ACEI vs ACYN: which paid, and which earned it?

ACEI and ACYN both write options for income. Innovator Equity Autocallable Income Strategy ETF and FT Vest Laddered Autocallable Barrier & Income ETF.

11.1%
ACEI cash paid, 1 year
4.5%
ACYN cash paid, since launch
+5.9%
ACEI total return, 1 year
+8.2%
ACYN total return, since launch
ACEI · 1 year to Sep 30, 20269.8 pts behind SPY
ACEI
+5.9%
SPY
+15.7%

9.8 pts behind SPY

ACEI over 1 year: paid 11.1%, price −5.7%, total +5.9%, SPY +15.7%, −9.8 pts.

SPY

+15.7%

ACEI

+5.9%

11.1% of it arrived as cash

9.8 pts behind SPY

Total return, distributions reinvested

9.8 pts behind SPY

ACEI over 1 year: paid 11.1%, price −5.7%, total +5.9%, SPY +15.7%, −9.8 pts.

SPY

+15.7%

ACEI

+5.9%

9.8 pts behind SPY

11.1% of it arrived as cash. Total return, distributions reinvested. ACEI over 1 year: paid 11.1%, price −5.7%, total +5.9%, SPY +15.7%, −9.8 pts.

ACYN · since launch to Sep 30, 20262.7 pts behind SPY
ACYN
+8.2%
SPY
+10.9%

2.7 pts behind SPY

ACYN since launch: paid 4.5%, price +3.5%, total +8.2%, SPY +10.9%, −2.7 pts.

SPY

+10.9%

ACYN

+8.2%

4.5% as cash

2.7 pts behind SPY

Total return, distributions reinvested

2.7 pts behind SPY

ACYN since launch: paid 4.5%, price +3.5%, total +8.2%, SPY +10.9%, −2.7 pts.

SPY

+10.9%

ACYN

+8.2%

2.7 pts behind SPY

4.5% of it arrived as cash. Both charts share one scale, 0 to +15.7%. ACYN since launch: paid 4.5%, price +3.5%, total +8.2%, SPY +10.9%, −2.7 pts.

What they hold in common

By the books each fund has filed, ACEI and ACYN hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Above 50%, holding both is close to holding one of them twice. Holdings dated Apr 30, 2026 and Sep 30, 2026.

half

0% in common

Positions both hold, largest shared weight first
Holding ACEI ACYN
Only in ACEI
TREASURY BILL 100.00%
Only in ACYN
U.S. Treasury Bill, 0%, due 12/31/2026 32.99%
U.S. Treasury Bill, 0%, due 11/27/2026 32.91%
U.S. Treasury Bill, 0%, due 10/29/2026 31.88%
US Dollar 0.83%
ACYN Autocall Derivative Citi 0.70%
ACYN Autocall Derivative JPMorgan 0.36%
ACYN Autocall Derivative BNP 0.33%

Weight overlap is an ETFIQ calculation: for every security both funds hold, the smaller of the two weights, summed.

Performance, window by window

Total returnCash paidAgainst the benchmark
WindowACEIACYNACEIACYNACEIACYN
3 months+5.4%+3.2%3.3%1.8%+2.8 pts+0.7 pts
6 months+5.6%+7.0%6.5%4.4%−11.4 pts−10.0 pts
1 year+5.9%not published11.1%not published−9.8 ptsnot published
Since launch
ACEI Sep 2025 · ACYN Feb 2026
+6.0%+8.2%11.1%4.5%−11.2 pts−2.7 pts

ACEI and ACYN over each window. Every figure is an ETFIQ calculation with distributions reinvested. Source: ETFIQ. Open the live comparison on ETFIQ →

On the same fields

ACEI
Innovator Equity Autocallable Income Strategy ETF · Autocallable on SPY, paying monthly
ACYN
FT Vest Laddered Autocallable Barrier & Income ETF · Autocallable on SPY, paying monthly
Issuer Innovator First Trust
Strategy autocallable autocallable
Benchmark S&P 500 (SPY), used as a default proxy S&P 500 (SPY), used as a default proxy
Pays monthly monthly
Payout rate, annualized 13.0% 9.9%
Expense ratio 0.79% 0.75%
Cash paid, 1 year 11.1% 4.5% (since launch on Feb 25, 2026)
Price change, 1 year −5.7% +3.5%
Total return, 1 year +5.9% +8.2% (since launch on Feb 25, 2026)
Benchmark return, 1 year +15.7% +10.9%
Ahead or behind −9.8 pts −2.7 pts
Return of capital, latest estimate not published not published
Age 370 days 217 days
Net assets $50m $2.2bn

ACEI and ACYN on the same fields, as of Sep 30, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

ACEI in plain words

Over the year to Sep 30, 2026, ACEI paid 11.1% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 5.7%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +5.9%. S&P 500 (SPY), used as a default proxy returned +15.7% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 9.8 pts. At its price on Sep 30, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 13.0%, paid monthly.

ACYN in plain words

Over the period since launch on Feb 25, 2026 to Sep 30, 2026, ACYN paid 4.5% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price rose 3.5%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +8.2%. S&P 500 (SPY), used as a default proxy returned +10.9% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 2.7 pts. At its price on Sep 30, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 9.9%, paid monthly.

Questions people ask

Which is cheaper, ACEI or ACYN?
ACEI charges 0.79% a year and ACYN charges 0.75%, so ACYN is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Cite this page

ETFIQ, ACEI against ACYN, data as of Sep 30, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/acei-vs-acyn

Open data

Free to use with attribution. Every figure is calculated from a named public source; the method is at etfiq.com/methodology.