What Is QID? ProShares UltraShort QQQ
Short answer
QID is a -2x inverse leveraged ETF from ProShares that targets twice the opposite of the Nasdaq-100's daily return. It rises when large-cap tech falls and falls when tech rises. Because its leverage resets daily, it suffers compounding decay over time and is intended only as a short-term hedge or trading vehicle, not a long-term holding. Over the long run the Nasdaq-100 has risen, so QID has lost most of its value.
QID is issued by ProShares and tracks -2x daily Nasdaq-100. It charges a 0.95% expense ratio, holds approximately approximately $510 million in assets under management, yields about varies; recent distributions have implied a yield in the low single digits, though payouts are inconsistent and should not be a reason to hold the fund, and launched in July 11, 2006.
What is QID?
QID is a -2x inverse leveraged ETF from ProShares that targets twice the opposite of the Nasdaq-100's daily return. It rises when large-cap tech falls and falls when tech rises. Because its leverage resets daily, it suffers compounding decay over time and is intended only as a short-term hedge or trading vehicle, not a long-term holding. Over the long run the Nasdaq-100 has risen, so QID has lost most of its value.
QID is issued by ProShares and tracks -2x daily Nasdaq-100, so a single ticker gives you the whole basket of underlying holdings weighted by the index's methodology rather than by any active stock-picking.
QID holdings: what's actually inside
QID does not hold a basket of individual stocks. It gets its exposure synthetically, through derivatives such as swaps and futures rather than by owning the underlying shares, so there is no conventional top-10 equity holdings list. See the description above for what QID actually tracks and how that exposure is built.
The bottom line on QID
QID is a tactical, short-term instrument for traders who expect the Nasdaq-100 to fall over the next day or few days, or who want a brief hedge against tech exposure. Its -2x daily objective, daily reset compounding, 0.95% expense ratio, and the long-term upward drift of the Nasdaq-100 make it a guaranteed loser of value over long periods. Holding QID for weeks, months, or years has historically destroyed capital and is not how the fund is meant to be used.
More on QID
Whether QID is worth buying today depends more on your time horizon and what you already hold than on any single call. We walk through valuation, concentration, and what would have to be true for it to outperform from here in is QID a buy?
QID yields varies; recent distributions have implied a yield in the low single digits, though payouts are inconsistent and should not be a reason to hold the fund as of early 2026, paid by passing through the dividends of its underlying holdings. For the payout schedule, history, and how the distributions are taxed, see QID dividend: yield and schedule.
Build a portfolio around QID with Walnut
Use QID as your core holding, then let Walnut's AI propose thematic satellites: AI infrastructure, dividend growth, clean energy, whatever you believe in. Connect your broker, build the basket in conversation, track it as one unit.
FAQ
What is QID?
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QID is the ProShares UltraShort QQQ, an inverse leveraged exchange-traded fund. It aims to deliver -2x (negative two times) the daily performance of the Nasdaq-100 Index, meaning it is built to rise roughly 2% on a day the index falls 1% and to fall roughly 2% on a day the index rises 1%. It uses swaps and derivatives to achieve this and is designed for short-term trading and hedging, not long-term investing.
What is QID's expense ratio?
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QID has an expense ratio of about 0.95%, which is high relative to plain index ETFs. That fee is charged annually on assets and, combined with the costs of maintaining daily leverage through derivatives, adds a meaningful drag the longer the fund is held. The high cost is one more reason QID is intended for short holding periods rather than long-term ownership.
What does QID track?
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QID tracks the daily performance of the Nasdaq-100 Index on an inverse, leveraged basis. The Nasdaq-100 holds 100 of the largest non-financial companies on the Nasdaq, heavily weighted toward megacap technology names like Apple, Microsoft, Nvidia, Amazon, and Alphabet. QID is built to deliver -2x the index's return for a single trading day only. It does not hold those stocks; it uses derivatives to produce the inverse exposure.
Should I hold QID long term?
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No. QID is explicitly not designed for long-term holding. Its leverage resets every day, so over periods longer than a single day, compounding causes the return to drift away from -2x the index, usually to the holder's detriment in volatile or rising markets. Because the tech-heavy Nasdaq-100 has trended higher over time, QID has lost enormous value over the long run and would be expected to keep bleeding value even in flat but choppy markets. Treat it strictly as a short-term tool measured in days, not weeks or months.
How does a -2x inverse ETF work?
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A -2x inverse ETF like QID uses swaps and other derivatives to deliver twice the opposite of an index's daily move. Each day it resets its exposure to maintain the -2x target, so the objective is met for one trading day at a time. Over multiple days the returns compound off a changing base, which means a -2x daily fund will not simply return -2x the index's cumulative return. In volatile markets this daily reset typically erodes value, a phenomenon often called volatility decay or beta slippage.
Is QID a good investment?
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Walnut is informational, not investment advice. QID is not a traditional investment; it is a tactical trading and hedging instrument for sophisticated traders who expect a near-term decline in the Nasdaq-100. Because of daily-reset compounding decay, its high 0.95% expense ratio, and the long-term upward trend of large-cap tech, holding QID for any extended period has historically destroyed capital. It can be appropriate only for very short-term, closely monitored positions, and it carries a high risk of large and rapid losses if tech rises.
What is the difference between QID and SQQQ?
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QID and SQQQ are both ProShares inverse ETFs on the Nasdaq-100, but they use different leverage. QID targets -2x the index's daily return, while SQQQ (ProShares UltraPro Short QQQ) targets -3x the daily return, making SQQQ more aggressive and more volatile. The greater the leverage, the larger both the potential daily gains when tech falls and the daily losses when tech rises, and the more severe the compounding decay over time. Both are short-term tools, and SQQQ carries even more risk than QID.
What is the difference between QID and QLD?
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QID and QLD are mirror-image ProShares leveraged ETFs on the Nasdaq-100. QID is the -2x inverse fund, built to rise when the Nasdaq-100 falls, while QLD (ProShares Ultra QQQ) is the +2x fund, built to rise about 2% when the index rises 1%. QID is used to bet on or hedge against a decline in large-cap tech, whereas QLD amplifies the upside. Both reset daily and both suffer compounding effects, so neither is intended for long-term buy-and-hold investing.
How do I compare QID to similar ETFs?
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Put a few fields side by side: the expense ratio (fees compound over decades), the index or strategy it tracks, the top holdings and how much they overlap with what you already own, the dividend yield, and the AUM, liquidity, and bid-ask spread that affect trading costs. For index funds, tracking error (how closely it follows its index) and tax efficiency matter too. QID's figures are above; the full method is in Walnut's guide on how to compare ETFs.
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Walnut is informational, not investment advice. Holdings weights and fund statistics on this page are approximations stamped to early 2026; verify current figures against ProShares's fund page or your broker before investing.