Data as of .
BALQ vs XYLD: which paid, and which earned it?
BALQ and XYLD both write options for income.
What they hold in common
By the books each fund has filed, BALQ and XYLD hold 55% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.
| Holding | BALQ | XYLD |
|---|---|---|
| NVIDIA | 8.62% | 8.24% |
| APPLE | 7.63% | 7.55% |
| MICROSOFT | 6.72% | 5.61% |
| AMAZON.COM INC | 4.76% | 3.83% |
| ALPHABET CLASS A | 3.44% | 3.13% |
| BROADCOM INC | 2.99% | 2.62% |
| ALPHABET CLASS C | 3.09% | 2.49% |
| META PLATFORMS CLASS A | 3.31% | 2.26% |
| MICRON TECHNOLOGY | 5.06% | 1.77% |
| TESLA INC | 2.73% | 1.58% |
| ADVANCED MICRO DEVICES | 4.31% | 1.41% |
| INTEL CORPORATION | 2.62% | 0.83% |
| Only in BALQ | Only in XYLD |
|---|---|
| BLK CSH FND TREASURY SL AGENCY 2.70% | BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY INC-CL B 1.46% |
| CASH COLLATERAL MSFUT USD 1.46% | JPMORGAN CHASE & CO 1.43% |
| SPACE EXPLORATION TECHNOLOGIES COR 0.82% | ELI LILLY & CO 1.42% |
| SS AND C TECHNOLOGIES HOLDINGS 0.59% | EXXONMOBIL HOLDINGS CORP 1.03% |
| ZSCALER 0.45% | JOHNSON & JOHNSON 1.00% |
| ASTERA LABS 0.36% | VISA INC-CLASS A SHARES 0.97% |
| LIBERTY MEDIA SERIES C 0.35% | CASH 0.94% |
| SENTINELONE INC CLASS A 0.34% | MASTERCARD INC - A 0.71% |
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 | XYLD | BALQ | XYLD | BALQ | XYLD | |
| 3 months | −0.5% | +4.5% | 2.8% | 2.6% | +1.9 pts | +2.3 pts |
| 6 months | +27.2% | +12.4% | 6.5% | 5.6% | +3.0 pts | −5.6 pts |
| 1 year | not published | +17.9% | not published | 11.0% | not published | +1.4 pts |
| 3 years | not published | +44.5% | not published | 32.5% | not published | −33.9 pts |
| Since launch | +21.4% | +191.5% | 8.5% | 112.9% | +5.3 pts | −315.3 pts |
| BALQ iShares Nasdaq Premium Income Active ETF Covered call on QQQ, paying monthly | XYLD Global X S&P 500 Covered Call ETF Covered call on SPY, paying monthly | |
|---|---|---|
| Issuer | iShares | Global X |
| Strategy | covered call | covered call |
| Benchmark | Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) | S&P 500 (SPY) |
| Pays | monthly | monthly |
| Payout rate, annualized | 8.9% | 8.9% |
| Expense ratio | 0.35% | 0.60% |
| Cash paid, 1 year | 8.5% (since launch on Dec 3, 2025) | 11.0% |
| Price change, 1 year | +11.9% | +5.9% |
| Total return, 1 year | +21.4% (since launch on Dec 3, 2025) | +17.9% |
| Benchmark return, 1 year | +16.1% | +16.6% |
| Ahead or behind | +5.3 pts | +1.4 pts |
| Return of capital, latest estimate | not published | 93% |
| Age | 289 days | 4834 days |
| Net assets | $29m | $3.4bn |
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.
XYLD in plain words
Over the year to Sep 18, 2026, XYLD paid 11.0% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price rose 5.9%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +17.9%. S&P 500 (SPY) returned +16.6% over the same days, so a holder was ahead by 1.4 pts. Global X estimates that 93% of the distribution paid Aug 27, 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 XYLD?
- BALQ charges 0.35% a year and XYLD charges 0.60%, 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 XYLD, data as of Sep 18, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/balq-vs-xyld Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.