Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

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IVV vs NVBU: Differences, Returns & Fees

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Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, IVV returned +13.7% to NVBU's +7.7%, and IVV charges 0.03% to NVBU's 0.74%.

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Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $885.1bn for iShares Core S&P 500 ETF and $35m for AllianzIM U.S. Equity Buffer15 Uncapped ETF - Nov.

At a glance
+13.7%
IVV total return, 1 year
+7.7%
NVBU total return, 1 year
0.03%
IVV expense ratio
0.74%
NVBU expense ratio

Pair scorecard

IVV costs 0.71 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 6.0 points; IVV is far larger, $885.1bn against $35m.

IVV vs NVBU: Differences, Returns & Fees
MeasureIVVNVBU
Return
Total return, 1 year+13.7%+7.7%
Drawdown
Index fall to the buffer11.7%
Fund price fall to the buffer8.6%
Benchmark
What it tracksS&P 500SPY
The outcome period
Buffer left, in index points15.0% of 15.0%
Days left in the period3
Period endsOct 31, 2026
Cost and size
Expense ratio0.03%0.74%
Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026$885.1bn$35m
Holdings
Holdings in commonnot published
In the S&P 500, by weight100%
Top ten holdings, share of the fund38.1%

Method

Risk and return

Nov 8, 2024 to Oct 23, 2026 · 102 weekly returns · each against SPY
IVV NVBU
Return
Total return edge IVV +30.1% +18.9%
Annualized edge IVV +14.4% +9.2%
Price return edge IVV +27.0% +18.9%
Risk
Volatility edge NVBU 14.9% 10.0%
Max drawdown edge NVBU −16.9% −10.7%
Downside capture 100.4% 80.8%
Beta 1.01 0.66
Risk-adjusted
Sharpe edge IVV 0.71 0.53
Sortino edge IVV 1.06 0.78
Treynor 0.105 0.080
Calmar edge Tie 0.85 0.86
Against the benchmark
Alpha 0.0% a year −1.6% a year
Alpha t-stat 0.05 −0.87
Information ratio 0.18 −0.91
Tracking error 0.4% 5.7%
Reading

IVV returned more: +30.1% to +18.9%. NVBU swung less: 10.0% to 14.9%. NVBU fell less at its worst: −10.7% to −16.9%.

Full scorecard

19 measures, with how each is measured
Open ↓
Risk and return: IVV vs NVBU: Differences, Returns & Fees
MeasureIVVNVBUSPYEdgeHow it is measured
Return
Total return+30.1%+18.9%IVVPrice change plus distributions, reinvested.
Annualized+14.4%+9.2%IVVTotal return as a yearly rate.
Price return+27.0%+18.9%IVVPrice change alone, distributions left out.
Risk
Volatility14.9%10.0%NVBUSpread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier.
Downside deviation9.9%6.8%NVBULike volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate.
Max drawdown−16.9%−10.7%NVBUDeepest fall from a high to the low after it.
Upside capture100.9%62.9%100.0%IVVShare of its benchmark's rise caught in the weeks it rose.
Downside capture100.4%80.8%100.0%NVBUShare of its benchmark's fall taken in the weeks it fell. Lower is better.
Beta1.010.661.00NVBU lowerHow far it moves for each 1% its benchmark moves.
R squared1.000.941.00Not an edgeShare of its weekly moves its benchmark explains.
Risk-adjusted
Sharpe0.710.53IVVReturn above Treasury bills per unit of volatility.
Sortino1.060.78IVVReturn above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation.
Treynor0.1050.0800.104IVVReturn above Treasury bills per unit of beta.
Calmar0.850.86TieAnnualized return divided by the max drawdown.
Against the benchmark
BenchmarkSPYSPYSPYThe ETF each fund is measured against.
Alpha0.0% a year−1.6% a year0.0%Not significantYearly return beyond what its beta to the benchmark predicts.
Alpha t-stat0.05−0.87Not an edgeHow sure the alpha is. Below 2, it could be chance.
Alpha range−0.5% to +0.6%−5.2% to +2.0%Both include zeroThe 95% range for the yearly alpha.
Information ratio0.18−0.91IVVReturn against its benchmark per unit of tracking error.
Tracking error0.4%5.7%0.0%Not an edgeHow far weekly returns stray from the benchmark, annualized.

Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 102 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.

Side by side

IVV iShares Core S&P 500 ETF NVBU AllianzIM U.S. Equity Buffer15 Uncapped ETF - Nov
Where it sits Stock ETF Buffer ETF
What it is Tracks the S&P 500 Defined outcome, 15% on SPY
Total return, 1 year +13.7% +7.7%
Its benchmark over the same days +13.6% (SPY) +12.4% (SPY)
Gap to its benchmark +0.1 pts vs SPY −4.7 pts vs SPY
Expense ratio 0.03% 0.74%
Holdings 505 not read by ETFIQ
Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 $885.1bn $35m

IVV and NVBU on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

Client brief · page 1 of 2 Report BR-E13B42BE2F

IVV and NVBU do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?

  1. What each follows. IVV follows S&P 500 and NVBU follows SPY.
  2. One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 IVV returned +13.7% and NVBU +7.7% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 6.0 points.
  3. Cost. IVV charges 0.03% of assets a year and NVBU 0.74%, a gap of 0.71 points.

Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

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About each fund
IVV

IVV tracks the S&P 500. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +13.7% with distributions reinvested, against +13.6% for its benchmark, the S&P 500. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.03% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 100% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 505 positions, with the top ten at 38.1%.

NVBU

This fund has no cap. It takes a share of any further rise in SPY. The fund's price can fall 8.6% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's number. In index terms, SPY can fall 11.7% from today's level to the point where the buffer begins. Protection left, in index points: 15.0% of the 15.0% buffer still sits below today's SPY level. 3 days remained on Oct 28, 2026. On Oct 31, 2026 the period ends and new terms are set.

Questions people ask

Are IVV and NVBU in the same category?
IVV is a stock ETF and NVBU is a buffer ETF, so they do different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and holdings.
Which returned more over the last year, IVV or NVBU?
In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, IVV returned +13.7% and NVBU +7.7%.
Which is cheaper, IVV or NVBU?
IVV is cheaper, by 0.71 percentage points a year. That is about $71 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
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ETFIQ, IVV against NVBU, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ivv-vs-nvbu

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Free to use with attribution for data ETFIQ computes; issuer data stays under its owner's terms.