Data as of Nov 4, 2026.

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Income ETFs

BALQ vs XPAY: Dividend Yield & Total Return

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BALQ and XPAY both write options for income.

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Net assets: $43m on Nov 3, 2026 for iShares Nasdaq Premium Income Active ETF, and $187m on Nov 4, 2026 for Roundhill S&P 500 Target 20 Managed Distribution ETF.

At a glance
10.0%
BALQ cash paid, since launch, Dec 3, 2025
19.7%
XPAY cash paid, 1 year
+15.6%
BALQ total return, since launch, Dec 3, 2025
+14.0%
XPAY 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.
XPAY · 1 year to Nov 4, 2026 0.8 pts behind VOO
XPAY
+14.0%
VOO
+14.8%

0.8 pts behind VOO

XPAY over 1 year: paid 19.7%, price −7.2%, total +14.0%, VOO +14.8%, −0.8 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

VOO

+14.8%

XPAY

+14.0%

19.7% of it arrived as cash

0.8 pts behind VOO

Total return, distributions reinvested

0.8 pts behind VOO

XPAY over 1 year: paid 19.7%, price −7.2%, total +14.0%, VOO +14.8%, −0.8 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

VOO

+14.8%

XPAY

+14.0%

19.7% as cash

0.8 pts behind VOO

19.7% of it arrived as cash. Both charts share one scale, with zero at the line. XPAY over 1 year: paid 19.7%, price −7.2%, total +14.0%, VOO +14.8%, −0.8 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Pair scorecard

BALQ costs 0.14 points a year less; XPAY is 4.3 times larger.

Points (pts) are percentage points.

BALQ vs XPAY: Dividend Yield & Total Return
MeasureBALQXPAY
Paid and earned
Total return, 1 yearnot published+14.0%
Price changerose 5.1% (since Dec 3, 2025)fell 7.2% (1 year)
Return of capital, issuer estimate97% of the Nov 5, 2026 payment100% of the Oct 15, 2026 payment
Against its benchmark
BenchmarkNasdaq-100, measured through QQQVanguard S&P 500 ETF, measured through VOO
Cost and size
Expense ratio0.35%0.49%
Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026$43m$183m
Holdings
Holdings in common0%

Method

Risk and return

Dec 12, 2025 to Oct 30, 2026 · 46 weekly returns
BALQ XPAY
Return
Total return edge BALQ +16.8% +11.3%
Price return edge BALQ +7.0% −6.2%
Risk
Max drawdown edge XPAY (slight) −9.3% −8.5%
Reading

From Dec 2025 to Oct 2026, BALQ returned more: +16.8% to +11.3%. XPAY fell slightly less at its worst: −8.5% to −9.3%.

Full scorecard

3 measures, with how each is measured
Open ↓
Risk and return: BALQ vs XPAY: Dividend Yield & Total Return
MeasureBALQXPAYEdgeHow it is measured
Return
Total return+16.8%+11.3%BALQPrice change plus distributions, reinvested.
Price return+7.0%−6.2%BALQPrice change alone, distributions left out.
Risk
Max drawdown−9.3%−8.5%XPAY (slight)Deepest fall from a high to the low after it.

Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 46 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.

What they share

0%

By the books each fund has filed, BALQ and XPAY hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Nov 3, 2026 and Nov 4, 2026.

0 half 100%

half

0% in common

Positions both hold · largest shared weight first BALQ XPAY
Only in one fund ↓
Only in BALQ
NVIDIA 8.33%
APPLE 7.82%
MICROSOFT 7.46%
AMAZON.COM INC 5.04%
MICRON TECHNOLOGY 4.74%
ADVANCED MICRO DEVICES 4.10%
COSTCO WHOLESALE CORP 3.46%
META PLATFORMS CLASS A 3.09%
Only in XPAY
SPY 12/10/2027 38.04 C 94.39%
Check overlap with more funds →

Side by side

BALQ iShares Nasdaq Premium Income Active ETF · Covered call on QQQ, paying monthly XPAY Roundhill S&P 500 Target 20 Managed Distribution ETF · Option income on VOO, paying monthly
Strategy covered call option income
Benchmark Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO)
Pays monthly monthly
Payout rate, annualized 8.5% 21.1%
Expense ratio 0.35% 0.49%
Cash paid, 1 year 10.0% (since launch, Dec 3, 2025) 19.7%
Price change, 1 year +5.1% (since launch, Dec 3, 2025) −7.2%
Total return, 1 year +15.6% (since launch, Dec 3, 2025) +14.0%
Benchmark return, 1 year +11.5% (since launch, Dec 3, 2025) +14.8%
Ahead or behind +4.1 pts (since launch, Dec 3, 2025) −0.8 pts
Return of capital, latest estimate 97% 100%
Age 336 days 2.0 years
Net assets, BALQ as of Nov 3, 2026 and XPAY as of Nov 4, 2026 $43m $187m

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 XPAY: Dividend Yield & Total Return
Total returnCash paidAgainst the benchmark
WindowBALQXPAYBALQXPAYBALQXPAY
3 months−3.8%−0.3%2.1%5.0%−0.3 pts−0.2 pts
6 months+1.3%+4.9%5.2%10.0%+1.7 pts−0.1 pts
1 year–+14.0%–19.7%–−0.9 pts
Since launchNot the same days: BALQ Dec 2025 · XPAY Oct 2024+15.6%+35.6%10.0%39.0%+4.1 pts−2.6 pts

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Client brief

No client brief for this pair: ETFIQ prints no one-year total return for BALQ.

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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.

XPAY

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, XPAY paid 19.7% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 7.2%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +14.0%. Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) returned +14.8% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 0.8 pts. At its price on Nov 4, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 21.1%, paid monthly. Roundhill estimates that 100% of the distribution paid Oct 15, 2026 was a return of capital (its 19a-1 notice).

Questions people ask

Which is cheaper, BALQ or XPAY?
BALQ charges 0.35% a year and XPAY charges 0.49%, so BALQ is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Other comparisons
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ETFIQ, BALQ against XPAY, data as of Nov 4, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/balq-vs-xpay

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