SPXL vs TMF ETF Comparison

Compare SPXL and TMF across fund costs, diversification, holdings, performance, income, risk and current AlgovestIQ evidence.

Market data as of Sep 5, 2026 market close· Fund characteristics as of Sep 5, 2026
SPXL
Direxion
vs
TMF
Direxion
SPXL
Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bull 3X Shares
Issuer
Direxion
Fund type
Equity
Index
-
Inception
2008-11-05
TMF
Direxion Daily 20+ Year Treasury Bull 3X ETF
Issuer
Direxion
Fund type
Fixed Income
Index
-
Inception
2009-04-16

What is the main difference between SPXL and TMF?

SPXL is Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bull 3X Shares, while TMF is Direxion Daily 20+ Year Treasury Bull 3X ETF. SPXL is tied to Equity; TMF is tied to Fixed Income. SPXL is broader by holdings count, with 503 positions versus 1 for TMF. TMF is more concentrated at the top, based on top-10 holdings weight.

Expense ratio
SPXL
0.95%
TMF
1.01%
Lower annual fund costSPXL
Holdings
SPXL
503
TMF
1
Broader reported basketSPXL
Annualized volatility
SPXL
38.5%
TMF
27.4%
Lower realized volatilityTMF
MetricSPXLTMFType
Expense ratio0.95%1.01%Fund
Assets under management$6.9B$2.2BFund
Holdings5031Fund
Top-10 concentration12.7%39%Fund
Average volume3,069,6447,547,530Fund
Underlying exposureEquityFixed IncomeFund
Annualized volatility38.5%27.4%Risk
Max drawdown-26.9%-32.4%Risk
Beta3.010.52Risk
Sharpe ratio1.21-0.71Risk
Sortino ratio1.72-1.14Risk
AIQ Score48/10044/100AlgovestIQ
AIQ Edge Score3/102/10AlgovestIQ
Momentum55/10043/100AlgovestIQ
Risk Resilience34/10031/100AlgovestIQ

AlgovestIQ AIQ Comparison

Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bull 3X Shares vs Direxion Daily 20+ Year Treasury Bull 3X ETF

Data as of Sep 5, 2026· market close· Leveraged· Coverage 54/66 fields· Moderate confidence
AIQ VerdictFragileAIQ Comparison Conviction 3/10

SPXL leads

SPXL leads by 4 AIQ points, primarily on Momentum, but the lead has narrowed from 11 points over 30 sessions.

Fragile: 2 of 4 evidence groups support SPXL, its lead is narrowing, and its current signal state is conflicted.

Evidence agreement: 2 of 4Comparison trend: Weakening
SPXL

Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bull 3X Shares

Leads
AIQ Score
48/100
AIQ Edge Score
3/10
TMF

Direxion Daily 20+ Year Treasury Bull 3X ETF

AIQ Score
44/100
AIQ Edge Score
2/10

The Algovestiq AIQ Score currently favors SPXL over TMF, 48 versus 44 as of Sep 5, 2026. SPXL's advantage is driven primarily by stronger momentum. SPXL also shows the stronger technical structure relative to its 50-day moving average. 2 of 4 covered evidence groups favor SPXL today, and the comparison is rated Fragile on stability: the AIQ gap is narrow at 4 points. SPXL lead: Weakening — the AIQ differential moved from 11 to 4 points over 30 sessions.

Compare Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bull 3X Shares and Direxion Daily 20+ Year Treasury Bull 3X ETF across performance, expense ratio, dividend yield, drawdown, volatility and the Algovestiq AIQ Score.

Compare SPXL and TMF against another ticker

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Basic: 2 symbols·Explorer: 3 symbols·Pro and Premium: 5 symbols·Your limit: 2

AIQ Factor Divergence

Where the two separate, on the four dimensions behind the AIQ Score. Bars read outward from a shared zero: further from the centre is a wider gap.

