At a glance
MSFD charges 1.02% a year. It has $7.8M in assets; it paid 4.35% of its price in distributions over the past 12 months, quarterly. Over the past year it returned −5.5% with distributions reinvested (S&P 500: +11.5%); over three years it returned −15.4% a year.
The short version
Direxion Daily MSFT Bear 1X Shares ETF (MSFD) aims to deliver the opposite of Microsoft stock's return each day, mainly through swap contracts with large financial institutions. Traders may use it to bet against Microsoft or temporarily offset a Microsoft stake. Its daily reset can make longer-term results drift from the simple reverse of Microsoft's return; it costs 1.02% a year and lost money in every full calendar year from 2023 through 2025.
Price history
The interactive chart needs JavaScript.
MSFD -5.5% over the year to Oct 27, 2026, total return with distributions reinvested.
How it has behaved
| YTD | 1 yr | 3 yr | 5 yr | 10 yr | Since start | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSFD official prospectus, to Dec 31, 2025 | — | -13.26% | — | — | — | -17.82% |
| MSFD price data to Oct 27, 2026 | -14.0% | -5.5% | -15.4% | — | — | -17.3% |
- Over the year to Oct 27, 2026, MSFD returned -5.5%.
- Its worst full calendar year was 2023 (-35.9%); its best was 2024 (-7.9%).
- The deepest fall in its price history was 62.1% (Nov 3, 2022 to Oct 13, 2026), not yet recovered.
Show as a table
| Year | Price data | Prospectus (official) |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | -14.0% | — |
| 2025 | -13.3% | -13.26% |
| 2024 | -7.9% | -7.97% |
| 2023 | -35.9% | -35.87% |
| 2008 financial crisis stocks fell Oct 9, 2007 – Mar 9, 2009 | Before this security existed |
|---|---|
| 2020 COVID crash stocks fell Feb 19, 2020 – Mar 23, 2020 | Before this security existed |
| 2022 bear market stocks fell Jan 3, 2022 – Oct 12, 2022 | Before this security existed |
Dividends and income
Show as a table
| Year | Per share | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | $0.3400 | |
| 2025 | $0.3900 | -36.1% |
| 2024 | $0.6100 | -11.6% |
| 2023 | $0.6900 |
What's inside
As of Jul 31, 2026, most of the fund sat in cash, Treasury bills and money-market holdings (88.99% of net assets), with its inverse exposure coming from 3 swap and futures positions rather than from owning the stocks outright.
| Holding | Weight |
|---|
By country
By asset type
What changed recently
- Over the three months to Jul 31, 2026, investors withdrew a net $31.3M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
- Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: -9.77%, +19.56%, -21.77%.
How it works
MSFD follows no index and owns no Microsoft shares. It aims for daily results, before fees and expenses, equal to the opposite (-100%) of Microsoft's daily return. It gets that exposure mainly through swaps: contracts with large financial institutions in which the fund gains when Microsoft falls and pays when it rises. Swaps need little money up front, so most assets sit in money market funds, bank deposits and high-quality short-term debt. As of July 31, 2026, about 89% of its $7.8 million in net assets was in cash-like holdings, alongside three Microsoft swaps.
At each market close, adviser Rafferty Asset Management resets its short exposure to 100% of net assets. After Microsoft falls, the fund's assets grow, so it adds exposure; after a rise, it cuts back. Because each day's gain or loss builds on the last, longer-term results will likely differ from the reverse of Microsoft's return, usually for the worse in choppy markets. The prospectus warns the fund loses money if Microsoft ends flat over time, and can lose money even when Microsoft declines.
The fund is non-diversified: its exposure rests on one software company. It creates and redeems shares mainly for cash, so, unlike most ETFs, it isn't expected to be tax efficient. If a swap partner fails to pay, the fund can lose money.
What it really costs
- MSFD charges 1.02% a year.
- Of that, 0.75% is the management fee; the rest covers other fund expenses.
- The fee includes a 0.14% waiver from the adviser, which may end.
- Using the prospectus's standard example, $10,000 invested would cost about $104 in the first year and $1,397 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).
| Cost of $10,000 (SEC example) | 1 yr | 3 yrs | 5 yrs | 10 yrs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSFD | $104 | $355 | $625 | $1,397 |
Structure and tax notes
- Resets its inverse exposure every day. Over periods longer than a day, compounding means returns can differ sharply from -1× the index — usually worse in choppy markets. Built for short-term trading, not buy-and-hold.
