BNOV vs SIXZ: Cap, Buffer & Days Left
As of Oct 9, 2026 BNOV can fall 12.5% before its buffer engages and SIXZ 6.4%. Net assets: $201m on Oct 9, 2026 for Innovator U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - Nov, and $64m on Oct 8, 2026 for AllianzIM U.S. Equity Buffer10 ETF - May.
SIXZ costs 0.05 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 2.2 points; BNOV is 3.1 times larger.
| BNOV | SIXZ | |
|---|---|---|
| Expense ratio | 0.79% | 0.74% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 8, 2026 | $200m | $64m |
| Total return, 1 year | +14.2% | +12.0% |
| What it tracks | SPY | SPY |
| Holdings in common | not published | |
| Index fall to the buffer | 12.4% | 7.7% |
BNOV: reference +14.2% since period start, fund +13.3%; buffer 0 to −9; cap +17.6%; Between buffer and cap. Figures to Oct 9, 2026.
BNOV: reference +14.2% since period start, fund +13.3%; buffer 0 to −9; cap +17.6%; Between buffer and cap. Figures to Oct 9, 2026.
SIXZ: reference +8.3% since period start, fund +6.4%; buffer 0 to −10; cap +7.7%; At its cap. Figures to Oct 9, 2026.
SIXZ: reference +8.3% since period start, fund +6.4%; buffer 0 to −10; cap +7.7%; At its cap. Figures to Oct 9, 2026.
A percentile among the 292 buffer ETFs on stocks with a live outcome period. Today's position against one 20% fall; it ignores smaller falls, and stock buffers are never ranked against bond or commodity ones. All buffer ETFs ranked by it → How it is computed →
SIXZ is already at its cap, so more rise in the index adds nothing to it before the period ends.
Where each one stands today
BNOV resets first, on Oct 31, 2026, 22 days from now; SIXZ runs to Oct 31, 2026, 22 days. BNOV can still gain 3.1% before its cap, SIXZ 0.9%. A fall from here reaches BNOV’s buffer after 12.5% and SIXZ’s after 6.4%. 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 | BNOV | SIXZ | BNOV | SIXZ |
| 3 months | +3.5% | +3.1% | +0.4 pts | 0.0 pts |
| 6 months | +12.3% | +10.9% | −2.3 pts | −3.7 pts |
| 1 year | +14.2% | +12.0% | −1.8 pts | −4.0 pts |
| 3 years | +50.1% | not published | −29.0 pts | not published |
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.
BNOV in plain words
From its price on Oct 9, 2026, the fund can gain about 3.1% more before it reaches its cap. The fund's price can fall 12.5% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's figure. In index terms, SPY can fall 12.4% from today's level to the point where the buffer begins. Protection left, in index points: 9.0% of the 9.0% buffer still sits below today's SPY level. 22 days remained on Oct 9, 2026. On Oct 31, 2026 the period ends and a new cap is set.
SIXZ in plain words
SPY had already risen past this fund's cap of +7.7% 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 0.9% as the period runs out. The fund's price can fall 6.4% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's figure. In index terms, SPY can fall 7.7% from today's level to the point where the buffer begins. Protection left, in index points: 10.0% of the 10.0% buffer still sits below today's SPY level.
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
It is a place in a set, not a rating or a recommendation.
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, BNOV against SIXZ, data as of Oct 9, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/bnov-vs-sixz
ETFIQ. (Oct 9, 2026). BNOV against SIXZ. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/bnov-vs-sixz
[BNOV against SIXZ (ETFIQ, Oct 9, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/bnov-vs-sixz)
Free to use with attribution for figures ETFIQ computes; issuer data stays under its owner's terms.