Single Stock Shift: Leverage Gains Traction as Income Loses Luster

Weekly Channel Summary

The Single Stock ETF channel remains a massive battleground for high-conviction traders, ending the week with a staggering $38.2 billion in total Assets Under Management (AUM) across 395 ETFs and 17 issuers. While the year-to-date flows are slightly in the red at -$77 million, the long-term trend is undeniable, with $22.4 billion in net new money piled in over the past year. This week, we saw a distinct “risk-on” appetite as traders poured $205 million into the channel, primarily driven by aggressive bets on leveraged semiconductor and mega-cap tech winners.

This Week’s Performance Leaders and Laggards

The underlying stock landscape was a tale of two markets. On one side, GE Vernova Inc. (GEV) and Meta Platforms (META) skyrocketed as industrial energy and AI-integrated social media continue to find favor with the bulls. On the flip side, the “frontier” tech sector took a massive hit. Unity Software (U) and Joby Aviation (JOBY) cratered, shedding nearly a third and a quarter of their value, respectively, in just five days of trading. This volatility highlights the high-stakes environment where winners are rewarded handsomely and laggards are punished with extreme prejudice.

Top & Bottom Underlying Stock Performance (WTD)

Weekly Performance: The Winners and Losers

Leverage and inverse resets amplified the carnage and the celebrations this week. The biggest winner was RGTZ, which surged 32.23% by shorting the Rigetti Computing collapse. Meanwhile, those betting on a “joby-ful” ride in JOBX were handed a painful -38.93% loss. This is the reality of the single stock channel: the 2X multiplier is a gift for the correct, and a curse for the wrong.

Analyzing the Weekly Flows

Sentiment was decidedly “Risk On” this week. Levered strategies were the clear alpha, attracting $396 million in fresh capital. Meanwhile, Synthetic Income saw an exodus of -$141 million, signaling that traders are shifting from safety and yield back into growth. This massive rotation suggests the market is bracing for a sustained rally in big-name tech, even as they trim exposure to inverse hedges.

Where the Money Went This Week

Flow Leaders & Laggards: The ETF Tale of the Tape

Microsoft and Micron dominated the inflow charts. MSFU saw a massive $247 million inflow, representing over 50% of its AUM. Conversely, the “Meta-exit” was real, as METU bled $374 million in assets despite the stock’s strong performance—classic profit-taking behavior as traders move to the next leg of the rally.

Issuer League Table Update

Direxion remains the undisputed heavyweight of the Single Stock world, controlling over 31% of the market share with $12.11 billion in AUM. Tradr and T-Rex are carving out significant niches, with Tradr pulling in an impressive $232 million this week. Conversely, GraniteShares and YieldMax faced a tougher week, seeing combined outflows of over $300 million as traders rotated out of their flagship products.

The Heavyweights: Top 5 Issuers by AUM

Weekly Flows: Issuer Edition