Which paid more, MDST or XLSI?

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, MDST paid 10.8% of its starting price in cash and XLSI paid 12.5%, so XLSI paid more. Cash paid is not the same as money made: the price change matters too.

Which returned more once distributions are counted, MDST or XLSI?

With every distribution reinvested, MDST returned +22.6% and XLSI +16.3% over the year to Nov 4, 2026.

Which is cheaper, MDST or XLSI?

MDST charges 0.80% a year and XLSI charges 0.35%, so XLSI is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Income ETFs

MDST vs XLSI: Dividend Yield & Total Return

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Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, XLSI paid 12.5% of its price in cash against MDST’s 10.8%, though MDST returned more with it reinvested.

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Net assets: $287m on Jul 31, 2026 for Westwood Salient Enhanced Midstream Income ETF, and $25m on Nov 3, 2026 for State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Premium Income ETF.

MDST on its own →XLSI on its own →

At a glance

10.8%

MDST cash paid, 1 year

12.5%

XLSI cash paid, 1 year

+22.6%

MDST total return, 1 year

+16.3%

XLSI total return, 1 year

MDST · 1 year to Nov 4, 2026 9.1 pts behind ENFR

MDST

+22.6%

ENFR

+31.7%

9.1 pts behind ENFR

MDST over 1 year: paid 10.8%, price +11.5%, total +22.6%, ENFR +31.7%, −9.1 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

ENFR

+31.7%

MDST

+22.6%

10.8% of it arrived as cash

9.1 pts behind ENFR

Total return, distributions reinvested

9.1 pts behind ENFR

MDST over 1 year: paid 10.8%, price +11.5%, total +22.6%, ENFR +31.7%, −9.1 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

ENFR

+31.7%

MDST

+22.6%

9.1 pts behind ENFR

10.8% of it arrived as cash. Total return, distributions reinvested. MDST over 1 year: paid 10.8%, price +11.5%, total +22.6%, ENFR +31.7%, −9.1 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Data to Nov 4, 2026.

XLSI · 1 year to Nov 4, 2026 8 pts behind XLP

XLSI

+16.3%

XLP

+24.3%

8 pts behind XLP

XLSI over 1 year: paid 12.5%, price +2.7%, total +16.3%, XLP +24.3%, −8.0 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

XLP

+24.3%

XLSI

+16.3%

12.5% of it arrived as cash

8 pts behind XLP

Total return, distributions reinvested

8 pts behind XLP

XLSI over 1 year: paid 12.5%, price +2.7%, total +16.3%, XLP +24.3%, −8.0 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

XLP

+24.3%

XLSI

+16.3%

8 pts behind XLP

12.5% of it arrived as cash. Both charts share one scale, 0 to +31.7%. XLSI over 1 year: paid 12.5%, price +2.7%, total +16.3%, XLP +24.3%, −8.0 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Both charts share one scale, 0 to +31.7%. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Pair scorecard

XLSI costs 0.45 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 6.3 points.

Points (pts) are percentage points.

MDST vs XLSI: Dividend Yield & Total Return
Measure	MDST	XLSI
Paid and earned
Measure	MDST	XLSI
Total return, 1 year	+22.6%	+16.3%
Price change, 1 year	rose 11.5%	rose 2.7%
Return of capital, issuer estimate	100% of the Oct 5, 2026 payment	100% of the Nov 5, 2026 payment
Against its benchmark
Measure	MDST	XLSI
Benchmark	Alerian Energy Infrastructure ETF, measured through ENFR	State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF, measured through XLP
Against its benchmark, same days	behind by 9.1 pts	behind by 8.0 pts
Cost and size
Measure	MDST	XLSI
Expense ratio	0.80%	0.35%
Net assets, MDST as of Jul 31, 2026 and XLSI as of Nov 3, 2026	$287m	$25m
Holdings
Measure	MDST	XLSI
Holdings in common	0%

ETFIQ Distribution Coverage Score · MDST scores higher How much of what it paid out did its total return cover?

IQ Income Score87.7MDST72.2XLSI

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

MDST 87.7

XLSI 72.2

0.3, the lowest in this set 99.7, the highest

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 →

Method

What they share

By the books each fund has filed, MDST and XLSI hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Nov 3, 2026.

