Data as of .
BALQ vs FTQI: which paid, and which earned it?
BALQ and FTQI both write options for income.
What they hold in common
By the books each fund has filed, BALQ and FTQI hold 50% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.
| Holding | BALQ | FTQI |
|---|---|---|
| APPLE | 7.63% | 8.76% |
| NVIDIA | 8.62% | 6.55% |
| ADVANCED MICRO DEVICES | 4.31% | 5.41% |
| AMAZON.COM INC | 4.76% | 4.13% |
| META PLATFORMS CLASS A | 3.31% | 2.75% |
| TESLA INC | 2.73% | 2.68% |
| MICRON TECHNOLOGY | 5.06% | 2.38% |
| CISCO SYSTEMS INC | 2.15% | 3.18% |
| ALPHABET CLASS A | 3.44% | 2.06% |
| ALPHABET CLASS C | 3.09% | 2.05% |
| PALANTIR TECHNOLOGIES CLASS A | 1.96% | 2.54% |
| BROADCOM INC | 2.99% | 1.92% |
| Only in BALQ | Only in FTQI |
|---|---|
| BLK CSH FND TREASURY SL AGENCY 2.70% | US Dollar 5.75% |
| WALMART INC 2.36% | Seagate Technology Holdings Plc 2.17% |
| CASH COLLATERAL MSFUT USD 1.46% | Palo Alto Networks, Inc. 1.42% |
| SANDISK 1.19% | KLA Corporation 1.29% |
| MARVELL TECHNOLOGY 1.04% | Netflix, Inc. 1.24% |
| WESTERN DIGITAL CORP 0.85% | Gilead Sciences, Inc. 1.22% |
| LOCKHEED MARTIN CORP 0.83% | CME Group Inc. 0.97% |
| SPACE EXPLORATION TECHNOLOGIES COR 0.82% | Amgen Inc. 0.87% |
Weight overlap is an ETFIQ calculation: for every security both funds hold, the smaller of the two weights, summed. Above 50%, holding both is close to holding one of them twice. Holdings dated Sep 18, 2026.
Performance, window by window
| Window | Total return | Cash paid | Against the benchmark | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BALQ | FTQI | BALQ | FTQI | BALQ | FTQI | |
| 3 months | −0.5% | +4.0% | 2.8% | 2.9% | +1.9 pts | +6.5 pts |
| 6 months | +27.2% | +18.3% | 6.5% | 6.3% | +3.0 pts | −5.9 pts |
| 1 year | not published | +21.5% | not published | 12.0% | not published | −0.3 pts |
| 3 years | not published | +62.9% | not published | 37.0% | not published | −35.3 pts |
| Since launch | +21.4% | +141.7% | 8.5% | 78.8% | +5.3 pts | −675.0 pts |
| BALQ iShares Nasdaq Premium Income Active ETF Covered call on QQQ, paying monthly | FTQI First Trust Nasdaq BuyWrite Income ETF Covered call on QQQ, paying monthly | |
|---|---|---|
| Issuer | iShares | First Trust |
| Strategy | covered call | covered call |
| Benchmark | Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) | Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) |
| Pays | monthly | monthly |
| Payout rate, annualized | 8.9% | 11.9% |
| Expense ratio | 0.35% | 0.75% |
| Cash paid, 1 year | 8.5% (since launch on Dec 3, 2025) | 12.0% |
| Price change, 1 year | +11.9% | +8.0% |
| Total return, 1 year | +21.4% (since launch on Dec 3, 2025) | +21.5% |
| Benchmark return, 1 year | +16.1% | +21.8% |
| Ahead or behind | +5.3 pts | −0.3 pts |
| Return of capital, latest estimate | not published | not published |
| Age | 289 days | 4637 days |
| Net assets | $29m | $975m |
BALQ in plain words
Over the period since launch on Dec 3, 2025 to Sep 18, 2026, BALQ paid 8.5% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price rose 11.9%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +21.4%. Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) returned +16.1% over the same days, so a holder was ahead by 5.3 pts. At its price on Sep 18, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 8.9%, paid monthly.
FTQI in plain words
Over the year to Sep 18, 2026, FTQI paid 12.0% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price rose 8.0%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +21.5%. Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) returned +21.8% over the same days, so a holder was about even. At its price on Sep 18, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 11.9%, paid monthly.
Questions people ask
- Which is cheaper, BALQ or FTQI?
- BALQ charges 0.35% a year and FTQI charges 0.75%, so BALQ is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Other comparisons
Where these figures came from
ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure. It is not affiliated with any issuer, and a link is not an endorsement.
Cite this page. ETFIQ, BALQ against FTQI, data as of Sep 18, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/balq-vs-ftqi Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.