SPXL advantage
0
TMF advantage
  • Momentum25%55 vs 43
    SPXL +12
  • Risk Resilience15%34 vs 31
    Even
  • Quality30%59 vs 60
    Even
  • Value30%37 vs 36
    Even

2 of 4 evidence groups favor SPXL. SPXL’s edge is concentrated in momentum.

What changed since the last close

Latest scored session 2026-09-03, compared against the prior scored session 2026-09-02.

SPXL+3 AIQ

Largest factor move: Momentum +12

New signals

  • 52-Week High Proximity bullish, risk, long horizon (2.7%)
TMF+1 AIQ

Largest factor move: Momentum +5

No new signals fired.

SPXL's lead widened by 2 AIQ points in the latest snapshot.

Deeper signal detail for each name lives on its own signals page — SPXL and TMF both carry a full feed there.

Which one fits your objective

The same two names rank differently depending on what you are optimizing for. All six reads are shown at once — none of them is hidden behind a toggle.

Balanced

SPXL

SPXL on the overall AIQ Score, which weights Quality and Value at 30% each.

Growth

Even

Growth figures are not covered for both names.

Value

Even

The two are level on Value.

Momentum

SPXL

SPXL on the Momentum factor, by 12 points.

Lower downside

SPXL

SPXL carries the lower 1-month annualized volatility.

Analyst upside

Even

Analyst targets are level or not covered for both names.

Fund facts, side by side

Two funds tracking overlapping universes are separated by cost and risk far more than by holdings. Those lead here.

MeasureSPXLTMFWhy it matters
Expense ratio0.95%1.01%Lower is better — it compounds against you every year you hold.
Assets under management$6.9B$2.2BLarger funds generally carry tighter spreads.
Holdings51613More holdings means broader diversification, not better returns.
Average volume3,069,6447,547,530Liquidity — matters most if you trade size.
Annualized volatility38.5%27.4%Lower is a steadier ride for the same exposure.
Max drawdown-26.9%-32.4%The worst peak-to-trough loss on record for the fund.
Sharpe ratio1.21-0.71Return per unit of risk. Higher is better.
Beta3.010.52Sensitivity to the broad market. Neither direction is better — it depends on the role in your portfolio.

Where the exposure actually sits

SPXL and TMF share 0% of their weighted exposure across 0 common holdings.

Financial Services2.7% vs 19.4%
Cash & Others77.7% vs 80.6%
Technology8.7% vs
Communication Services2.1% vs
Healthcare2.0% vs
Consumer Cyclical2.0% vs
Industrials1.7% vs
Consumer Defensive1.0% vs
SPXLTMF

TMF is the more concentrated of the two: its ten largest positions are 38.96% of the fund, against 12.66% for SPXL (1 holdings vs 503). Concentration cuts both ways — it is what drives outperformance when the top names work, and what makes the drawdown deeper when they do not.

503 holdings are unique to SPXL and 1 to TMF. Owning both is genuinely additive — most of the capital sits in different securities.

ETF comparison questions

Short answers to the fund-specific questions behind this comparison.

Which ETF is more diversified, SPXL or TMF?

SPXL currently has more reported holdings, with 503 positions versus 1.

Which has the lower expense ratio?

SPXL has the lower reported expense ratio in the current fund profile.

Which ETF has the higher distribution yield?

The current dataset does not show a higher-yield winner.

Which ETF has been more volatile?

SPXL has the higher annualized volatility in the current risk snapshot.

Which ETF has had the smaller drawdown?

SPXL has the less severe max drawdown in the current risk snapshot.

Which ETF has the stronger current AlgovestIQ evidence?

SPXL currently leads on supporting AlgovestIQ evidence, 48 to 44.

AIQ Agreement Matrix

2 of 4 covered evidence groups favor SPXL. A wide gap backed by one group is a weaker case than a narrow gap backed by five.