50%

0 half 100%

half

0% in common

Positions both hold · largest shared weight first MDST XLSI

Only in one fund ↓

Only in MDST

ENERGY TRANSFER LP 9.17%

ENBRIDGE INC 8.76%

WILLIAMS COMPANIES INC (THE) 8.18%

ENTERPRISE PRODUCTS PARTNERS LP 6.85%

DT MIDSTREAM INC 6.08%

KINDER MORGAN INC 5.60%

CHENIERE ENERGY INC 4.90%

TC ENERGY CORP 4.82%

Only in XLSI

STATE STREET CONSUMER STAPLES 102.28%

STATE STREET CONSUMER STAPLES NOV26 93 CALL -0.02%

STATE STREET CONSUMER STAPLES NOV26 88.5 CALL -0.02%

STATE STREET CONSUMER STAPLES NOV26 91.5 CALL -0.02%

STATE STREET CONSUMER STAPLES NOV26 92 CALL -0.03%

STATE STREET CONSUMER STAPLES NOV26 90 CALL -0.04%

STATE STREET CONSUMER STAPLES NOV26 88 CALL -2.19%

Check overlap with more funds →

Side by side

MDST Westwood Salient Enhanced Midstream Income ETF · Option income on ENFR, paying monthly XLSI State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Premium Income ETF · Covered call on XLP, paying monthly

Issuer Westwood State Street

Strategy option income covered call

Benchmark Alerian Energy Infrastructure ETF (ENFR) State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLP)

Pays monthly monthly

Payout rate, annualized 9.7% 10.8%

Expense ratio 0.80% 0.35%

Cash paid, 1 year 10.8% 12.5%

Price change, 1 year +11.5% +2.7%

Total return, 1 year +22.6% +16.3%

Benchmark return, 1 year +31.7% +24.3%

Ahead or behind −9.1 pts −8.0 pts

Return of capital, latest estimate 100% 100%

Age 2.6 years 1.3 years

Net assets, MDST as of Jul 31, 2026 and XLSI as of Nov 3, 2026 $287m $25m

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: MDST vs XLSI: Dividend Yield & Total Return
	Total return		Cash paid		Against the benchmark
Window	MDST	XLSI	MDST	XLSI	MDST	XLSI
3 months	−0.5%	+5.1%	2.4%	3.0%	+0.7 pts	−3.3 pts
6 months	+1.9%	+8.5%	4.7%	6.2%	+0.6 pts	−2.1 pts
1 year	+22.6%	+16.3%	10.8%	12.5%	−9.1 pts	−8.1 pts
Since launchNot the same days: MDST Apr 2024 · XLSI Jul 2025	+44.5%	+12.1%	27.9%	14.9%	−21.5 pts	−6.1 pts

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Alert

About each fund

MDST

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, MDST paid 10.8% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price rose 11.5%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +22.6%. Alerian Energy Infrastructure ETF (ENFR) returned +31.7% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 9.1 pts. At its price on Nov 4, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 9.7%, paid monthly. Westwood estimates that 100% of the distribution paid Oct 5, 2026 was a return of capital (its 19a-1 notice). That is a tax label, not a measure of erosion.

XLSI

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, XLSI paid 12.5% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price rose 2.7%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +16.3%. State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLP) returned +24.3% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 8.0 pts. At its price on Nov 4, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 10.8%, paid monthly. State Street estimates that 100% of the distribution paid Nov 5, 2026 was a return of capital (its 19a-1 notice).

Questions people ask

Which paid more, MDST or XLSI?: Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, MDST paid 10.8% of its starting price in cash and XLSI paid 12.5%, so XLSI paid more. Cash paid is not the same as money made: the price change matters too.
Which returned more once distributions are counted, MDST or XLSI?: With every distribution reinvested, MDST returned +22.6% and XLSI +16.3% over the year to Nov 4, 2026.
Which is cheaper, MDST or XLSI?: MDST charges 0.80% a year and XLSI charges 0.35%, so XLSI is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

MDST vs MLPD MDST vs XLKI MDST vs XLII MDST vs TYLG XLSI vs TDVI XLSI vs WEEI XLSI vs USOY XLSI vs XLUI

Where to next

Alerian Energy Infrastructure ETF (ENFR) →State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLP) →MDST on its own →XLSI on its own →MDST dividend history →MDST holdings →XLSI dividend history →XLSI holdings →Method →Standards and sources →

Sources and dates

MDST filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

MDST prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

MDST 19a-1 distribution notice ↗

Westwood website ↗

XLSI filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

XLSI prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

XLSI 19a-1 distribution notice ↗

State Street website ↗

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.

Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown

ETFIQ, MDST against XLSI, data as of Nov 4, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/mdst-vs-xlsi

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