In a retirement portfolio
MSFD targets the opposite of Microsoft's return one day at a time, resets daily, and lost money in every full calendar year from 2023 through 2025.
MSFD adds little to a long-term or retirement portfolio; at most, it could briefly offset a Microsoft stake. It didn't exist for the 2008 financial crisis or the 2020 COVID crash, and launched in September 2022, too late for a full record of the 2022 bear market. Its worst calendar year was 2023, down 35.9%, and it fell 62.1% from November 3, 2022 to October 13, 2026, without recovering as of October 27, 2026. Anyone needing cash during such a slide would lock in deep losses.
Its trailing 12-month yield was 4.35% as of October 27, 2026, paid quarterly, but that is small beside its 28.5% loss over the prior three months. It costs 1.02% a year, or $104 on $10,000 in year one under the SEC's standard example. Past results don't predict the future, and a sound plan looks at the whole portfolio, not one fund.
Who it may suit — and who should look elsewhere
May suit
- Active traders wanting a one-day bet against Microsoft without borrowing shares, who are prepared to check the position every trading day.
- Owners of a large Microsoft stake looking to offset a possible drop for a few days without giving up their shares.
- Traders who grasp that daily resets can make multi-day results drift from the reverse of Microsoft's return, and accept a 1.02% annual expense ratio.
Look elsewhere if
- Long-term and retirement investors: the fund lost money in every full calendar year from 2023 through 2025, including 35.87% in 2023.
- Investors expecting Microsoft to slide over months; the prospectus warns the fund can lose money even when Microsoft declines over a longer period.
- Income seekers drawn by the 4.35% trailing yield as of October 27, 2026; the fund's 62.1% drop from November 2022 had not recovered by then.
Close alternatives
Matched by leveraged/inverse funds on the same index (the index could not be identified from the name).
No close alternatives found.
Questions investors ask
Is MSFD a good long-term investment?
It isn't designed for long holding periods. MSFD seeks the opposite of Microsoft's return for a single trading day and resets every day. Its prospectus shows losses of 35.87% in 2023, 7.97% in 2024 and 13.26% in 2025, and an average annual return of -17.82% from its September 2022 launch through December 31, 2025. Its deepest drop, 62.1% from November 2022 to October 13, 2026, had not been recovered as of October 27, 2026.
Can MSFD lose money if Microsoft stock goes down?
Yes, over periods longer than a day. MSFD resets its short exposure at each market close, so each day's gain or loss builds on the last. Over weeks or months, that compounding very likely pulls results away from the reverse of Microsoft's return, usually for the worse when the stock swings up and down. The prospectus says the fund loses money if Microsoft ends flat over time and can lose money even when Microsoft declines.
Does MSFD pay dividends?
Yes. MSFD pays distributions quarterly, and its trailing 12-month yield was 4.35%, or $0.42 per share, as of October 27, 2026. The fund owns no Microsoft stock, so these are not Microsoft dividends; such payouts typically come from interest on cash-like holdings, which made up about 89% of net assets as of July 31, 2026. That income is small next to price moves: the fund lost 14% from January 1 through October 27, 2026.
What's the difference between MSFD and shorting Microsoft stock?
The biggest difference is the daily reset. Shorting means borrowing shares to profit from a price drop; that position's gain or loss follows Microsoft's move over the whole holding period. MSFD targets the reverse of Microsoft's return one day at a time, so multi-day results can drift. MSFD's loss is capped at the amount invested, while a direct short can lose more if the stock keeps rising. MSFD also charges 1.02% a year and relies on swap partners paying what they owe.
What is MSFD's expense ratio?
MSFD's expense ratio, the annual fee taken from fund assets, is 1.02%, according to its prospectus filed February 26, 2026. That includes a 0.75% management fee and reflects a 0.14% fee waiver. In the SEC's standard example, $10,000 earning 5% a year would incur about $104 in costs after one year, $355 after three, $625 after five and $1,397 after ten. Because it creates and redeems shares mainly for cash, the fund is not expected to be tax efficient.