Evidence groupFavorsReading
AIQ ScoreSPXL48 vs 44
FundamentalsNot coveredNot covered
ValuationEvenValue 37 vs 36
TechnicalsSPXLPrice vs 50-day 4.2% vs -4.2%; vs 200-day 21.3% vs -14.4%
Risk ResilienceEvenRisk Resilience 34 vs 31
Analyst expectationsNot coveredNot covered

✓ agrees with the overall verdict · ✕ points the other way. Groups marked “not covered” lack data on one or both of SPXL and TMF and are excluded from the count.

AIQ Decision Stability

Fragile

The conclusion is sensitive to small changes. Treat the lead as provisional and watch the flip conditions below.

  • The AIQ gap is narrow at 4 points. (argues the conclusion is provisional)
  • Only 2 of 4 covered evidence groups agree. (argues the conclusion is provisional)
  • The leader's advantage has been narrowing. (argues the conclusion is provisional)
  • The leader is throwing conflicting signals. (argues the conclusion is provisional)

Stability combines the score gap, how broadly the evidence agrees, how steady the lead has been across daily snapshots, the current signal state on both names, and analyst dispersion on SPXL.

How the comparison changed

120 daily snapshots · Apr 22 Sep 3

SPXL lead: Weakening — the AIQ differential moved from 11 to 4 points over 30 sessions.

Apr 22SPXL leads above the line · TMF leads belowSep 3
Today
SPXL +4
48 vs 44
7 sessions ago
SPXL +2
47 vs 45
30 sessions ago
SPXL +11
54 vs 43
90 sessions ago
TMF +2
47 vs 49

The lead changed hands 3 times in this window, most recently on Jul 30 when SPXL moved ahead of TMF.

AIQ Signal Divergence

Only the signals that bear on the head-to-head. A conflicted name is carrying bullish and bearish rules at the same time — the technical evidence is not pointing one way.

SPXLConflicted

4 bullish / 1 bearish, conflicted

  • Golden Cross Active bullish, trend, long horizon (14.97%)
  • EMA Ribbon Expansion Bullish bullish, trend, medium horizon
  • 52-Week High Proximity bullish, risk, long horizon (2.7%)
TMFConflicted

1 bullish / 2 bearish / 1 neutral, conflicted

  • Death Cross Active bearish, trend, long horizon (11.51%)
  • Bollinger Band Squeeze neutral, volatility, short horizon
  • Downtrend Structure Active bearish, trend, long horizon

SPXL leads the comparison while carrying a conflicted signal state, which is one reason the stability rating is not higher.

Price vs model alignment

Whether the latest session's price move confirms what the model did over the same session, or contradicts it.

SPXLDivergence

Price is down while the AIQ Score moved up 3 points over the same session — price and model disagree (price -1.21%, AIQ +3 points).

TMFConfirmed strength

Price and the AIQ Score both moved up over the latest session (price +0.36%, AIQ +1 points).

What would flip this result

A state, not a forecast. These are the specific, observable changes that would reverse the verdict — not a price prediction.

  1. 1TMF closes the Momentum gap — currently 12 points behind, the largest single contributor to SPXL's edge.
  2. 2TMF's Death Cross Active resolves — a bearish trend rule currently active against it.
  3. 3SPXL's conflicting signal state resolves bearish — it currently carries 4 bullish and 1 bearish rules at once.
  4. 4The narrowing continues — the lead has already given back 7 points over 30 sessions, and a further 4-point move would eliminate SPXL's advantage entirely.

The full evidence

Every number behind the verdict. The leader is called above each group so you are not left to solve it from the table.

Technicals

SPXL has the stronger structure
MetricSPXLTMF
RSI (14)45.251.3
ADX (14)13.116.1
Price vs 50-day4.2%-4.2%
Price vs 200-day21.3%-14.4%
Volatility (1M, annualized)24.8%30.6%

Risk

Split
MetricSPXLTMF
Beta3.010.52
Sharpe ratio1.21-0.71
Sortino ratio1.72-1.14
Max drawdown-26.9%-32.4%
Current drawdown-2.5%-30.3%
Annualized volatility38.5%27.4%
Value at risk (95%)-4.3%-3%

Straight answers

Each answer is regenerated from the current snapshot, not written once and left to age.

