Data as of Nov 4, 2026.
HELO vs ZHDG: Correlation to the S&P 500
Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, HELO moved less with the S&P 500 than ZHDG: correlation +0.95 against +0.96.
askIQ about this page
askIQ about HELO and ZHDG
Net assets: $4.9bn on Nov 3, 2026 for JPMorgan Hedged Equity Laddered Overlay ETF, and $35m on Jul 31, 2026 for ZEGA Buy and Hedge ETF.
HELO in the 26 weeks SPY fell, year to Nov 4, 2026: SPY averaged −1.07%, HELO −0.65%.
ZHDG in the 26 weeks SPY fell, year to Nov 4, 2026: SPY averaged −1.07%, ZHDG −0.92%.
Pair scorecard
HELO costs 0.45 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 0.6 points.
| Measure | HELO | ZHDG |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +7.2% | +6.6% |
| Against its benchmark | ||
| Treasury bills, 52 weeks | +3.7% | |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.50% | 0.95% |
| Net assets, HELO as of Nov 3, 2026 and ZHDG as of Jul 31, 2026 | $4.9bn | $35m |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | not published | |
| Risk | ||
| Beta to the S&P 500 | +0.59: about 0.59% for each 1% | +0.82: about 0.82% for each 1% |
| Its average week when the S&P 500 fell | fell 0.65% | fell 0.92% |
How much it diversifies a stock portfolio, ranked against 22 equity hedged alternatives ETFs with a full year. 100 is best. How it is computed
One year of weekly moves against the S&P 500, within one strategy; it ignores what the fund returned. All alternatives ETFs ranked by it →
Window by window
| Total return | vs its benchmark | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Window | HELO | ZHDG | HELO | ZHDG |
| 3 months | +0.2% | −1.4% | +0.3 pts vs VOO | not measured |
| 6 months | +3.1% | +3.0% | −1.9 pts vs VOO | not measured |
| 1 year | +7.2% | +6.6% | −7.6 pts vs VOO | not measured |
| 3 years | +40.1% | +49.1% | −43.2 pts vs VOO | not measured |
| Since launchNot the same days: HELO Sep 2023 · ZHDG Jul 2021 | +42.5% | +33.8% | −43.9 pts vs VOO | not measured |
Side by side
As of Nov 4, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
One strategy, two funds
HELO and ZHDG both run a hedged equity strategy. Over the same 52 weeks to Nov 4, 2026, HELO’s weekly returns had a correlation of +0.95 with the S&P 500 and ZHDG’s +0.96. In the 26 weeks the index fell, by 1.07% a week on average, HELO averaged −0.65% and ZHDG −0.92%. Over the same weeks, HELO finished 3.4 percentage points ahead of cash and ZHDG finished 2.6 points ahead of cash.
HELO
HELO is a hedged equity fund. ETFIQ measures what every alternatives fund is sold on: whether it moves differently from the stock market. Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, its weekly returns had a correlation of +0.95 with the S&P 500’s and a beta of +0.59, so for each 1% the index moved it moved about 0.59% the same way. The S&P 500 fell in 26 of those 52 weeks, by 1.07% on average. In the same weeks HELO fell 0.65% on average, a down-week capture of 60.7%. Over the same 52 weeks HELO returned +7.0% and a Treasury bill fund +3.7%, so it finished 3.4 percentage points ahead of cash.
ZHDG
ZHDG is a hedged equity fund. Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, its weekly returns had a correlation of +0.96 with the S&P 500’s and a beta of +0.82, so for each 1% the index moved it moved about 0.82% the same way. In the same weeks ZHDG fell 0.92% on average, a down-week capture of 85.6%. Over the same 52 weeks ZHDG returned +6.3% and a Treasury bill fund +3.7%, so it finished 2.6 percentage points ahead of cash.
Questions people ask
- Which moved less with the S&P 500, HELO or ZHDG?
- Over the 52 weeks to Nov 4, 2026, HELO’s weekly returns had a correlation of +0.95 with the S&P 500 and ZHDG’s +0.96, so HELO moved less with the index.
- Which did better when the S&P 500 fell, HELO or ZHDG?
- In the 26 weeks the S&P 500 fell, by 1.07% a week on average, HELO averaged −0.65% and ZHDG −0.92%, so HELO returned more in those weeks.
Links are sources, not endorsements. A comparison is not a recommendation.
How this is computed
It is a place in a set, not a rating or a recommendation.
Every number is an ETFIQ calculation with distributions reinvested.
Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown
ETFIQ, HELO against ZHDG, data as of Nov 4, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/alternatives/helo-vs-zhdg
ETFIQ. (Nov 4, 2026). HELO against ZHDG. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/alternatives/helo-vs-zhdg
[HELO against ZHDG (ETFIQ, Nov 4, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/alternatives/helo-vs-zhdg)
Free to use with attribution for data ETFIQ computes; issuer data stays under its owner's terms.