The takeaway
ProShares UltraPro QQQ shows a pronounced seasonal pattern over 10 years of data — strongest in July (+11.7%) and softest in February (−4.1%).
Right now
In July, the fund has risen 90% of years, averaging +11.7%, about +9.5 pts better than the S&P 500.
The full picture
ProShares UltraPro QQQ's most dependable month has been July, higher in 9 of 10 years; February has been its least reliable, up just 30% of the time.
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Month by month
The fund's clearest edge over the S&P 500 lands in July (+9.5 pts); it has trailed the market most in September (−4.0 pts).
“vs S&P” is ProShares UltraPro QQQ’s average for a month minus the S&P 500’s average for that same month — isolating ProShares UltraPro QQQ’s own seasonal edge from broad market drift.
Reality check
Over the last 5 years, July has closed higher 80% of the time versus 90% across the last 10 years — the pattern is holding.
Figures are the typical (median) July return and how often it rose — the last 5 years versus the last 10(the heatmap’s default window). This verdict stays anchored to that 10-year window even if you zoom the chart, so it never disagrees with the badges above.
In plain English
Dependability is the through-line here. July stands out, higher in 9 of 10 Julys, but it heads a clutch of months that pull the year reliably upward.
Its average (+11.7%) and median (+9.4%) land within a hair of each other — the tell of steady, year-after-year gains rather than one outlier doing the work. It is among its calmest months, too, its returns swinging least from year to year (a 11.6% spread). Crucially, the gain is the fund's own rather than a rising tide's: July has cleared the S&P 500 by +9.5 points above the index. That consistency sets it apart from the field, where the average stock manages July only about 61% of the time.
The strength clusters rather than stands alone — April–August forms a firm stretch that carries much of the year. At the other end of the calendar, February has been the soft spot — the weakest of 3 months that average a loss (−4.1%), and the edge isn't year-round — the fund has trailed the S&P 500 in September, February, and March. Its roughest month on record was a −45.6% March in 2020 — a reminder of how hard even a seasonal name can fall.
At its steadiest, July strung together 8 straight positive years. Reassuringly, the tendency has held its shape: the recent five years still track the years behind them.
The takeaway is less about when to buy than what to expect: July aside, the fund's months offer little reliable tilt. With returns that swing hard year to year, the signal is best held loosely.
Short answers on the fund's best month (July), its worst (February), and whether it really trades seasonally.
Yes, to a pronounced degree. Since 2016 its best month (July, +11.7%) has run well ahead of its worst (February, −4.1%) — the heatmap above shows how steady that gap has been year to year.
July has been the strongest, averaging +11.7% and closing higher in 9 of 10 years since 2016.
It's the weakest, averaging −4.1% — historically a soft spot, though it still varies from year to year.
Explore
These names have the strongest July track records on record — a starting point for comparison.
Before you trade