Data as of Nov 4, 2026.
KNG vs QLDY: Dividend Yield & Total Return
Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, QLDY paid 35.3% of its price in cash against KNG’s 8.8%, though KNG returned more with it reinvested.
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Net assets on Nov 3, 2026: $3.4bn for FT Vest S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats Target Income ETF and $53m for Defiance Nasdaq 100 LightningSpread Income ETF.
3.1 pts behind NOBL
KNG over 1 year: paid 8.8%, price +11.1%, total +20.8%, NOBL +23.9%, −3.1 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.
NOBL
+23.9%
KNG
+20.8%
8.8% of it arrived as cash
3.1 pts behind NOBL
Total return, distributions reinvested
3.1 pts behind NOBL
KNG over 1 year: paid 8.8%, price +11.1%, total +20.8%, NOBL +23.9%, −3.1 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.
NOBL
+23.9%
KNG
+20.8%
3.1 pts behind NOBL
8.8% of it arrived as cash. Total return, distributions reinvested. KNG over 1 year: paid 8.8%, price +11.1%, total +20.8%, NOBL +23.9%, −3.1 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.
Data to Nov 4, 2026.3.2 pts behind QQQ
QLDY over 1 year: paid 35.3%, price −27.2%, total +9.1%, QQQ +12.3%, −3.2 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.
QQQ
+12.3%
QLDY
+9.1%
35.3% of it arrived as cash
3.2 pts behind QQQ
Total return, distributions reinvested
3.2 pts behind QQQ
QLDY over 1 year: paid 35.3%, price −27.2%, total +9.1%, QQQ +12.3%, −3.2 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.
QQQ
+12.3%
QLDY
+9.1%
3.2 pts behind QQQ
35.3% of it arrived as cash. Both charts share one scale, with zero at the line. QLDY over 1 year: paid 35.3%, price −27.2%, total +9.1%, QQQ +12.3%, −3.2 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.
Data to Nov 4, 2026.Pair scorecard
KNG costs 0.30 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 11.7 points; KNG is far larger, $3.4bn against $53m.
Points (pts) are percentage points.
| Measure | KNG | QLDY |
|---|---|---|
| Paid and earned | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +20.8% | +9.1% |
| Price change, 1 year | rose 11.1% | fell 27.2% |
| Return of capital, issuer estimate | 80% of the Oct 30, 2026 payment | 0% of the Nov 2, 2026 payment |
| Against its benchmark | ||
| Benchmark | S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats, measured through NOBL | Nasdaq-100, measured through QQQ |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.74% | 1.04% |
| Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026 | $3.4bn | $53m |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 0% | |
How much of its payouts the fund's total return covered, ranked against 167 income ETFs not writing on a single company. 100 is best. How it is computed
One year only, and a ratio of two published numbers: it says nothing about where a distribution came from. All income ETFs ranked by it →
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, KNG and QLDY hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Nov 3, 2026 and Nov 4, 2026.
half
0% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
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
| Total return | Cash paid | Against the benchmark | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Window | KNG | QLDY | KNG | QLDY | KNG | QLDY |
| 3 months | +5.2% | −4.5% | 2.0% | 9.5% | −0.5 pts | −1.1 pts |
| 6 months | +13.5% | −3.1% | 4.3% | 18.5% | −1.4 pts | −2.8 pts |
| 1 year | +20.8% | +9.1% | 8.8% | 35.3% | −3.1 pts | −3.2 pts |
| 3 years | +41.8% | – | 26.9% | – | −6.7 pts | – |
| Since launchNot the same days: KNG Mar 2018 · QLDY Sep 2025 | +120.8% | +13.2% | 61.2% | 39.1% | −19.0 pts | −3.7 pts |
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KNG
Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, KNG paid 8.8% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price rose 11.1%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +20.8%. S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats (NOBL) returned +23.9% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 3.1 pts. At its price on Nov 4, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 8.0%, paid monthly. First Trust estimates that 80% of the distribution paid Oct 30, 2026 was a return of capital (its 19a-1 notice). That is a tax label, not a measure of erosion.
QLDY
Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, QLDY paid 35.3% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 27.2%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +9.1%. Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) returned +12.3% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 3.2 pts. At its price on Nov 4, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 19.7%, paid weekly. Defiance estimates that 0% of the distribution paid Nov 2, 2026 was a return of capital (its 19a-1 notice).
Questions people ask
Links are sources, not endorsements. A comparison is not a recommendation.
How this is computed
It is a place in a set, not a rating or a recommendation.
Overlap adds up the smaller of the two weights for each security both funds hold.
Every number is an ETFIQ calculation with distributions reinvested.
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ETFIQ, KNG against QLDY, data as of Nov 4, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/kng-vs-qldy
ETFIQ. (Nov 4, 2026). KNG against QLDY. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/income/kng-vs-qldy
[KNG against QLDY (ETFIQ, Nov 4, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/income/kng-vs-qldy)
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