides how far the two figures separate: the same fund on a calm underlying and a violent one is a different product.

XLCU in plain words

Since launch to Sep 30, 2026: XLCU returned −0.6% where its own daily promise gave −1.4%, 0.8 points over. Read the multiple against the whole window instead and 3 times XLC's −0.2% implies −0.5%, which makes XLCU look 0.1 points short. 0.9 of that is daily compounding, which happens to any 3 times fund over the same path, and the rest is the fund. XLCU aims to return +3 times XLC's move each day, then resets. Over longer, the daily results compound, so the total is not +3 times the period's move: in a market that falls and comes back it is reliably less, and in a steady run it can be more. XLC moved at 24% annualized over that window.

Questions people ask

Are LTL and XLCU levered on the same thing?
Yes. Both are levered on State Street Communication Services Select Sector SPDR ETF, LTL at +2 times and XLCU at +3 times the daily move.
Can I hold LTL or XLCU for a year?
Both reset every day, so the multiple in the name applies to a single day and the daily results compound. Over a year the total is not the multiple times the year’s move, and in a market that falls and comes back it is reliably less. ETFIQ makes no recommendation either way.
Other comparisons
LTL vs XLCDXLCU vs XLCD
XLC →LTL on its own →XLCU on its own →How every figure is computed →Standards and sources →
Where these figures came from
LTL filings on SEC EDGAR ↗LTL prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗ProShares page for LTL ↗MicroSectors website ↗

ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure. It is not affiliated with any issuer, and a link is not an endorsement. A comparison is not a recommendation.

Cite this page

ETFIQ, LTL against XLCU, data as of Sep 30, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/leverage/ltl-vs-xlcu

Open data

Free to use with attribution. Every figure is calculated from a named public source; the method is at etfiq.com/methodology.