Top Performing Leveraged/Inverse ETFs: 10/15/2023 | ETF Trends

Top Performing Levered/Inverse ETFs Last Week

These were last week’s top performing leveraged and inverse ETFs. Note that because of leverage, these kinds of funds can move quickly. Always do your homework.

Ticker Name 1 Week Return
(GDXU B-) MicroSectors Gold Miners 3X Leveraged ETN 22.11%
(SHNY ) MicroSectors Gold 3X Leveraged ETNs 16.02%
(NUGT B-) Direxion Daily Gold Miners Index Bull 2x Shares 14.98%
(OILU ) MicroSectors Oil & Gas Exp. & Prod. 3x Leveraged ETN 14.86%
(WTIU ) MicroSectors Energy 3X Leveraged ETNs 14.29%
(NRGU B) MicroSectors U.S. Big Oil Index 3X Leveraged ETN 14.01%
(UCO A) ProShares Ultra Bloomberg Crude Oil 13.84%
(GUSH B) Direxion Daily S&P Oil & Gas Exp. & Prod. Bull 2X Shares 13.32%
(UVIX ) 2x Long VIX Futures ETF 13.14%
(JNUG B-) Direxion Daily Junior Gold Miners Index Bull 2x Shares 12.50%


1. GDXU – MicroSectors Gold Miners 3X Leveraged ETN

GDXU is a leveraged equity fund that provides 3x exposure to an index comprised of two of the largest gold miners’ ETFs, viz VanEck Gold Miners ETF (GDX) and VanEck Junior Gold Miners ETF (GDXJ), that invest in the global gold mining industry. GDXU returned over 22% last week, topping the list of levered ETFs, as gold prices rose amid increasing tension in Israel-Palestine conflict.

2. SHNY – Direxion Daily Silver Miners Index Bull 2x Shares

SHNY, which provides a 2x exposure to global silver mining firms, also featured on the list with ~16% weekly gains as investors began to seek safe haven assets in the middle of the rising Middle East conflict.

3. NUGT – Direxion Daily Gold Miners Index Bull 2x Shares

Another gold ETFNUGT seeks daily investment results of 200% of the performance of the NYSE Arca Gold Miners Index, ranked among the top levered ETFs. The ETF gained nearly 15% in the last week.

4. OILU – MicroSectors Oil & Gas Exp. & Prod. 3x Leveraged ETN

OILU, which provides 3x daily leveraged exposure to a tier-weighted index of US firms involved in oil and gas exploration and production, made it on the list with ~14.8% weekly gains. The oil, gas, and consumable fuels segment gained by over 1.5% in the last five days. Oil prices gained over increasing tensions amid the Israel-Palestine dispute.

5. WTIU – MicroSectors Energy 3X Leveraged ETNs

WTIU, an exchange-traded note that tracks 3x of the daily price movements of an index of US-listed energy and oil companies, was another top-performing levered ETF last week. Energy was the third best-performing sector gaining by ~1.6% in the last five days.

6. NRGU – MicroSectors U.S. Big Oil Index 3X Leveraged ETN

NRGU, which tracks three times the performance of an index of US oil and gas companies, was present on the weekly list of top-performing levered/ inverse ETFs returning ~14% as oil prices increased on the back of rising stress in the Middle East region.

7. UCO – ProShares Ultra Bloomberg Crude Oil

UCO, which offers 2x daily leverage to an index that consists of crude oil futures contracts, was another oil-focused best-performing fund on the list with 13.8% weekly gains.

8. GUSH – Direxion Daily S&P Oil & Gas Exp. & Prod. Bull 2X Shares

GUSH, an oil & gas exploration and production ETF, also made it to the list of top-performing levered ETFs, returning more than 13% last week amid escalating geopolitical tension in Israel.

9. UVIX – 2x Long VIX Futures ETF

UVIX, which offers daily 2x leveraged exposure to short-term VIX futures, was one of the top-performing levered ETFs as market volatility increased amid concerns over the soaring Israel conflict. VIX, the CBOE Volatility index, increased to nearly 20 in the last week.

10. JNUG – Direxion Daily Junior Gold Miners Index Bull 2x Shares

JNUG seeks daily investment results of 200% of the performance of the MVIS Global Junior Gold Miners Index. The index tracks the performance of foreign and domestic companies engaging in gold and silver mining. JNUG was another precious metals candidate on the top-performing levered/ inverse ETFs list returning 12.5% last week.

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