Ahead or behind, and where the cash came from
Over the year to Sep 8, 2026, 27 of 155 index income ETFs finished ahead of the index they write options on, once every cash payment was counted and reinvested. The median fund was −5.5 pts against its benchmark.
YieldMax estimates that the median fund's latest distribution was 81% return of capital, across 58 funds with 19a-1 notices.
The higher the distribution rate, the worse the price did and the further behind the benchmark the fund fell: a payout above thirty percent a year has mostly been paid out of the price.
Over the year to September 8, 2026, 27 of the 155 index income ETFs in this dataset finished ahead of the index they write options on once every cash payment was counted and reinvested. The median fund lagged its benchmark by 5.5 percentage points. That gap sits alongside a wide range of results by issuer, cash paid, and price change, all measured the same way: cash as a share of the starting price, and total return with distributions reinvested against a benchmark measured on the same basis.
By issuer, the picture varies. State Street, with 12 funds that have a full year of data, had five ahead of benchmark and a median gap of only −0.5 pts, alongside a median cash paid of 13.0% and a median price change of −2.4%. Aptus, with three funds, had two ahead of benchmark and a median gap of +4.1 pts, with a median cash paid of 5.3% and a median price change of +20.8%. At the other end, GraniteShares' two funds with a full year carried a median cash paid of 49.6%, a median price change of −62.2%, and a median total return of −15.9%, though the median gap for that group was +9.5 pts. Westwood's two funds showed the widest median gap in the table, at −23.2 pts, despite a median price change of +16.8% and a median total return of +30.1%.
Return of capital, drawn from each issuer's own Rule 19a-1 notices, shows how much of a distribution has been characterized as capital returned rather than income or gains. Across the 28 GraniteShares funds with 19a-1 notices, the median latest distribution was 96% return of capital, with 25 of those 28 funds at 90% or more; the median one-year price change for that group was −59.3%. Global X's 13 funds with notices had a median return of capital of 100% and a median price change of +5.2%. NEOS, Kurv, and REX show median return-of-capital figures of 94%, 85%, and 96% respectively, with median price changes ranging from +1.3% for NEOS to −16.4% for REX.
Across all funds grouped by distribution rate, the pattern is consistent: the higher the payout, the worse the median price did. Funds paying under 8% a year had a median price change of +0.5% and a median total return of +10.9%. Funds paying 30% to 60% had a median cash paid of 35.9%, a median price change of −39.7%, and a median total return of +2.6%. Funds paying 60% or more had a median cash paid of 48.2%, a median price change of −52.4%, and a median total return of −4.3%, the only bracket in the table with a negative median total return. A payout above thirty percent a year has mostly been paid out of the price rather than from income the fund earned.
Readers can check any individual fund's latest 19a-1 notice, its distribution rate, and its one-year price and total return against its stated benchmark on the live desk.
Results by issuer, index income funds, one year
| Issuer | Funds listed | Funds with a full year | Ahead of benchmark | Median gap | Median cash paid | Median price change | Median total return |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First Trust | 21 | 20 | 2 | −9.7 pts | 8.5% | +0.4% | +8.7% |
| YieldMax | 22 | 17 | 3 | −4.2 pts | 34.8% | −27.1% | +11.9% |
| Innovator | 23 | 13 | 0 | −13.8 pts | 5.2% | +0.1% | +5.5% |
| Global X | 14 | 12 | 1 | −2.5 pts | 12.0% | +5.2% | +18.6% |
| State Street | 12 | 12 | 5 | −0.5 pts | 13.0% | −2.4% | +10.7% |
| not established | 13 | 9 | 2 | −8.6 pts | 8.5% | +1.2% | +13.8% |
| Amplify | 12 | 7 | 1 | −5.8 pts | 12.2% | +2.9% | +15.8% |
| NEOS | 12 | 6 | 2 | −1.4 pts | 13.8% | +1.3% | +14.3% |
| Roundhill | 6 | 6 | 1 | −1.8 pts | 29.9% | −21.8% | +9.6% |
| Defiance | 6 | 5 | 1 | −1.4 pts | 31.4% | −13.1% | +17.9% |
| Invesco | 4 | 4 | 0 | −2.0 pts | 10.1% | +6.7% | +17.8% |
| Aptus | 3 | 3 | 2 | +4.1 pts | 5.3% | +20.8% | +23.5% |
| Nationwide | 3 | 3 | 0 | −8.5 pts | 7.0% | +6.0% | +13.8% |
| ProShares | 6 | 3 | 1 | −3.0 pts | 6.6% | +13.8% | +20.9% |
| REX | 5 | 3 | 0 | −11.2 pts | 30.9% | −11.1% | +23.4% |
| iShares | 5 | 3 | 1 | −0.7 pts | 17.7% | −0.7% | +19.1% |
| Goldman Sachs | 2 | 2 | 0 | −0.8 pts | 10.1% | +10.3% | +21.3% |
| GraniteShares | 10 | 2 | 1 | +9.5 pts | 49.6% | −62.2% | −15.9% |
| Grayscale | 4 | 2 | 0 | −2.5 pts | 34.2% | −66.8% | −38.8% |
| JPMorgan | 4 | 2 | 0 | −7.9 pts | 10.1% | +3.5% | +14.2% |
| Nicholas | 6 | 2 | 0 | −19.7 pts | 26.5% | −19.4% | +8.3% |
| TappAlpha | 3 | 2 | 1 | −0.3 pts | 15.4% | +4.8% | +21.7% |
| VistaShares | 6 | 2 | 1 | −3.4 pts | 14.2% | −8.3% | +6.6% |
| Westwood | 3 | 2 | 0 | −23.2 pts | 11.6% | +16.8% | +30.1% |
Return of capital by issuer, latest 19a-1 estimates
| Issuer | Funds with notices | Median return of capital | Funds at 90% or more | Median price change, one year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| YieldMax | 58 | 81% | 19 | −38.8% |
| GraniteShares | 28 | 96% | 25 | −59.3% |
| Global X | 13 | 100% | 10 | +5.2% |
| NEOS | 12 | 94% | 9 | +1.3% |
| Kurv | 10 | 85% | 4 | −15.0% |
| REX | 7 | 96% | 5 | −16.4% |
| Defiance | 5 | 100% | 3 | −12.5% |
The cost of the payout: by distribution rate, all funds, one year
| Distribution rate | Funds | Median cash paid | Median price change | Median total return | Median gap vs benchmark |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under 8% | 54 | 6.7% | +0.5% | +10.9% | −8.7 pts |
| 8% to 15% | 56 | 11.9% | +2.8% | +15.4% | −3.9 pts |
| 15% to 30% | 42 | 26.2% | −16.9% | +10.4% | −3.7 pts |
| 30% to 60% | 35 | 35.9% | −39.7% | +2.6% | −6.7 pts |
| 60% and above | 19 | 48.2% | −52.4% | −4.3% | −4.2 pts |
Method. ETFIQ calculations from exchange prices and cash distributions (Tiingo end-of-day): cash as a share of the starting price, price change, total return with distributions reinvested, and the benchmark measured the same way. Return of capital is each issuer’s Rule 19a-1 estimate for its latest distribution. Medians across funds. Data file: https://etfiq.com/data/income.json. Rebuilt every trading night. ETFIQ is an independent publisher and makes no recommendations. Standards