CPSD vs PQV: which one stands where?
As of Oct 1, 2026 CPSD can fall 5.0% before its buffer engages and PQV 0.1%, and CPSD resets 31 days sooner. Calamos S&P 500 ® Structured Alt Protection ETF - December and PGIM S&P 500 Quarterly Buffer 5 ETF.
CPSD: reference +12.1% since period start, fund +4.7%; buffer −1 to floor; cap +6.1%; At its cap.
PQV: reference 0.0% since period start, fund 0.0%; buffer 0 to −5; cap +5.1%; Between buffer and cap.
These are two different products. CPSD is a floor fund, which caps how far a holder can fall. PQV is a buffer fund, which absorbs the first part of a fall and leaves everything below it with the holder.
CPSD is already at its cap, so more rise in the index adds nothing to it before the period ends.
They do not reset together. CPSD has 61 days of its period left and PQV has 92, so the two are not the same bet on the same months.
Where each one stands today
CPSD resets first, on Dec 1, 2026, 61 days from now; PQV runs to Dec 31, 2026, 92 days. A fall from here reaches CPSD’s buffer after 5.0% and PQV’s after 0.1%. Both track SPY, 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 | CPSD | PQV | CPSD | PQV |
| 3 months | +1.6% | +2.2% | −0.9 pts | −0.4 pts |
| 6 months | +4.5% | not published | −12.5 pts | not published |
| 1 year | +6.3% | not published | −9.4 pts | not published |
CPSD and PQV over each window. Every figure is an ETFIQ calculation with distributions reinvested. Source: ETFIQ. Open the live comparison on ETFIQ →
On the same fields
CPSD and PQV on the same fields, as of Oct 1, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
CPSD in plain words
SPY had already risen past this fund's cap of +6.1% for the period on Oct 1, 2026, so in index terms there is no more upside to collect. The fund's price can fall 5.0% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's figure. In index terms, SPY can fall 11.3% 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 SPY level. 61 days remained on Oct 1, 2026. On Dec 1, 2026 the period ends and a new cap is set.
PQV in plain words
From its price on Oct 1, 2026, the fund can gain about 4.9% more before it reaches its cap. The fund's price can fall 0.1% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's figure. In index terms, SPY can fall 0.0% from today's level to the point where the buffer begins. Protection left, in index points: 5.0% of the 5.0% buffer still sits below today's SPY 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, CPSD against PQV, data as of Oct 1, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/cpsd-vs-pqv
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, CPSD against PQV, data as of Oct 1, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/cpsd-vs-pqv Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.
Other forms
- Plain
- ETFIQ, CPSD against PQV, data as of Oct 1, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/cpsd-vs-pqv
- APA
- ETFIQ. (Oct 1, 2026). CPSD against PQV. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/cpsd-vs-pqv
- Markdown
- [CPSD against PQV (ETFIQ, Oct 1, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/cpsd-vs-pqv)