Data as of .
FGSI vs SEPI: which paid, and which earned it?
Over the year FGSI paid 8.1% of its price in cash against SEPI’s 7.5%, though SEPI returned more with it reinvested.
ETFIQ Return Stability Score: SEPI scores higher
Was the payout funded by returns, or by your own capital?
A percentile among the 173 income ETFs writing on an index or proxy. It is a position in a set, not a rating, and neither end of it is a recommendation. All income ETFs ranked by it · How it is computed
What they hold in common
By the books each fund has filed, FGSI and SEPI hold 16% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.
| Holding | FGSI | SEPI |
|---|---|---|
| Microsoft Corporation | 2.45% | 3.42% |
| Arista Networks, Inc. | 2.32% | 2.18% |
| NVIDIA Corporation | 2.15% | 4.04% |
| Meta Platforms, Inc. (Class A) | 2.03% | 2.79% |
| Broadcom Inc. | 1.90% | 3.08% |
| Monster Beverage Corporation | 1.80% | 1.56% |
| Newmont Corporation | 2.70% | 1.51% |
| Netflix, Inc. | 2.04% | 1.21% |
| Fortinet, Inc. | 2.06% | 1.15% |
| Only in FGSI | Only in SEPI |
|---|---|
| Palantir Technologies Inc. (Class A) 2.63% | ADVANCED MICRO DEVICES INC 7.54% |
| Marvell Technology, Inc. 2.53% | CATERPILLAR INC 7.20% |
| DexCom, Inc. 2.28% | MICRON TECHNOLOGY INC 6.53% |
| Intuitive Surgical, Inc. 2.22% | APPLE INC 5.24% |
| Target Corporation 2.22% | ALPHABET INC 4.68% |
| CME Group Inc. 2.21% | GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP INC (THE) 3.91% |
| ResMed Inc. 2.21% | AMAZON.COM INC 3.36% |
| Garmin Ltd. 2.15% | JOHNSON & JOHNSON 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 Jun 30, 2026 and Sep 18, 2026.
Performance, window by window
| Window | Total return | Cash paid | Against the benchmark | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FGSI | SEPI | FGSI | SEPI | FGSI | SEPI | |
| 3 months | +2.4% | +5.4% | 2.1% | 2.1% | +0.2 pts | +3.2 pts |
| 6 months | +10.0% | +20.5% | 4.4% | 4.7% | −8.0 pts | +2.5 pts |
| 1 year | +5.3% | +21.8% | 8.1% | 7.5% | −11.3 pts | +5.2 pts |
| Since launch | +11.9% | +24.4% | 9.8% | 7.7% | −14.3 pts | +5.4 pts |
| FGSI FT Vest Growth Strength & Target Income ETF Option income on SPY, paying monthly | SEPI Shelton Equity Premium Income ETF Covered call on SPY, paying monthly | |
|---|---|---|
| Issuer | First Trust | Shelton |
| Strategy | option income | covered call |
| Benchmark | S&P 500 (SPY), used as a default proxy | S&P 500 (SPY) |
| Pays | monthly | monthly |
| Payout rate, annualized | 8.6% | 8.3% |
| Expense ratio | 0.85% | 0.54% |
| Cash paid, 1 year | 8.1% | 7.5% |
| Price change, 1 year | −3.2% | +13.4% |
| Total return, 1 year | +5.3% | +21.8% |
| Benchmark return, 1 year | +16.6% | +16.6% |
| Ahead or behind | −11.3 pts | +5.2 pts |
| Return of capital, latest estimate | not published | not published |
| Age | 449 days | 375 days |
| Net assets | $2m | $152m |
FGSI in plain words
Over the year to Sep 18, 2026, FGSI paid 8.1% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 3.2%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +5.3%. S&P 500 (SPY), used as a default proxy returned +16.6% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 11.3 pts. At its price on Sep 18, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 8.6%, paid monthly.
SEPI in plain words
Over the year to Sep 18, 2026, SEPI paid 7.5% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price rose 13.4%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +21.8%. S&P 500 (SPY) returned +16.6% over the same days, so a holder was ahead by 5.2 pts. At its price on Sep 18, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 8.3%, paid monthly.
Questions people ask
- Which paid more, FGSI or SEPI?
- Over the year to Sep 18, 2026, FGSI paid 8.1% of its starting price in cash and SEPI paid 7.5%, so FGSI paid more. Cash paid is not the same as money made: the price change matters too.
- Which returned more once distributions are counted, FGSI or SEPI?
- With every distribution reinvested, FGSI returned +5.3% and SEPI returned +21.8% over the year to Sep 18, 2026, so SEPI returned more.
- Which is cheaper, FGSI or SEPI?
- FGSI charges 0.85% a year and SEPI charges 0.54%, so SEPI 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, FGSI against SEPI, data as of Sep 18, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/fgsi-vs-sepi Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.