They're Heeere: Leveraged Cybersecurity ETFs

One of the most indisputable facts regarding industry exchange traded funds is that cybersecurity ETFs are ultra-hot when it comes to gathering investor assets.

The PureFunds ISE Cyber Security ETF HACK is the king of the cybersecurity realm, having needed just 10 months of trading to amass $1.5 billion in assets under management. Give the First Trust NASDAQ CEA Cybersecurity ETF CIBR some credit, too. That ETF is just over two months old and already has $76.7 million in assets under management.

Direxion, the second-largest issuer of inverse and geared ETFs, is looking to capitalize on the popularity of cybersecurity ETFs with Wednesday's introductions of the Direxion Daily Cyber Security Bull 2X Shares HAKK and the Direxion Daily Cyber Security Bear 2X Shares HAKD.

Twice The Power

The Direxion Daily Cyber Security Bull 2X Shares is designed to deliver twice the daily inverse performance of the ISE Cyber Security Index (HXR) while the Direxion Daily Cyber Security Bear 2X Shares will attempt to deliver double the daily inverse performance of that index.

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The ISE Cyber Security Index is HACK's underlying benchmark. That index index “tracks the performance of companies actively engaged in providing services for cyber security and for which cyber security business activities are a key driver of their business model. These cyber security services are designed to protect computer hardware, software, networks and data from unauthorized access, vulnerabilities, attacks and other security breaches,” according to PureFunds.

Elsewhere...

Massachusetts-based Direxion is further adding to its double-leveraged lineup with the introductions of the Direxion Daily Pharmaceutical & Medical Bear 2X Shares PILS and the Direxion Daily Pharmaceutical & Medical Bull 2X Shares PILL. The Direxion Daily Pharmaceutical & Medical Bull 2X Shares seeks to deliver twice the daily inverse performance of the Dynamic Pharmaceutical Intellidex Index DZR while PILS will look to deliver twice the daily performance of that index.

The Dynamic Pharmaceutical Intellidex Index is the underlying benchmark for the $1.94 billion PowerShares Dynamic Pharmaceuticals Portfolio PJP. Top holdings in that ETF include Dow components Pfizer Inc. PFE and Johnson & Johnson JNJ as well as Gilead Sciences Inc. GILD and Celgene Corp. CELG.

That index “is designed to provide capital appreciation by thoroughly evaluating companies based on a variety of investment merit criteria, including: price momentum, earnings momentum, quality, management action, and value,” according to PowerShares.

The introductions continue a torrid pace of new ETF launches by Direxion this year. The issuer has brought to market a raft of new funds this year, including some that have found immediate success, such as the Direxion Daily CSI 300 China A Share Bear 1X Shares CHAD, Direxion Daily CSI 300 China A Share Bull 2X Shares CHAU, Direxion Daily S&P Biotech Bear 3X Shares LABD and the Direxion Daily S&P Biotech Bull 3X Shares LABU, among others.