AAPR vs APRP: Cap, Buffer & Days Left
As of Oct 9, 2026 APRP can fall 10.5% before its buffer engages and AAPR 4.3%, and APRP resets 366 days sooner. Net assets on Oct 9, 2026: $71m for Innovator Equity Defined Protection ETF - Apr 2028 and $32m for PGIM S&P 500 Buffer 12 ETF - April.
APRP costs 0.29 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 8.5 points; AAPR is 2.2 times larger.
| AAPR | APRP | |
|---|---|---|
| Expense ratio | 0.79% | 0.50% |
| Net assets | $71m | $32m |
| Total return, 1 year | +7.0% | +15.5% |
| What it tracks | SPY | SPY |
| Holdings in common | not published | |
| Index fall to the buffer | 16.5% | |
AAPR: reference +19.7% since period start, fund +4.0%; buffer Floor; cap +15.7%; At its cap. Figures to Oct 9, 2026.
Figures to Oct 9, 2026.
APRP: reference +19.7% since period start, fund +11.2%; buffer 0 to −12; cap +16.6%; At its cap. Figures to Oct 9, 2026.
APRP: reference +19.7% since period start, fund +11.2%; buffer 0 to −12; cap +16.6%; At its cap. Figures to Oct 9, 2026.
These are two different products. AAPR is a floor fund, which caps how far a holder can fall. APRP is a buffer fund, which absorbs the first part of a fall and leaves everything below it with the holder.
Both are already at their cap, so neither gains from more rise in the index before the period ends.
They do not reset together. APRP has 173 days of its period left and AAPR has 539, so the two are not the same bet on the same months.
Where each one stands today
APRP resets first, on Mar 31, 2027, 173 days from now; AAPR runs to Mar 31, 2028, 539 days. AAPR can still gain 10.9% before its cap, APRP 4.4%. A fall from here reaches AAPR’s buffer after 4.3% and APRP’s after 10.5%. Both track SPY, so what separates them is where each is in its own period.
Performance, window by window
| Total return | Gap to the reference's price return | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Window | AAPR | APRP | AAPR | APRP |
| 3 months | +1.2% | +2.8% | −1.9 pts | −0.3 pts |
| 6 months | +2.8% | +7.9% | −11.8 pts | −6.7 pts |
| 1 year | +7.0% | +15.5% | −9.0 pts | −0.5 pts |
Each fund's gap is to its reference's price return, dividends left out: the basis the outcome period uses. Source: ETFIQ. Open the live comparison on ETFIQ →
On the same fields
As of Oct 9, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
AAPR in plain words
SPY had already risen past this fund's cap of +15.7% for the period on Oct 9, 2026, so in index terms there is no more upside to collect. The fund's own price can still drift up to about 10.9% as the period runs out. The fund's price can fall 4.3% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's figure. In index terms, SPY can fall 16.5% from today's level to the point where the buffer begins. Protection left, in index points: 100.0% of the 100.0% buffer still sits below today's SPY level. 539 days remained on Oct 9, 2026. On Mar 31, 2028 the period ends and a new cap is set.
APRP in plain words
SPY had already risen past this fund's cap of +16.6% for the period on Oct 9, 2026, so in index terms there is no more upside to collect. The fund's own price can still drift up to about 4.4% as the period runs out. The fund's price can fall 10.5% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's figure. Protection left, in index points: 12.0% of the 12.0% buffer still sits below today's SPY level. 173 days remained on Oct 9, 2026. On Mar 31, 2027 the period ends and a new cap is set.
Questions people ask
ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure; a link is not an endorsement. A comparison is not a recommendation.
How this is computed
ETFIQ calculates every figure from each issuer’s published outcome-period terms. Buffer ETFs hold options on an index, not shares, so there is no holdings overlap to report.
Every figure is an ETFIQ calculation with distributions reinvested.
ETFIQ, AAPR against APRP, data as of Oct 9, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/aapr-vs-aprp
ETFIQ. (Oct 9, 2026). AAPR against APRP. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/aapr-vs-aprp
[AAPR against APRP (ETFIQ, Oct 9, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/aapr-vs-aprp)
Free to use with attribution for figures ETFIQ computes; issuer data stays under its owner's terms.