Data as of Nov 4, 2026.

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Income ETFs

BALQ vs DRKY: Dividend Yield & Total Return

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BALQ and DRKY both write options for income.

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Net assets on Nov 3, 2026: $43m for iShares Nasdaq Premium Income Active ETF and $20m for VistaShares Target 15 DRUKMacro Distribution ETF.

At a glance
10.0%
BALQ cash paid, since launch, Dec 3, 2025
15.2%
DRKY cash paid, 1 year
+15.6%
BALQ total return, since launch, Dec 3, 2025
+15.7%
DRKY total return, 1 year
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. Total return, distributions reinvested. BALQ since launch: paid 10.0%, price +5.1%, total +15.6%, QQQ +11.5%, +4.1 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Data to Nov 4, 2026.
DRKY · 1 year to Nov 4, 2026 0.9 pts ahead of SPY
DRKY
+15.7%
SPY
+14.8%

0.9 pts ahead of SPY

DRKY over 1 year: paid 15.2%, price −0.5%, total +15.7%, SPY +14.8%, +0.9 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

SPY

+14.8%

DRKY

+15.7%

15.2% of it arrived as cash

0.9 pts ahead of SPY

Total return, distributions reinvested

0.9 pts ahead of SPY

DRKY over 1 year: paid 15.2%, price −0.5%, total +15.7%, SPY +14.8%, +0.9 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

SPY

+14.8%

DRKY

+15.7%

15.2% as cash

0.9 pts ahead of SPY

15.2% of it arrived as cash. Both charts share one scale, with zero at the line. DRKY over 1 year: paid 15.2%, price −0.5%, total +15.7%, SPY +14.8%, +0.9 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Pair scorecard

BALQ costs 0.60 points a year less; BALQ is 2.2 times larger.

Points (pts) are percentage points.

BALQ vs DRKY: Dividend Yield & Total Return
MeasureBALQDRKY
Paid and earned
Total return, 1 yearnot published+15.7%
Price changerose 5.1% (since Dec 3, 2025)fell 0.5% (1 year)
Return of capital, issuer estimate97% of the Nov 5, 2026 payment100% of the Oct 27, 2026 payment
Against its benchmark
BenchmarkNasdaq-100, measured through QQQS&P 500, measured through SPY
Cost and size
Expense ratio0.35%0.95%
Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026$43m$20m
Holdings
Holdings in common10%

Method

What they share

10%

By the books each fund has filed, BALQ and DRKY hold 10% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Nov 3, 2026 and Nov 4, 2026.

0 half 100%

half

10% in common

Positions both hold · largest shared weight first BALQ DRKY
AMAZON.COM INC 5.04% 4.79%
ALPHABET CLASS A 2.75% 3.80%
TESLA INC 2.88% 2.26%
INSMED 0.32% 4.38%
NATERA 0.13% 27.89%
Only in one fund ↓
Only in BALQ
NVIDIA 8.33%
APPLE 7.82%
MICROSOFT 7.46%
MICRON TECHNOLOGY 4.74%
ADVANCED MICRO DEVICES 4.10%
COSTCO WHOLESALE CORP 3.46%
META PLATFORMS CLASS A 3.09%
BROADCOM INC 2.99%
Only in DRKY
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd 8.64%
STMicroelectronics NV 7.05%
BBB Foods Inc 5.63%
CDW Corp 4.68%
Fox Corp 4.35%
United Airlines Holdings Inc 4.11%
YPF SA 3.75%
Seagate Technology Holdings PLC 3.03%
Check overlap with more funds →

Side by side

BALQ iShares Nasdaq Premium Income Active ETF · Covered call on QQQ, paying monthly DRKY VistaShares Target 15 DRUKMacro Distribution ETF · Covered call on SPY, paying monthly
Strategy covered call covered call
Benchmark Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) S&P 500 (SPY)
Pays monthly monthly
Payout rate, annualized 8.5% 15.2%
Expense ratio 0.35% 0.95%
Cash paid, 1 year 10.0% (since launch, Dec 3, 2025) 15.2%
Price change, 1 year +5.1% (since launch, Dec 3, 2025) −0.5%
Total return, 1 year +15.6% (since launch, Dec 3, 2025) +15.7%
Benchmark return, 1 year +11.5% (since launch, Dec 3, 2025) +14.8%
Ahead or behind +4.1 pts (since launch, Dec 3, 2025) +0.9 pts
Return of capital, latest estimate 97% 100%
Age 336 days 1.1 years
Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026 $43m $20m

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: BALQ vs DRKY: Dividend Yield & Total Return
Total returnCash paidAgainst the benchmark
WindowBALQDRKYBALQDRKYBALQDRKY
3 months−3.8%+6.3%2.1%4.0%−0.3 pts+6.4 pts
6 months+1.3%+6.2%5.2%7.5%+1.7 pts+1.1 pts
1 year–+15.7%–15.2%–+0.9 pts
Since launchNot the same days: BALQ Dec 2025 · DRKY Oct 2025+15.6%+20.0%10.0%16.8%+4.1 pts+4.8 pts

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About each fund
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). That is a tax label, not a measure of erosion.

DRKY

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, DRKY paid 15.2% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 0.5%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +15.7%. S&P 500 (SPY) returned +14.8% over the same days, so a holder was ahead by 0.9 pts. At its price on Nov 4, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 15.2%, paid monthly. VistaShares estimates that 100% of the distribution paid Oct 27, 2026 was a return of capital (its 19a-1 notice).

Questions people ask

Which is cheaper, BALQ or DRKY?
BALQ charges 0.35% a year and DRKY charges 0.95%, so BALQ is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Other comparisons
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ETFIQ, BALQ against DRKY, data as of Nov 4, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/balq-vs-drky

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