Data as of .
BALQ vs QLDY: which paid, and which earned it?
BALQ and QLDY both write options for income.
What they hold in common
By the books each fund has filed, BALQ and QLDY hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.
| Only in BALQ | Only in QLDY |
|---|---|
| NVIDIA 8.62% | Ndx 12/18/2026 2001.44 C 94.80% |
| APPLE 7.63% | First American Government Obligations Fund 12/01/2031 4.77% |
| MICROSOFT 6.72% | United States Treasury Note/bond 2.375% 05/15/2027 0.53% |
| MICRON TECHNOLOGY 5.06% | Ndxp Us 09/21/26 P29500 0.08% |
| AMAZON.COM INC 4.76% | Xnd 12/18/2026 10.44 C 0.05% |
| ADVANCED MICRO DEVICES 4.31% | Cash & Other -0.06% |
| ALPHABET CLASS A 3.44% | Nasdaq-1 Put Opt 09/26 29650 -0.16% |
| META PLATFORMS CLASS A 3.31% |
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 and Sep 21, 2026.
Performance, window by window
| Window | Total return | Cash paid | Against the benchmark | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BALQ | QLDY | BALQ | QLDY | BALQ | QLDY | |
| 3 months | −0.5% | −6.6% | 2.8% | 8.3% | +1.9 pts | −4.1 pts |
| 6 months | +27.2% | +20.1% | 6.5% | 18.7% | +3.0 pts | −4.2 pts |
| 1 year | not published | +10.6% | not published | 29.2% | not published | −11.2 pts |
| Since launch | +21.4% | +10.6% | 8.5% | 29.2% | +5.3 pts | −11.2 pts |
| BALQ iShares Nasdaq Premium Income Active ETF Covered call on QQQ, paying monthly | QLDY Defiance Nasdaq 100 LightningSpread(TM) Income ETF Option income on QQQ, paying weekly | |
|---|---|---|
| Issuer | iShares | Defiance |
| Strategy | covered call | option income |
| Benchmark | Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) | Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) |
| Pays | monthly | weekly |
| Payout rate, annualized | 8.9% | 19.6% |
| Expense ratio | 0.35% | 1.04% |
| Cash paid, 1 year | 8.5% (since launch on Dec 3, 2025) | 29.2% |
| Price change, 1 year | +11.9% | −20.3% |
| Total return, 1 year | +21.4% (since launch on Dec 3, 2025) | +10.6% |
| Benchmark return, 1 year | +16.1% | +21.8% |
| Ahead or behind | +5.3 pts | −11.2 pts |
| Return of capital, latest estimate | not published | 100% |
| Age | 289 days | 365 days |
| Net assets | $29m | $52m |
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.
QLDY in plain words
Over the year to Sep 18, 2026, QLDY paid 29.2% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 20.3%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +10.6%. Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) returned +21.8% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 11.2 pts. At its price on Sep 18, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 19.6%, paid weekly. Defiance estimates that 100% of the distribution paid Sep 17, 2026 was a return of capital (19a-1 notice, estimated, a tax characterization rather than a measure of erosion).
Questions people ask
- Which is cheaper, BALQ or QLDY?
- BALQ charges 0.35% a year and QLDY charges 1.04%, 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 QLDY, data as of Sep 18, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/balq-vs-qldy Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.