STSM vs TSMZ: which held to its multiple?

Over three months against its own daily promise, STSM finished 0.1 points short and TSMZ 1.5 points over. Defiance Daily Target 2X Short TSM ETF and Direxion Daily TSM Bear 1X ETF.

−13.9%
STSM returned, 3 months
−4.2%
TSMZ returned, 3 months
−8.0 pts
STSM from its stated multiple
−1.2 pts
TSMZ from its stated multiple
STSM · 3 months to Sep 30, 20268 pts short of its stated multiple
8 pts short of its stated multipleSTSM returned −13.9% while −2 times TSM's move would have been −5.9%TSM +3.0% ×−2 implies−5.9%STSM returned−13.9%8 pts short of its stated multipleSTSM returned −13.9% while −2 times TSM's move would have been −5.9%TSM +3.0% ×−2 implies−5.9%STSM returned−13.9%

STSM returned −13.9% while −2 times TSM's move would have been −5.9%

TSMZ · 3 months to Sep 30, 20261.2 pts short of its stated multiple
1.2 pts short of its stated multipleTSMZ returned −4.2% while −1 times TSM's move would have been −3.0%TSM +3.0% ×−1 implies−3.0%TSMZ returned−4.2%1.2 pts short of its stated multipleTSMZ returned −4.2% while −1 times TSM's move would have been −3.0%TSM +3.0% ×−1 implies−3.0%TSMZ returned−4.2%

TSMZ returned −4.2% while −1 times TSM's move would have been −3.0%

ETFIQ Decay Resistance Score · TSMZ scores higherDid it keep up with its own daily multiple, compounded day by day?
0.4, the lowest in this set99.6, the highest

A percentile among the 125 inverse ETFs over three months. It is a position in a set, not a rating, and neither end of it is a recommendation. All leveraged ETFs ranked by it → How it is computed →

Performance, window by window

Total returnMultiple would giveDifference
WindowSTSMTSMZSTSMTSMZSTSMTSMZ
1 month−18.9%−9.0%−20.3%−10.1%+1.3 pts+1.1 pts
3 months−13.9%−4.2%−5.9%−3.0%−8.0 pts−1.2 pts
6 months−57.5%−29.6%−68.5%−34.3%+10.9 pts+4.6 pts
1 yearnot published−45.3%not published−65.0%not published+19.7 pts
Since launch
STSM Nov 2025 · TSMZ Oct 2024
−76.1%−68.7%−131.7%not meaningful+55.6 ptsnot meaningful

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

On the same fields

STSM
Defiance Daily Target 2X Short TSM ETF · Aims to return twice the opposite of the daily move of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM)
TSMZ
Direxion Daily TSM Bear 1X ETF · Aims to return 1 times the opposite of the daily move of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM)
Issuer Defiance Direxion
Sets out to return -2x -1x
Underlying asset TSM TSM
Segment company company
Fund returned, 3 months or since launch −13.9% −4.2%
Underlying returned, over that window +3.0% +3.0%
What the stated multiple implies, over that window −5.9% −3.0%
Difference from stated, over that window −8.0 pts −1.2 pts
Fund returned, 1 year or since launch −76.1% −45.3%
Difference from stated, over that window +55.6 pts +19.7 pts
Underlying volatility 34% 34%
Expense ratio 1.30% 1.01%
Launched Nov 18, 2025 Oct 3, 2024
Net assets $1m $3m

STSM and TSMZ on the same fields, as of Sep 30, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

STSM in plain words

Three months to Sep 30, 2026: STSM returned −13.9% where its own daily promise gave −13.8%, 0.1 points short. Read the multiple against the whole window instead and −2 times TSM's 3.0% implies −5.9%, which makes STSM look 8.0 points short. 7.9 of that is daily compounding, which happens to any −2 times fund over the same path, and the rest is the fund. STSM aims to return -2 times TSM'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. TSM moved at 34% 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.

TSMZ in plain words

Three months to Sep 30, 2026: TSMZ returned −4.2% where its own daily promise gave −5.7%, 1.5 points over. Read the multiple against the whole window instead and −1 times TSM's 3.0% implies −3.0%, which makes TSMZ look 1.2 points short. 2.8 of that is daily compounding, which happens to any −1 times fund over the same path, and the rest is the fund. TSMZ aims to return -1 times TSM's move each day, then resets. Over longer, the daily results compound, so the total is not -1 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.

Questions people ask

Which came closer to its stated multiple, STSM or TSMZ?
Over the window to Sep 30, 2026, STSM finished 8.0 points from what its multiple implies and TSMZ finished 1.2 points from its own, so TSMZ came closer. Neither figure predicts the next window: it depends on how much the underlying moves about.
Are STSM and TSMZ levered on the same thing?
Yes. Both are levered on Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, STSM at -2 times and TSMZ at -1 times the daily move.
Which one decays faster, STSM or TSMZ?
Decay follows how much the underlying moves about. Over this window STSM’s moved at 34% annualized and TSMZ’s at 34%, so STSM has the rougher ride and, at the same multiple, loses more to compounding.
Can I hold STSM or TSMZ 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.
Which is cheaper, STSM or TSMZ?
STSM charges 1.30% a year and TSMZ charges 1.01%, so TSMZ is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Cite this page

ETFIQ, STSM against TSMZ, data as of Sep 30, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/leverage/stsm-vs-tsmz

Open data

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