CPNQ vs PQJA: which one stands where?
As of Oct 1, 2026 PQJA can fall 11.5% before its buffer engages and CPNQ 5.6%, and CPNQ resets 31 days sooner. Calamos Nasdaq-100 ® Structured Alt Protection ETF - December and PGIM Nasdaq-100 Buffer 12 ETF - January.
CPNQ: reference +19.9% since period start, fund +5.4%; buffer −0 to floor; cap +6.6%; At its cap.
PQJA: reference +20.4% since period start, fund +12.5%; buffer 0 to −12; cap +16.9%; At its cap.
These are two different products. CPNQ is a floor fund, which caps how far a holder can fall. PQJA 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. CPNQ has 61 days of its period left and PQJA has 92, so the two are not the same bet on the same months.
Where each one stands today
CPNQ resets first, on Dec 1, 2026, 61 days from now; PQJA runs to Dec 31, 2026, 92 days. A fall from here reaches CPNQ’s buffer after 5.6% and PQJA’s after 11.5%. Both track QQQ, so what separates them is where each is in its own period.
Every figure is ETFIQ’s own, from the issuer’s published outcome-period terms. A buffer ETF holds FLEX options on its reference index rather than shares, so there is no holdings overlap between two of them to report.
Performance, window by window
| Total return | Gap to the reference | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Window | CPNQ | PQJA | CPNQ | PQJA |
| 3 months | +1.8% | +3.8% | −0.3 pts | +1.7 pts |
| 6 months | +5.4% | +15.1% | −21.5 pts | −11.8 pts |
| 1 year | +6.7% | +16.8% | −17.1 pts | −7.0 pts |
CPNQ and PQJA over each window. Every figure is an ETFIQ calculation with distributions reinvested. Source: ETFIQ. Open the live comparison on ETFIQ →
On the same fields
CPNQ and PQJA on the same fields, as of Oct 1, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
CPNQ in plain words
QQQ had already risen past this fund's cap of +6.6% for the period on Oct 1, 2026, so in index terms there is no more upside to collect. The fund's price can fall 5.6% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's figure. In index terms, QQQ can fall 17.0% from today's level to the point where the buffer begins. Protection left, in index points: 99.5% of the 99.5% buffer still sits below today's QQQ level. 61 days remained on Oct 1, 2026. On Dec 1, 2026 the period ends and a new cap is set.
PQJA in plain words
QQQ had already risen past this fund's cap of +16.9% for the period on Oct 1, 2026, so in index terms there is no more upside to collect. The fund's own price can still drift up to about 3.5% as the period runs out. The fund's price can fall 11.5% 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 QQQ level. 92 days remained on Oct 1, 2026. On Dec 31, 2026 the period ends and a new cap is set.
Questions people ask
ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure. It is not affiliated with any issuer, and a link is not an endorsement. A comparison is not a recommendation.
ETFIQ, CPNQ against PQJA, data as of Oct 1, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/cpnq-vs-pqja
Free to use with attribution. Every figure is calculated from a named public source; the method is at etfiq.com/methodology.
Cite this page. ETFIQ, CPNQ against PQJA, data as of Oct 1, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/cpnq-vs-pqja Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.
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- ETFIQ, CPNQ against PQJA, data as of Oct 1, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/cpnq-vs-pqja
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- ETFIQ. (Oct 1, 2026). CPNQ against PQJA. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/cpnq-vs-pqja
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- [CPNQ against PQJA (ETFIQ, Oct 1, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/cpnq-vs-pqja)