ProShares Short Russell2000

ProShares Short Russell2000 (RWM) aims to return the opposite (-1x) of the Russell 2000 Index's move each day, using swaps and futures rather than owning stocks. Because its exposure resets daily, results over months or years can drift far from -1x. Its price-based return was -69% over the 10 years through October 27, 2026. It charges 0.95% a year, the same as the average of its peers.

• Over the year to Oct 27, 2026, RWM returned -8.9%, 2nd of 6 among similar funds.
• Its 5-year annualized return was -4.4% and its 10-year -11.1%.
• In the 2020 COVID crash, while stocks fell, it gained 55.4%.
• Its worst full calendar year was 2009 (-32.9%); its best was 2008 (+26.5%).
• The deepest fall in its price history was 95.7% (Mar 9, 2009 to Aug 14, 2026), not yet recovered.

As of Aug 31, 2026, most of the fund sat in cash, Treasury bills and money-market holdings (91.18% of net assets), with its inverse exposure coming from 8 swap and futures positions rather than from owning the stocks outright.

• Over the three months to Aug 31, 2026, investors withdrew a net $1.7M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
• Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: -3.49%, +3.57%, -0.66%.

The fund tracks the Russell 2000 Index, which FTSE Russell builds from the 2,000 smallest companies in the Russell 3000 Index. Companies are weighted by market value (market capitalization), and the index is reviewed each June and December. As of May 31, 2026, every company in it had a market value below $81 billion. RWM does not own these stocks. ProShare Advisors uses a mathematical model to pick a mix of derivatives, which are contracts whose value comes from something else. The fund mainly uses total return swaps, which are deals with large banks that pay the fund when the index falls and cost it money when the index rises. It also uses Russell 2000 E-mini futures.

Most of the money sits in cash-like holdings. As of August 31, 2026, about 91% of the fund's $113 million in net assets was in cash and equivalents. These included repurchase agreements, which are short-term loans backed by government securities. The prospectus also allows Treasury bills and a ProShares money market ETF.

The key mechanic is the daily reset. After the index rises, the fund's assets shrink and its short exposure is cut. After a fall, the exposure is increased. Because of this, returns over longer periods can differ sharply from -1x, usually for the worse in choppy markets. Fees, financing costs and the risk of a bank failing to pay also reduce returns. If the index nearly doubled in a single day, holders could lose everything.

• RWM charges 0.95% a year, versus an average of 0.95% for the similar funds below.
• Of that, 0.75% is the management fee; the rest covers other fund expenses.
• The fee includes a 0.1% waiver from the adviser, which may end.
• Using the prospectus's standard example, $10,000 invested would cost about $97 in the first year and $1,274 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).

Its daily reset and long record of losses suit hedging or betting on small-cap moves over days, not holding for years.

RWM can rise sharply when small-company stocks fall. It gained 94.6% from the market peak of October 9, 2007, to the low of March 9, 2009. It rose 55.4% in the 2020 COVID crash and 26% in the 2022 bear market. Those gains faded. Even within 2022, it fell 19% between June and August and took about 14 months to recover. Its worst calendar year was 2009, at -32.9%. From its March 2009 peak to August 14, 2026, it lost 95.7% and has not recovered. Anyone who may need cash in a bad year would need near-perfect timing. The yield was 3.28% as of October 27, 2026, paid quarterly, and the fund costs 0.95% a year. Past results don't predict future ones, and a plan should look at the whole portfolio, not one fund.

Matched by leveraged/inverse funds on the same index (russell 2000), same direction.