Data as of Nov 4, 2026.

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Income ETFs

BALI vs BALQ: Dividend Yield & Total Return

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BALI and BALQ both write options for income.

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Net assets on Nov 3, 2026: $1.5bn for iShares U.S. Large Cap Premium Income Active ETF and $43m for iShares Nasdaq Premium Income Active ETF.

At a glance
8.4%
BALI cash paid, 1 year
10.0%
BALQ cash paid, since launch, Dec 3, 2025
+17.6%
BALI total return, 1 year
+15.6%
BALQ total return, since launch, Dec 3, 2025
BALI · 1 year to Nov 4, 2026 2.8 pts ahead of SPY
BALI
+17.6%
SPY
+14.8%

2.8 pts ahead of SPY

BALI over 1 year: paid 8.4%, price +8.4%, total +17.6%, SPY +14.8%, +2.8 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

SPY

+14.8%

BALI

+17.6%

8.4% of it arrived as cash

2.8 pts ahead of SPY

Total return, distributions reinvested

2.8 pts ahead of SPY

BALI over 1 year: paid 8.4%, price +8.4%, total +17.6%, SPY +14.8%, +2.8 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

SPY

+14.8%

BALI

+17.6%

2.8 pts ahead of SPY

8.4% of it arrived as cash. Total return, distributions reinvested. BALI over 1 year: paid 8.4%, price +8.4%, total +17.6%, SPY +14.8%, +2.8 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Data to Nov 4, 2026.
BALQ · since launch to Nov 4, 2026 4.1 pts ahead of QQQ
BALQ
+15.6%
QQQ
+11.5%

4.1 pts ahead of QQQ

BALQ since launch: paid 10.0%, price +5.1%, total +15.6%, QQQ +11.5%, +4.1 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

QQQ

+11.5%

BALQ

+15.6%

10.0% of it arrived as cash

4.1 pts ahead of QQQ

Total return, distributions reinvested

4.1 pts ahead of QQQ

BALQ since launch: paid 10.0%, price +5.1%, total +15.6%, QQQ +11.5%, +4.1 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

QQQ

+11.5%

BALQ

+15.6%

10.0% cash

4.1 pts ahead of QQQ

10.0% of it arrived as cash. Both charts share one scale, 0 to +17.6%. BALQ since launch: paid 10.0%, price +5.1%, total +15.6%, QQQ +11.5%, +4.1 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Both charts share one scale, 0 to +17.6%. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Pair scorecard

Both cost 0.35% a year; BALI is far larger, $1.5bn against $43m.

Points (pts) are percentage points.

BALI vs BALQ: Dividend Yield & Total Return
MeasureBALIBALQ
Paid and earned
Total return, 1 year+17.6%not published
Price changerose 8.4% (1 year)rose 5.1% (since Dec 3, 2025)
Return of capital, issuer estimate84% of the Nov 5, 2026 payment97% of the Nov 5, 2026 payment
Against its benchmark
BenchmarkS&P 500, measured through SPYNasdaq-100, measured through QQQ
Cost and size
Expense ratio0.35%0.35%
Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026$1.5bn$43m
Holdings
Holdings in common50%

Method

Risk and return

Dec 12, 2025 to Oct 30, 2026 · 46 weekly returns
BALI BALQ
Return
Total return edge BALQ (slight) +15.2% +16.8%
Price return edge BALI (slight) +7.7% +7.0%
Risk
Max drawdown edge BALI −6.1% −9.3%
Reading

From Dec 2025 to Oct 2026, BALQ returned slightly more: +16.8% to +15.2%. BALI fell less at its worst: −6.1% to −9.3%.

Full scorecard

3 measures, with how each is measured
Open ↓
Risk and return: BALI vs BALQ: Dividend Yield & Total Return
MeasureBALIBALQEdgeHow it is measured
Return
Total return+15.2%+16.8%BALQ (slight)Price change plus distributions, reinvested.
Price return+7.7%+7.0%BALI (slight)Price change alone, distributions left out.
Risk
Max drawdown−6.1%−9.3%BALIDeepest fall from a high to the low after it.

Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 46 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.

What they share

50%

By the books each fund has filed, BALI and BALQ hold 50% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Nov 3, 2026.

