Data as of Nov 4, 2026.

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Income ETFs

BALI vs FTHI: Dividend Yield & Total Return

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Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, FTHI paid 8.9% of its price in cash against BALI’s 8.4%, though BALI returned more with it reinvested.

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Net assets on Nov 3, 2026: $1.5bn for iShares U.S. Large Cap Premium Income Active ETF and $2.5bn for First Trust BuyWrite Income ETF.

At a glance
8.4%
BALI cash paid, 1 year
8.9%
FTHI cash paid, 1 year
+17.6%
BALI total return, 1 year
+8.1%
FTHI total return, 1 year
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.
FTHI · 1 year to Nov 4, 2026 6.7 pts behind SPY
FTHI
+8.1%
SPY
+14.8%

6.7 pts behind SPY

FTHI over 1 year: paid 8.9%, price −1.2%, total +8.1%, SPY +14.8%, −6.7 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

SPY

+14.8%

FTHI

+8.1%

8.9% of it arrived as cash

6.7 pts behind SPY

Total return, distributions reinvested

6.7 pts behind SPY

FTHI over 1 year: paid 8.9%, price −1.2%, total +8.1%, SPY +14.8%, −6.7 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

SPY

+14.8%

FTHI

+8.1%

6.7 pts behind SPY

8.9% of it arrived as cash. Both charts share one scale, with zero at the line. FTHI over 1 year: paid 8.9%, price −1.2%, total +8.1%, SPY +14.8%, −6.7 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Pair scorecard

BALI costs 0.40 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 9.5 points; FTHI is 1.7 times larger.

Points (pts) are percentage points.

BALI vs FTHI: Dividend Yield & Total Return
MeasureBALIFTHI
Paid and earned
Total return, 1 year+17.6%+8.1%
Price change, 1 yearrose 8.4%fell 1.2%
Return of capital, issuer estimate84% of the Nov 5, 2026 payment92% of the Oct 30, 2026 payment
Against its benchmark
BenchmarkS&P 500, measured through SPYS&P 500, measured through SPY
Cost and size
Expense ratio0.35%0.75%
Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026$1.5bn$2.5bn
Holdings
Holdings in common44%
ETFIQ Distribution Coverage Score · BALI scores higher How much of what it paid out did its total return cover?
IQ Income Score88.3BALI52.4FTHI

How much of its payouts the fund's total return covered, ranked against 167 income ETFs not writing on a single company. 100 is best. How it is computed

0.3, the lowest in this set 99.7, the highest

One year only, and a ratio of two published numbers: it says nothing about where a distribution came from. All income ETFs ranked by it →

Method

Risk and return

Oct 6, 2023 to Oct 30, 2026 · 160 weekly returns · each against SPY
BALI FTHI
Return
Total return edge BALI +75.1% +50.0%
Annualized edge BALI +20.0% +14.1%
Price return edge BALI +36.9% +14.1%
Risk
Volatility edge FTHI 12.3% 10.1%
Max drawdown edge FTHI (slight) −15.3% −14.4%
Downside capture 86.7% 67.1%
Beta 0.85 0.65
Risk-adjusted
Sharpe edge BALI 1.18 0.92
Sortino edge BALI 1.83 1.34
Treynor 0.171 0.141
Calmar edge BALI 1.31 0.98
Against the benchmark
Alpha +0.8% a year −1.3% a year
Alpha t-stat 0.66 −0.56
Information ratio −0.54 −1.09
Tracking error 3.0% 6.3%
Reading

From Oct 2023 to Oct 2026, BALI returned more: +75.1% to +50.0%. FTHI swung less: 10.1% to 12.3%. FTHI fell slightly less at its worst: −14.4% to −15.3%.

Full scorecard

19 measures, with how each is measured
Open ↓
Risk and return: BALI vs FTHI: Dividend Yield & Total Return
MeasureBALIFTHISPYEdgeHow it is measured
Return
Total return+75.1%+50.0%BALIPrice change plus distributions, reinvested.
Annualized+20.0%+14.1%BALITotal return as a yearly rate.
Price return+36.9%+14.1%BALIPrice change alone, distributions left out.
Risk
Volatility12.3%10.1%FTHISpread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier.
Downside deviation7.9%6.9%FTHILike volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate.
Max drawdown−15.3%−14.4%FTHI (slight)Deepest fall from a high to the low after it.
Upside capture81.0%52.3%100.0%BALIShare of its benchmark's rise caught in the weeks it rose.
Downside capture86.7%67.1%100.0%FTHIShare of its benchmark's fall taken in the weeks it fell. Lower is better.
Beta0.850.651.00FTHI lowerHow far it moves for each 1% its benchmark moves.
R squared0.970.851.00Not an edgeShare of its weekly moves its benchmark explains.
Risk-adjusted
Sharpe1.180.92BALIReturn above Treasury bills per unit of volatility.
Sortino1.831.34BALIReturn above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation.
Treynor0.1710.1410.161BALIReturn above Treasury bills per unit of beta.
Calmar1.310.98BALIAnnualized return divided by the max drawdown.
Against the benchmark
BenchmarkSPYSPYSPYThe ETF each fund is measured against.
Alpha+0.8% a year−1.3% a year0.0%Not significantYearly return beyond what its beta to the benchmark predicts.
Alpha t-stat0.66−0.56Not an edgeHow sure the alpha is. Below 2, it could be chance.
Alpha range−1.6% to +3.2%−5.8% to +3.2%Both include zeroThe 95% range for the yearly alpha.
Information ratio−0.54−1.09BALIReturn against its benchmark per unit of tracking error.
Tracking error3.0%6.3%0.0%Not an edgeHow far weekly returns stray from the benchmark, annualized.

Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 160 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.

What they share

44%

By the books each fund has filed, BALI and FTHI hold 44% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Nov 3, 2026.

0 half 100%

half

44% in common

Positions both hold · largest shared weight first BALI FTHI
NVIDIA 6.95% 6.59%
APPLE 6.17% 7.86%
MICROSOFT 5.46% 3.18%
AMAZON.COM INC 3.33% 2.57%
ALPHABET CLASS A 2.09% 1.99%
BROADCOM INC 2.12% 1.92%
COSTCO WHOLESALE CORP 1.78% 2.04%
ALPHABET CLASS C 1.95% 1.44%
META PLATFORMS CLASS A 1.63% 1.25%
EXXONMOBIL HOLDINGS CORP 1.93% 1.22%
ELI LILLY 1.37% 1.19%
JPMORGAN CHASE & CO 1.19% 2.65%
Only in one fund ↓
Only in BALI
BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY INC CLASS B 1.88%
VISA CLASS A 1.66%
PROCTER & GAMBLE 1.65%
PFIZER 1.28%
UNITEDHEALTH GROUP 1.07%
LOCKHEED MARTIN 1.01%
ABBOTT LABORATORIES 0.99%
VERIZON COMMUNICATIONS INC 0.95%
Only in FTHI
ASML Holding N.V. (New York Registry Shares) 2.06%
Linde Plc 1.27%
Johnson & Johnson 1.13%
Union Pacific Corporation 1.00%
Altria Group, Inc. 0.87%
Jackson Financial Inc. (Class A) 0.80%
Colgate-Palmolive Company 0.79%
Walmart Inc. 0.78%
Check overlap with more funds →

Side by side

BALI iShares U.S. Large Cap Premium Income Active ETF · Covered call on SPY, paying monthly FTHI First Trust BuyWrite Income ETF · Covered call on SPY, paying monthly
Strategy covered call covered call
Benchmark S&P 500 (SPY) S&P 500 (SPY)
Pays monthly monthly
Payout rate, annualized 6.5% 9.0%
Expense ratio 0.35% 0.75%
Cash paid, 1 year 8.4% 8.9%
Price change, 1 year +8.4% −1.2%
Total return, 1 year +17.6% +8.1%
Benchmark return, 1 year +14.8% +14.8%
Ahead or behind +2.8 pts −6.7 pts
Return of capital, latest estimate 84% 92%
Age 3.1 years 12.8 years
Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026 $1.5bn $2.5bn

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 FTHI: Dividend Yield & Total Return
Total returnCash paidAgainst the benchmark
WindowBALIFTHIBALIFTHIBALIFTHI
3 months0.0%−0.5%1.7%2.2%+0.1 pts−0.3 pts
6 months+6.5%+2.5%3.7%4.4%+1.4 pts−2.5 pts
1 year+17.6%+8.1%8.4%8.9%+2.8 pts−6.7 pts
3 years+74.1%+48.1%29.6%29.7%−8.8 pts−34.8 pts
Since launchNot the same days: BALI Sep 2023 · FTHI Jan 2014+77.2%+155.0%30.6%84.3%−8.4 pts−262.6 pts

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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.

FTHI

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, FTHI paid 8.9% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 1.2%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +8.1%. S&P 500 (SPY) returned +14.8% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 6.7 pts. At its price on Nov 4, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 9.0%, paid monthly. First Trust estimates that 92% of the distribution paid Oct 30, 2026 was a return of capital (its 19a-1 notice).

Questions people ask

Which paid more, BALI or FTHI?
Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, BALI paid 8.4% of its starting price in cash and FTHI paid 8.9%, so FTHI paid more. Cash paid is not the same as money made: the price change matters too.
Which returned more once distributions are counted, BALI or FTHI?
With every distribution reinvested, BALI returned +17.6% and FTHI +8.1% over the year to Nov 4, 2026.
Which is cheaper, BALI or FTHI?
BALI charges 0.35% a year and FTHI charges 0.75%, so BALI is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
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Sources and dates

Links are sources, not endorsements. A comparison is not a recommendation.

How this is computed

It is a place in a set, not a rating or a recommendation.

Overlap adds up the smaller of the two weights for each security both funds hold.

Every number is an ETFIQ calculation with distributions reinvested.

Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown

ETFIQ, BALI against FTHI, data as of Nov 4, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/bali-vs-fthi

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