Data as of Nov 4, 2026.

vsOpen in the appCompare their flowsaskIQ about these two fundsAsk the committee about these two funds
Income ETFs

BALQ vs QUSA: Dividend Yield & Total Return

Share
Share on XDownload as PDF

BALQ and QUSA both write options for income.

askIQ about this page

askIQ about BALQ and QUSA

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

At a glance
10.0%
BALQ cash paid, since launch, Dec 3, 2025
14.6%
QUSA cash paid, 1 year
+15.6%
BALQ total return, since launch, Dec 3, 2025
+1.9%
QUSA 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.
QUSA · 1 year to Nov 4, 2026 12.9 pts behind SPY
QUSA
+1.9%
SPY
+14.8%

12.9 pts behind SPY

QUSA over 1 year: paid 14.6%, price −12.3%, total +1.9%, SPY +14.8%, −12.9 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

SPY

+14.8%

QUSA

+1.9%

12.9 pts behind SPY

Total return, distributions reinvested

12.9 pts behind SPY

QUSA over 1 year: paid 14.6%, price −12.3%, total +1.9%, SPY +14.8%, −12.9 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

SPY

+14.8%

QUSA

+1.9%

12.9 pts behind SPY

14.6% of it arrived as cash. Both charts share one scale, with zero at the line. QUSA over 1 year: paid 14.6%, price −12.3%, total +1.9%, SPY +14.8%, −12.9 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Pair scorecard

BALQ costs 0.62 points a year less; BALQ is 2.2 times larger.

Points (pts) are percentage points.

BALQ vs QUSA: Dividend Yield & Total Return
MeasureBALQQUSA
Paid and earned
Total return, 1 yearnot published+1.9%
Price changerose 5.1% (since Dec 3, 2025)fell 12.3% (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%0.97%
Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026$43m$20m
Holdings
Holdings in common41%

Method

What they share

41%

By the books each fund has filed, BALQ and QUSA hold 41% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Nov 3, 2026 and Nov 4, 2026.

0 half 100%

half

41% in common

Positions both hold · largest shared weight first BALQ QUSA
APPLE 7.82% 7.27%
MICROSOFT 7.46% 6.27%
NVIDIA 8.33% 6.15%
MICRON TECHNOLOGY 4.74% 3.17%
META PLATFORMS CLASS A 3.09% 3.71%
BROADCOM INC 2.99% 3.32%
ALPHABET CLASS A 2.75% 4.97%
CISCO SYSTEMS INC 2.30% 2.96%
PALANTIR TECHNOLOGIES CLASS A 2.02% 2.39%
APPLIED MATERIAL INC 1.71% 4.17%
LAM RESEARCH 1.64% 4.91%
QUALCOMM 1.18% 2.14%
Only in one fund ↓
Only in BALQ
AMAZON.COM INC 5.04%
ADVANCED MICRO DEVICES 4.10%
COSTCO WHOLESALE CORP 3.46%
WALMART 2.97%
TESLA INC 2.88%
ALPHABET CLASS C 2.44%
SPACE EXPLORATION TECHNOLOGIES COR 2.10%
INTEL CORPORATION 1.71%
Only in QUSA
Visa Inc 5.70%
Mastercard Inc 4.37%
GE Vernova Inc 3.81%
Netflix Inc 3.80%
GE AEROSPACE 2.89%
Fortinet Inc 2.85%
KLA CORP 2.62%
Airbnb Inc 2.56%
Check overlap with more funds →

Side by side

BALQ iShares Nasdaq Premium Income Active ETF · Covered call on QQQ, paying monthly QUSA VistaShares Target 15 USA Quality Income 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% 15.4%
Expense ratio 0.35% 0.97%
Cash paid, 1 year 10.0% (since launch, Dec 3, 2025) 14.6%
Price change, 1 year +5.1% (since launch, Dec 3, 2025) −12.3%
Total return, 1 year +15.6% (since launch, Dec 3, 2025) +1.9%
Benchmark return, 1 year +11.5% (since launch, Dec 3, 2025) +14.8%
Ahead or behind +4.1 pts (since launch, Dec 3, 2025) −12.9 pts
Return of capital, latest estimate 97% 100%
Age 336 days 1.5 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 QUSA: Dividend Yield & Total Return
Total returnCash paidAgainst the benchmark
WindowBALQQUSABALQQUSABALQQUSA
3 months−3.8%−8.5%2.1%3.6%−0.3 pts−8.4 pts
6 months+1.3%−5.5%5.2%7.3%+1.7 pts−10.5 pts
1 year–+1.9%–14.6%–−12.8 pts
Since launchNot the same days: BALQ Dec 2025 · QUSA May 2025+15.6%−1.8%10.0%17.3%+4.1 pts−41.3 pts

– means no data for this window. Open this comparison in the app →

Alert

BALQ and QUSA flows, by email on Sundays.

One-click unsubscribe. See Privacy.

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.

QUSA

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, QUSA paid 14.6% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 12.3%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +1.9%. S&P 500 (SPY) returned +14.8% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 12.9 pts. At its price on Nov 4, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 15.4%, 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 QUSA?
BALQ charges 0.35% a year and QUSA charges 0.97%, so BALQ is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Other comparisons
Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown

ETFIQ, BALQ against QUSA, data as of Nov 4, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/balq-vs-qusa

Open data →

Free to use with attribution for data ETFIQ computes; issuer data stays under its owner's terms.