Data as of .
NLSI vs XYLD: which paid, and which earned it?
NLSI and XYLD both write options for income.
What they hold in common
By the books each fund has filed, NLSI and XYLD hold 8% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.
| Holding | NLSI | XYLD |
|---|---|---|
| NVIDIA Corp | 3.17% | 8.24% |
| Micron Technology Inc | 14.23% | 1.77% |
| Mastercard Inc | 2.86% | 0.71% |
| ServiceNow Inc | 1.99% | 0.21% |
| Capital One Financial Corp | 3.03% | 0.19% |
| Marathon Petroleum Corp | 3.13% | 0.19% |
| Progressive Corp/The | 3.80% | 0.19% |
| Valero Energy Corp | 3.04% | 0.19% |
| Adobe Inc | 3.37% | 0.16% |
| CME Group Inc | 2.28% | 0.15% |
| Intercontinental Exchange Inc | 2.83% | 0.14% |
| Intuit Inc | 2.85% | 0.13% |
| Only in NLSI | Only in XYLD |
|---|---|
| APPLE INC 7.55% | |
| MICROSOFT CORP 5.61% | |
| AMAZON.COM INC 3.83% | |
| ALPHABET INC-CL A 3.13% | |
| BROADCOM INC 2.62% | |
| ALPHABET INC-CL C 2.49% | |
| META PLATFORMS INC 2.26% | |
| TESLA INC 1.58% |
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 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NLSI | XYLD | NLSI | XYLD | NLSI | XYLD | |
| 3 months | +15.6% | +4.5% | 1.4% | 2.6% | +13.3 pts | +2.3 pts |
| 6 months | +24.6% | +12.4% | 2.8% | 5.6% | +6.6 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 | +19.3% | +191.5% | 4.0% | 112.9% | +7.3 pts | −315.3 pts |
| NLSI NEOS Long/Short Equity Income ETF Option income on SPY, paying monthly | XYLD Global X S&P 500 Covered Call ETF Covered call on SPY, paying monthly | |
|---|---|---|
| Issuer | NEOS | Global X |
| 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 | 5.1% | 8.9% |
| Expense ratio | 2.89% | 0.60% |
| Cash paid, 1 year | 4.0% (since launch on Dec 10, 2025) | 11.0% |
| Price change, 1 year | +14.6% | +5.9% |
| Total return, 1 year | +19.3% (since launch on Dec 10, 2025) | +17.9% |
| Benchmark return, 1 year | +12.0% | +16.6% |
| Ahead or behind | +7.3 pts | +1.4 pts |
| Return of capital, latest estimate | 100% | 93% |
| Age | 282 days | 4834 days |
| Net assets | $5m | $3.4bn |
NLSI in plain words
Over the period since launch on Dec 10, 2025 to Sep 18, 2026, NLSI paid 4.0% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price rose 14.6%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +19.3%. S&P 500 (SPY), used as a default proxy returned +12.0% over the same days, so a holder was ahead by 7.3 pts. At its price on Sep 18, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 5.1%, paid monthly. NEOS estimates that 100% of the distribution paid Jul 31, 2026 was a return of capital (19a-1 notice, estimated, a tax characterization rather than a measure of erosion).
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. At its price on Sep 18, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 8.9%, paid monthly. 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, NLSI or XYLD?
- NLSI charges 2.89% a year and XYLD charges 0.60%, so XYLD 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, NLSI against XYLD, data as of Sep 18, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/nlsi-vs-xyld Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.