0 half 100%

half

50% in common

Positions both hold · largest shared weight first BALI BALQ
NVIDIA 6.95% 8.33%
APPLE 6.17% 7.82%
MICROSOFT 5.46% 7.46%
AMAZON.COM INC 3.33% 5.04%
BROADCOM INC 2.12% 2.99%
ALPHABET CLASS A 2.09% 2.75%
ALPHABET CLASS C 1.95% 2.44%
COSTCO WHOLESALE CORP 1.78% 3.46%
META PLATFORMS CLASS A 1.63% 3.09%
MICRON TECHNOLOGY 1.29% 4.74%
ADVANCED MICRO DEVICES 1.20% 4.10%
CISCO SYSTEMS INC 0.95% 2.30%
Only in one fund ↓
Only in BALI
EXXONMOBIL HOLDINGS CORP 1.93%
BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY INC CLASS B 1.88%
CHEVRON 1.81%
VISA CLASS A 1.66%
ELI LILLY 1.37%
JPMORGAN CHASE & CO 1.19%
WEC ENERGY GROUP 0.88%
GILEAD SCIENCES 0.86%
Only in BALQ
WALMART 2.97%
SPACE EXPLORATION TECHNOLOGIES COR 2.10%
GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP 0.82%
MORGAN STANLEY 0.63%
MKS 0.44%
RTX 0.40%
SS AND C TECHNOLOGIES HOLDINGS 0.40%
ONTO INNOVATION 0.38%
Check overlap with more funds →

Side by side

BALI iShares U.S. Large Cap Premium Income Active ETF · Covered call on SPY, paying monthly BALQ iShares Nasdaq Premium Income Active ETF · Covered call on QQQ, paying monthly
Strategy covered call covered call
Benchmark S&P 500 (SPY) Nasdaq-100 (QQQ)
Pays monthly monthly
Payout rate, annualized 6.5% 8.5%
Expense ratio 0.35% 0.35%
Cash paid, 1 year 8.4% 10.0% (since launch, Dec 3, 2025)
Price change, 1 year +8.4% +5.1% (since launch, Dec 3, 2025)
Total return, 1 year +17.6% +15.6% (since launch, Dec 3, 2025)
Benchmark return, 1 year +14.8% +11.5% (since launch, Dec 3, 2025)
Ahead or behind +2.8 pts +4.1 pts (since launch, Dec 3, 2025)
Return of capital, latest estimate 84% 97%
Age 3.1 years 336 days
Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026 $1.5bn $43m

As of Nov 4, 2026. Source: ETFIQ. Cash paid: distributions over the window, as a share of the starting price. Payout rate: the latest payment, annualized, over today’s price.

Window by window

Window by window: BALI vs BALQ: Dividend Yield & Total Return
Total returnCash paidAgainst the benchmark
WindowBALIBALQBALIBALQBALIBALQ
3 months0.0%−3.8%1.7%2.1%+0.1 pts−0.3 pts
6 months+6.5%+1.3%3.7%5.2%+1.4 pts+1.7 pts
1 year+17.6%–8.4%–+2.8 pts–
3 years+74.1%–29.6%–−8.8 pts–
Since launchNot the same days: BALI Sep 2023 · BALQ Dec 2025+77.2%+15.6%30.6%10.0%−8.4 pts+4.1 pts

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Client brief

No client brief for this pair: ETFIQ prints no one-year total return for BALQ.

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About each fund
BALI

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, BALI paid 8.4% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price rose 8.4%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +17.6%. S&P 500 (SPY) returned +14.8% over the same days, so a holder was ahead by 2.8 pts. At its price on Nov 4, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 6.5%, paid monthly. iShares estimates that 84% of the distribution paid Nov 5, 2026 was a return of capital (its 19a-1 notice). That is a tax label, not a measure of erosion.

BALQ

Over the period from its first trade on Dec 3, 2025 to Nov 4, 2026, BALQ paid 10.0% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price rose 5.1%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +15.6%. Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) returned +11.5% over the same days, so a holder was ahead by 4.1 pts. At its price on Nov 4, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 8.5%, paid monthly. iShares estimates that 97% of the distribution paid Nov 5, 2026 was a return of capital (its 19a-1 notice).

Questions people ask

Which is cheaper, BALI or BALQ?
BALI and BALQ both charge 0.35% a year, so neither is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Other comparisons
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ETFIQ, BALI against BALQ, data as of Nov 4, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/bali-vs-balq

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