SPXL +3x Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bull 3x ETF
SPXL
ETF +3x BULL extremeDirexion Daily S&P 500 Bull 3x ETF
Realized return vs theoretical +3x S&P 500
Pair counterpart found:
SPXU
(-3x bear, ProShares UltraPro Short S&P 500)
Shorting both legs of a daily-reset bull/bear pair captures combined decay drift over time. Theoretical "free money" — actual edge depends on borrow rates (often punitive on the bear leg) and assignment risk on hard-to-borrow products.
Other leveraged products tracking S&P 500
| Symbol | Factor | Direction | Issuer | Name | Implied AUM | 30d Vol | Options |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SPYU | +4x | BULL | MAX | MAX S&P 500 4x Leveraged ETN | — | 863,343 | |
| UPRO | +3x | BULL | ProShares | ProShares UltraPro S&P 500 | $5.18B | 2,520,358 | |
| HIBL | +3x | BULL | Direxion | Direxion Daily S&P 500 High Beta Bull 3X ETF | $77.3M | 66,082 | |
| SSO | +2x | BULL | ProShares | ProShares Ultra S&P500 | $7.90B | 3,640,287 | |
| SPUU | +2x | BULL | Direxion | Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bull 2X ETF | $250.9M | 25,882 | |
| URSP | +2x | BULL | ProShares | ProShares Ultra S&P 500 Equal Weight | $38.0M | 60,948 | |
| SDS | -2x | BEAR | ProShares | ProShares UltraShort S&P500 | $402.2M | 3,320,714 | |
| SPXU | -3x | BEAR | ProShares | ProShares UltraPro Short S&P 500 | $430.1M | 9,745,714 | |
| SPXS | -3x | BEAR | Direxion | Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bear 3x ETF | $327.0M | 12,525,511 | |
| HIBS | -3x | BEAR | Direxion | Direxion Daily S&P 500 High Beta Bear 3X ETF | $25.0M | 241,949 |
How SPXL works
SPXL targets +3x the daily return of S&P 500 — not the cumulative return over multi-day windows. The fund rebalances at the close each day using swaps or futures, which is what creates the volatility drag the chart above visualizes.
Mathematical headline: drag ≈ −0.5 × N × (N−1) × σ² per period. For a +3x product on an underlying with 25% annualized vol, expected annual drag is around 18.8%. Add expense ratio and the realized number is typically worse.
- Short-term tactical: daily and intraday holds are where these products were designed to live.
- Premium selling: options on SPXL carry very rich IV — see the quote page for IV rank and straddle pricing.
- Multi-day directional: works in strong trends; gets eaten alive in chop. Use the chart above to gauge the realized vs theoretical track record.