Across the buffer ETF market tracked by ETFIQ, 419 funds from 7 issuers stood at a range of positions in their outcome periods as of October 2, 2026. Of these, 110 funds, or 26% of the total, had reached their cap, meaning the index they track has risen far enough that those funds have no further upside this period. At the other end, 31 funds had their buffer absorbing losses, with 30 shown as "buffer working" and 1 as "buffer exhausted" in the band breakdown. The remaining 278 funds, 66% of the total, sat in an open position between these two states.
The median fund across the market could still gain 5.9% from its current price before hitting its cap, and could fall 3.9% before its buffer would begin absorbing losses, based on the issuers' own published data.
Results varied by issuer. Innovator, the largest issuer with 138 funds, had 35 at cap and 10 with buffers working, with a median remaining gain of 7.2% and a median fall before buffer of 4.7%. First Trust, with 104 funds, had 36 at cap and 7 with buffers working, and a smaller median remaining gain of 5.5% against a larger median cushion of 6.3% before its buffer would begin. AllianzIM and PGIM, with 57 and 44 funds respectively, had no funds with buffers currently working. Corgi, with 36 funds, had none at cap and 10 with buffers working, though its median remaining gain was not available. Calamos, with 32 funds, had 14 at cap and 4 with buffers working. iShares, the smallest issuer with 8 funds, had 2 at cap. Expense ratios across issuers ranged from 0.30% for Corgi to 0.80% for Innovator and First Trust.
Looking ahead by reset month over the next twelve months, a pattern holds across the data: funds resetting soonest carry the least remaining cap, while funds with caps set further out show more room to rise. For periods ending in October, November, and December 2026, the median fund could still gain between 1.2% and 3.0%, reflecting that their underlying indexes have already moved up substantially since the period began, with median index moves of +12.8%, +12.6%, and +8.5% respectively. By contrast, periods ending from May through September 2027 show median remaining gains between 10.7% and 15.0%, alongside smaller median index moves since period start, as these funds' caps were set more recently and have had less time to be approached. The count of funds at cap tracks this same pattern, falling from double digits in near-term reset months to single digits or zero in months further out, such as May 2027, August 2027, and April through September 2027 more broadly.
Readers can check the current distance to cap and to buffer, by issuer and by individual fund, on the live desk.