This Precious Metal Just Doubled Gold's Returns: Is PPLT or GLD a Better Buy?

2 hours ago 2

Sara Appino, The Motley Fool

Sat, January 24, 2026 astatine 9:29 AM CST 5 min read

PPLT carries a higher disbursal ratio and is overmuch smaller successful assets nether absorption than GLD.
Over the past year, PPLT’s full instrumentality much than doubled GLD’s, but with a overmuch steeper five-year drawdown.
Both funds supply nonstop vulnerability to carnal metals but way antithetic commodities and hazard profiles.
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SPDR Gold Shares (NYSEMKT:GLD) and abrdn Physical Platinum Shares ETF (NYSEMKT:PPLT) disagree astir successful their metallic focus, with PPLT charging a higher fee, showing greater five-year risk, and offering little liquidity owed to its smaller assets nether management.

GLD and PPLT some connection investors a straightforward mode to entree precious metals, but each tracks a antithetic underlying commodity: golden for GLD and platinum for PPLT. This examination looks astatine cost, caller performance, risk, and portfolio constitution to assistance clarify which whitethorn entreaty depending connected idiosyncratic hazard tolerance and commodity preference.

Metric

GLD

PPLT

Issuer	SPDR	Aberdeen Investments
Expense ratio	0.40%	0.60%
1-yr instrumentality (as of 2026-01-22)	77.5%	185.8%
Beta	0.51	0.35
AUM	$153.7 billion	$2.0 billion

Beta measures terms volatility comparative to the S&P 500; beta is calculated from five-year play returns. The 1-yr instrumentality represents full instrumentality implicit the trailing 12 months.

PPLT comes with a higher yearly interest than GLD, making the golden ETF much affordable for semipermanent holders. Yield is not a information for either fund, arsenic some are designed purely for terms vulnerability to their respective metals.

Metric

GLD

PPLT

Max drawdown (5 y)	-21.03%	-35.73%
Growth of $1,000 implicit 5 years	$2,396	$2,133

PPLT is designed for investors seeking nonstop platinum vulnerability with minimal recognition risk. The money has existed for 16 years, offering a elemental mode to put successful platinum without carnal transportation oregon futures contracts. Sector breakdown is not reported, and determination are nary details connected apical holdings, but similar GLD, PPLT is structured to way the terms of a azygous metallic alternatively than a diversified basket. Its comparatively tiny assets nether absorption whitethorn impact trading liquidity for larger investors.

GLD, by contrast, provides 100% vulnerability to the basal materials assemblage via carnal golden holdings. While details connected its apical holdings are not disclosed, GLD is the oldest and largest US-listed golden ETF, which contributes to its heavy liquidity and wide acceptance among organization and retail investors. Neither money comes with leverage, currency hedge, oregon different quirks, keeping their strategies straightforward.