Data as of .
ULTY vs WDTE: which paid, and which earned it?
Over the year ULTY paid 44.9% of its price in cash against WDTE’s 28.0%, though WDTE returned more with it reinvested.
ETFIQ Return Stability Score: WDTE 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, ULTY and WDTE hold 3% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.
| Holding | ULTY | WDTE |
|---|---|---|
| First American Government Obligations Fund 12/01/2031 | 2.74% | 6.61% |
| Only in ULTY | Only in WDTE |
|---|---|
| Advanced Micro Devices Inc 5.23% | Spx Us 12/18/26 C600 92.83% |
| MercadoLibre Inc 4.99% | Cash & Other 0.69% |
| Lumentum Holdings Inc 4.75% | Spx 09/21/2026 7674.22 C 0.11% |
| Strategy Inc 4.66% | Spx 09/21/2026 7650.5 C -0.24% |
| Comfort Systems USA Inc 4.61% | |
| Alphabet Inc 4.39% | |
| Lam Research Corp 4.34% | |
| Coherent Corp 4.30% |
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 Sep 21, 2026.
Performance, window by window
| Window | Total return | Cash paid | Against the benchmark | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ULTY | WDTE | ULTY | WDTE | ULTY | WDTE | |
| 3 months | −1.1% | +3.2% | 13.7% | 7.4% | −3.3 pts | +0.9 pts |
| 6 months | +14.0% | +17.3% | 30.1% | 15.7% | −4.0 pts | −0.7 pts |
| 1 year | −7.8% | +15.8% | 44.9% | 28.0% | −24.3 pts | −0.8 pts |
| 3 years | not published | +49.2% | not published | 77.8% | not published | −29.2 pts |
| Since launch | +10.7% | +49.2% | 86.9% | 77.8% | −44.1 pts | −29.2 pts |
| ULTY YieldMax(R) Ultra Option Income Strategy ETF Synthetic covered call on SPY, paying weekly | WDTE Defiance S&P 500 Weekly Distribution ETF Option income on SPY, paying weekly | |
|---|---|---|
| Issuer | YieldMax | Defiance |
| Strategy | synthetic covered call | option income |
| Benchmark | S&P 500 (SPY), used as a default proxy | S&P 500 (SPY) |
| Pays | weekly | weekly |
| Payout rate, annualized | 59.8% | 29.9% |
| Expense ratio | 1.30% | 1.03% |
| Cash paid, 1 year | 44.9% | 28.0% |
| Price change, 1 year | −54.1% | −14.8% |
| Total return, 1 year | −7.8% | +15.8% |
| Benchmark return, 1 year | +16.6% | +16.6% |
| Ahead or behind | −24.3 pts | −0.8 pts |
| Return of capital, latest estimate | 100% | 38% |
| Age | 932 days | 1095 days |
| Net assets | $721m | $71m |
ULTY in plain words
Over the year to Sep 18, 2026, ULTY paid 44.9% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 54.1%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned −7.8%. S&P 500 (SPY), used as a default proxy returned +16.6% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 24.3 pts. At its price on Sep 18, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 59.8%, paid weekly. YieldMax estimates that 100% of the distribution paid Sep 17, 2026 was a return of capital (19a-1 notice, estimated, a tax characterization rather than a measure of erosion).
WDTE in plain words
Over the year to Sep 18, 2026, WDTE paid 28.0% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 14.8%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +15.8%. S&P 500 (SPY) returned +16.6% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 0.8 pts. At its price on Sep 18, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 29.9%, paid weekly. Defiance estimates that 38% of the distribution paid Sep 18, 2026 was a return of capital (19a-1 notice, estimated, a tax characterization rather than a measure of erosion).
Questions people ask
- Which paid more, ULTY or WDTE?
- Over the year to Sep 18, 2026, ULTY paid 44.9% of its starting price in cash and WDTE paid 28.0%, so ULTY paid more. Cash paid is not the same as money made: the price change matters too.
- Which returned more once distributions are counted, ULTY or WDTE?
- With every distribution reinvested, ULTY returned −7.8% and WDTE returned +15.8% over the year to Sep 18, 2026, so WDTE returned more.
- Which is cheaper, ULTY or WDTE?
- ULTY charges 1.30% a year and WDTE charges 1.03%, so WDTE 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, ULTY against WDTE, data as of Sep 18, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/ulty-vs-wdte Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.