Proshares Large Cap Core Plus

ProShares Large Cap Core Plus (CSM) tracks the UBS 130/30 Index. The index scores 500 leading large U.S. companies on 10 factors, then holds 130% long in the top scorers and 30% short in the lowest, using stocks and swaps. That makes CSM an alternative to a plain S&P 500 fund, with a factor tilt. But its 0.45% yearly fee is far above the 0.03% charged by VOO or IVV.

• Over the year to Oct 27, 2026, CSM returned +12.3%, 6th of 9 among similar funds.
• Its 5-year annualized return was +11.9% and its 10-year +14.3%.
• In the 2020 COVID crash it fell 36.1% and regained its old high 5.3 months after the low.
• Its worst full calendar year was 2022 (-18.3%); its best was 2013 (+35.3%).
• The deepest fall in its price history was 36.1% (Feb 19, 2020 to Mar 23, 2020), recovered by Sep 1, 2020.

As of Aug 31, 2026, the fund held 302 securities; the ten largest made up 25.07% of assets, and 4.75% sat in cash and money-market holdings.

By sector

• Over the three months to Aug 31, 2026, investors withdrew a net $4.1M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
• Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: -1.89%, +1.38%, +2.18%.

The fund tracks the UBS 130/30 Index, which UBS Securities LLC builds and maintains. The index starts with 500 of the leading large-cap U.S. companies. It scores each one on 10 factors: traditional value, relative value, historical growth, expected growth, profit trends, accelerating sales, earnings momentum, price momentum, price reversal and small size. Companies with a positive score form the long side, weighted from highest score down. Companies with a negative score form the short side, weighted from lowest score up. A short position makes money when a stock falls.

The long side adds up to 130% of the fund's value and the short side to 30%. That leaves net market exposure near 100%, like a regular stock fund. The money raised by the shorts pays for the extra long exposure. ProShare Advisors builds these positions with common stocks plus total return swaps. A total return swap is a contract with a major financial institution in which the two sides exchange payments based on an asset's return. As of August 31, 2026, the fund held about 300 stocks and five swaps, and its top 10 holdings made up about 25% of assets.

Two mechanics matter for holders. First, the swaps add counterparty risk: if the bank on the other side fails to pay, the fund can lose money. Second, portfolio turnover was 69%, so holdings change often. The prospectus summary does not give a rebalancing schedule.

• CSM charges 0.45% a year, versus an average of 0.1% for the similar funds below (9th of 9, cheapest first).
• Using the prospectus's standard example, $10,000 invested would cost about $46 in the first year and $567 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).

With net exposure near 100% and a beta of 0.95, CSM can fill a portfolio's large-cap U.S. stock slot, though it adds a factor tilt, some short selling and a higher fee.

CSM can stand in for large-cap U.S. stocks with a factor-driven twist. It launched in July 2009, so it has no record from the 2008 crisis. In the 2020 COVID crash it fell 36.1% between February 19 and March 23, 2020, then recovered by September 1, 2020, about 5.3 months later. In the 2022 bear market it fell 23.8% and needed about 14.6 months to recover, until December 19, 2023. Its worst calendar year in the prospectus was 2022, at -17.85%. Anyone selling shares to cover spending during those stretches would have locked in losses. Income is small: the trailing yield was 1.04% as of October 27, 2026, paid quarterly. The 0.45% expense ratio is well above the 0.03% charged by VOO and IVV. Past results don't predict the future, and a plan should look at the whole portfolio, not one fund.

Matched by holdings overlap from the latest N-PORT reports.