Which is better, SPXL or TMF?

On the Algovestiq AIQ Score, SPXL is the stronger of the two as of Sep 5, 2026, scoring 48 against TMF's 44. The edge comes from momentum. This is a systematic score, not a recommendation: it ranks the two on the same evidence, it does not know your holding period or tax position.

Is SPXL or TMF the better buy right now?

SPXL carries the stronger systematic profile as of Sep 5, 2026, and the comparison is rated Fragile — 2 of 4 covered evidence groups agree. A Fragile rating means the conclusion is sensitive: the AIQ gap is narrow at 4 points. Treat the lead as provisional.

Why does the AIQ Score favor SPXL over TMF?

The composite weights Quality at 30%, Value at 30%, Momentum at 25% and Risk Resilience at 15%. SPXL leads Momentum by 12 points. Where the two split, the factor with the larger weight carries the result.

Which is better value, SPXL or TMF?

Neither name separates on the peer-relative Value factor. The two are level on Value. The Value factor reads valuation relative to sector peers and to the company's own fundamental quality, so it is not the same as simply having the lower multiple.

Which has stronger growth, SPXL or TMF?

Growth figures are not covered for both names. Growth here is measured on reported revenue and earnings, not on forward estimates — it describes what the businesses have delivered, not what the Street expects next.

Which has stronger momentum, SPXL or TMF?

SPXL on the Momentum factor, by 12 points. Momentum carries 25% of the AIQ composite. It has documented persistence over three- to twelve-month horizons, which makes it a timing input rather than a reason to hold something indefinitely.

Which is riskier, SPXL or TMF?

SPXL is the more resilient of the two, so the other name carries the higher downside risk. SPXL carries the lower 1-month annualized volatility. The Risk Resilience factor weights 15% of the composite; position sizing usually responds to it more usefully than the buy/avoid decision does.

Is SPXL more profitable than TMF?

Margin data is not comparable for both names in the current snapshot.

Is SPXL's lead over TMF getting stronger or weaker?

SPXL lead: Weakening — the AIQ differential moved from 11 to 4 points over 30 sessions. This is measured from 120 daily comparison snapshots between 2026-04-22 and 2026-09-03. The lead has changed hands 3 times in that window, most recently on 2026-07-30, when SPXL moved ahead of TMF.

What would change the SPXL vs TMF verdict?

The result is a state, not a forecast, so it changes when the underlying evidence changes. Concretely: TMF closes the Momentum gap — currently 12 points behind, the largest single contributor to SPXL's edge; TMF's Death Cross Active resolves — a bearish trend rule currently active against it; SPXL's conflicting signal state resolves bearish — it currently carries 4 bullish and 1 bearish rules at once; the narrowing continues — the lead has already given back 7 points over 30 sessions, and a further 4-point move would eliminate SPXL's advantage entirely.

What do the current signals say about SPXL and TMF?

SPXL: 4 bullish / 1 bearish, conflicted. TMF: 1 bullish / 2 bearish / 1 neutral, conflicted. A conflicted state means bullish and bearish rules are active on the same name at once — the technical evidence is not pointing one way, and a decision taken on it carries more timing risk. The most decision-relevant rule on SPXL is Golden Cross Active (bullish, long horizon). On TMF it is Death Cross Active (bearish, long horizon).

Compare SPXL and TMF with others

How this comparison is scored

The Algovestiq AIQ Score composites four factors — Quality (30%), Value (30%), Momentum (25%) and Risk (15%). Sentiment is reported separately as SentimentPulse and is not folded into the composite. Scores refresh every trading day, and this page regenerates from the latest snapshot rather than being written once.

The verdict names a leader, states how broadly six independent evidence groups agree, and rates how durable that conclusion is given the score gap, its recent trajectory and the current signal state on both names.

How to use side-by-side comparison →

This comparison is informational and educational, not investment advice. AIQ scores update daily; re-check after earnings, guidance or macro data that materially changes either name’s factor profile.