Data as of .
QQQI vs SCEP: which paid, and which earned it?
QQQI and SCEP both write options for income.
What they hold in common
By the books each fund has filed, QQQI and SCEP hold 41% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.
| Holding | QQQI | SCEP |
|---|---|---|
| Apple Inc | 7.79% | 5.71% |
| NVIDIA Corp | 8.58% | 5.70% |
| Amazon.com Inc | 4.36% | 4.68% |
| Microsoft Corp | 5.84% | 3.49% |
| Alphabet Inc | 3.24% | 5.98% |
| Broadcom Inc | 2.70% | 5.61% |
| Meta Platforms Inc | 3.14% | 2.23% |
| Advanced Micro Devices Inc | 4.02% | 2.19% |
| Costco Wholesale Corp | 1.74% | 2.40% |
| Lam Research Corp | 1.58% | 2.64% |
| Walmart Inc | 2.28% | 1.05% |
| Netflix Inc | 1.33% | 1.01% |
| Only in QQQI | Only in SCEP |
|---|---|
| Micron Technology Inc 5.03% | JP MORGAN CHASE & COMPANY 3.55% |
| Alphabet Inc 2.99% | PARKER-HANNIFIN CORP 2.63% |
| Tesla Inc 2.91% | WILLIAMS COMPANIES INC (THE) 2.15% |
| Intel Corp 2.44% | ILLINOIS TOOL WORKS INC 2.07% |
| Cisco Systems Inc 1.92% | EQUINIX INC 2.05% |
| Applied Materials Inc 1.58% | VISA INC 1.98% |
| Space Exploration Technologies Corp 1.28% | AMPHENOL CORP 1.94% |
| Sandisk Corp 1.19% | AIR PRODUCTS AND CHEMICALS INC 1.87% |
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 21, 2026.
Performance, window by window
| Window | Total return | Cash paid | Against the benchmark | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| QQQI | SCEP | QQQI | SCEP | QQQI | SCEP | |
| 3 months | −0.7% | −0.1% | 3.4% | 1.7% | +1.8 pts | −2.4 pts |
| 6 months | +16.7% | +8.3% | 7.7% | 3.7% | −7.5 pts | −9.7 pts |
| 1 year | +16.4% | not published | 15.2% | not published | −5.3 pts | not published |
| Since launch | +59.6% | +3.5% | 39.9% | 5.0% | −12.3 pts | −8.2 pts |
| QQQI NEOS Nasdaq-100(R) High Income ETF Option income on QQQ, paying monthly | SCEP STERLING CAPITAL HEDGED EQUITY PREMIUM INCOME ETF Covered call on SPY, paying monthly | |
|---|---|---|
| Issuer | NEOS | Sterling Capital |
| Strategy | option income | covered call |
| Benchmark | Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) | S&P 500 (SPY) |
| Pays | monthly | monthly |
| Payout rate, annualized | 14.0% | 7.1% |
| Expense ratio | 0.68% | 0.65% |
| Cash paid, 1 year | 15.2% | 5.0% (since launch on Dec 11, 2025) |
| Price change, 1 year | −0.1% | −1.6% |
| Total return, 1 year | +16.4% | +3.5% (since launch on Dec 11, 2025) |
| Benchmark return, 1 year | +21.8% | +11.7% |
| Ahead or behind | −5.3 pts | −8.2 pts |
| Return of capital, latest estimate | 98% | not published |
| Age | 962 days | 281 days |
| Net assets | $14.8bn | $235m |
QQQI in plain words
Over the year to Sep 18, 2026, QQQI paid 15.2% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 0.1%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +16.4%. Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) returned +21.8% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 5.3 pts. At its price on Sep 18, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 14.0%, paid monthly. NEOS estimates that 98% of the distribution paid Jun 18, 2026 was a return of capital (19a-1 notice, estimated, a tax characterization rather than a measure of erosion).
SCEP in plain words
Over the period since launch on Dec 11, 2025 to Sep 18, 2026, SCEP paid 5.0% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 1.6%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +3.5%. S&P 500 (SPY) returned +11.7% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 8.2 pts. At its price on Sep 18, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 7.1%, paid monthly.
Questions people ask
- Which is cheaper, QQQI or SCEP?
- QQQI charges 0.68% a year and SCEP charges 0.65%, so SCEP 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, QQQI against SCEP, data as of Sep 18, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/qqqi-vs-scep Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.