Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bull 3X (SPXL)

TotalReturn:

'Total return, when measuring performance, is the actual rate of return of an investment or a pool of investments over a given evaluation period. Total return includes interest, capital gains, dividends and distributions realized over a given period of time. Total return accounts for two categories of return: income including interest paid by fixed-income investments, distributions or dividends and capital appreciation, representing the change in the market price of an asset.'

• Looking at the total return, or increase in value of 139.4% in the last 5 years of Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bull 3X, we see it is relatively higher, thus better in comparison to the benchmark SPY (87.4%)
• Compared with SPY (26.8%) in the period of the last 3 years, the total return of 23.9% is lower, thus worse.

CAGR:

'The compound annual growth rate isn't a true return rate, but rather a representational figure. It is essentially a number that describes the rate at which an investment would have grown if it had grown the same rate every year and the profits were reinvested at the end of each year. In reality, this sort of performance is unlikely. However, CAGR can be used to smooth returns so that they may be more easily understood when compared to alternative investments.'

• Looking at the annual performance (CAGR) of 19.1% in the last 5 years of Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bull 3X, we see it is relatively higher, thus better in comparison to the benchmark SPY (13.4%)
• During the last 3 years, the annual performance (CAGR) is 7.4%, which is lower, thus worse than the value of 8.2% from the benchmark.

Volatility:

'In finance, volatility (symbol σ) is the degree of variation of a trading price series over time as measured by the standard deviation of logarithmic returns. Historic volatility measures a time series of past market prices. Implied volatility looks forward in time, being derived from the market price of a market-traded derivative (in particular, an option). Commonly, the higher the volatility, the riskier the security.'

• The historical 30 days volatility over 5 years of Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bull 3X is 62.8%, which is larger, thus worse compared to the benchmark SPY (20.9%) in the same period.
• Compared with SPY (17.3%) in the period of the last 3 years, the volatility of 51.6% is larger, thus worse.

DownVol:

'Downside risk is the financial risk associated with losses. That is, it is the risk of the actual return being below the expected return, or the uncertainty about the magnitude of that difference. Risk measures typically quantify the downside risk, whereas the standard deviation (an example of a deviation risk measure) measures both the upside and downside risk. Specifically, downside risk in our definition is the semi-deviation, that is the standard deviation of all negative returns.'

• Compared with the benchmark SPY (15%) in the period of the last 5 years, the downside risk of 45.2% of Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bull 3X is larger, thus worse.
• During the last 3 years, the downside risk is 36.4%, which is greater, thus worse than the value of 12.1% from the benchmark.

Sharpe:

'The Sharpe ratio (also known as the Sharpe index, the Sharpe measure, and the reward-to-variability ratio) is a way to examine the performance of an investment by adjusting for its risk. The ratio measures the excess return (or risk premium) per unit of deviation in an investment asset or a trading strategy, typically referred to as risk, named after William F. Sharpe.'

• Looking at the Sharpe Ratio of 0.26 in the last 5 years of Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bull 3X, we see it is relatively smaller, thus worse in comparison to the benchmark SPY (0.52)
• Compared with SPY (0.33) in the period of the last 3 years, the Sharpe Ratio of 0.1 is lower, thus worse.

Sortino:

'The Sortino ratio measures the risk-adjusted return of an investment asset, portfolio, or strategy. It is a modification of the Sharpe ratio but penalizes only those returns falling below a user-specified target or required rate of return, while the Sharpe ratio penalizes both upside and downside volatility equally. Though both ratios measure an investment's risk-adjusted return, they do so in significantly different ways that will frequently lead to differing conclusions as to the true nature of the investment's return-generating efficiency. The Sortino ratio is used as a way to compare the risk-adjusted performance of programs with differing risk and return profiles. In general, risk-adjusted returns seek to normalize the risk across programs and then see which has the higher return unit per risk.'

• Compared with the benchmark SPY (0.73) in the period of the last 5 years, the downside risk / excess return profile of 0.37 of Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bull 3X is smaller, thus worse.
• During the last 3 years, the excess return divided by the downside deviation is 0.14, which is lower, thus worse than the value of 0.47 from the benchmark.

Ulcer:

'Ulcer Index is a method for measuring investment risk that addresses the real concerns of investors, unlike the widely used standard deviation of return. UI is a measure of the depth and duration of drawdowns in prices from earlier highs. Using Ulcer Index instead of standard deviation can lead to very different conclusions about investment risk and risk-adjusted return, especially when evaluating strategies that seek to avoid major declines in portfolio value (market timing, dynamic asset allocation, hedge funds, etc.). The Ulcer Index was originally developed in 1987. Since then, it has been widely recognized and adopted by the investment community. According to Nelson Freeburg, editor of Formula Research, Ulcer Index is “perhaps the most fully realized statistical portrait of risk there is.'

• The Ulcer Ratio over 5 years of Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bull 3X is 33 , which is greater, thus worse compared to the benchmark SPY (9.33 ) in the same period.
• During the last 3 years, the Ulcer Index is 37 , which is greater, thus worse than the value of 10 from the benchmark.

MaxDD:

'Maximum drawdown is defined as the peak-to-trough decline of an investment during a specific period. It is usually quoted as a percentage of the peak value. The maximum drawdown can be calculated based on absolute returns, in order to identify strategies that suffer less during market downturns, such as low-volatility strategies. However, the maximum drawdown can also be calculated based on returns relative to a benchmark index, for identifying strategies that show steady outperformance over time.'

• Compared with the benchmark SPY (-33.7 days) in the period of the last 5 years, the maximum reduction from previous high of -76.9 days of Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bull 3X is lower, thus worse.
• Looking at maximum reduction from previous high in of -63.8 days in the period of the last 3 years, we see it is relatively lower, thus worse in comparison to SPY (-24.5 days).

MaxDuration:

'The Maximum Drawdown Duration is an extension of the Maximum Drawdown. However, this metric does not explain the drawdown in dollars or percentages, rather in days, weeks, or months. It is the length of time the account was in the Max Drawdown. A Max Drawdown measures a retrenchment from when an equity curve reaches a new high. It’s the maximum an account lost during that retrenchment. This method is applied because a valley can’t be measured until a new high occurs. Once the new high is reached, the percentage change from the old high to the bottom of the largest trough is recorded.'

• Looking at the maximum days under water of 579 days in the last 5 years of Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bull 3X, we see it is relatively greater, thus worse in comparison to the benchmark SPY (488 days)
• Looking at maximum time in days below previous high water mark in of 579 days in the period of the last 3 years, we see it is relatively greater, thus worse in comparison to SPY (488 days).

AveDuration:

'The Drawdown Duration is the length of any peak to peak period, or the time between new equity highs. The Avg Drawdown Duration is the average amount of time an investment has seen between peaks (equity highs), or in other terms the average of time under water of all drawdowns. So in contrast to the Maximum duration it does not measure only one drawdown event but calculates the average of all.'

• Looking at the average days under water of 173 days in the last 5 years of Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bull 3X, we see it is relatively greater, thus worse in comparison to the benchmark SPY (122 days)
• Looking at average days below previous high in of 239 days in the period of the last 3 years, we see it is relatively larger, thus worse in comparison to SPY (179 days).