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Launched · SEC filings

iShares Nasdaq Premium Income Active ETF

BALQNasdaqiSharesA

$51.68−0.78 (−1.49%)

At close: Nov 2, 2026, 4:00 PM ET

A73/ 100

Rank 7 of 31 in Nasdaq-100 Option Income

A73/100Rank 7 of 31inNasdaq-100 Option Income
Intraday session: down, 79 prints from 52.46 to 51.68. Range 51.68 to 53.15. Use the arrow keys to read each point.52.0052.2552.7553.0010 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM
Expense ratio
0.35%
Fund size
$42M
1Y total return
No data
Yield · Last 12 months
No data
Holdings
112
Avg volume · 30D
13.6K sh
52W range
low $44.52high $60.16
Launched
Filings
SEC EDGAR

The ETF.net BALQ Grade

A

Score 73 out of 100

Category
Nasdaq-100 Option Income⁠
Rank
7 of 31
Six-pillar profile for BALQ. Scores out of 100: Cost 82, Risk 48, Mission 100, Tradability 64, Holdings 46, Durability 56. Strongest: Mission (100). Weakest: Holdings (46). Leans toward Mission.

Score 73 of 100 falls in the A band. A is 70 or higher, B 55 to under 70, C 40 to under 55, D 25 to under 40, F under 25.

  • Cost

    The fund’s net expense ratio, ranked against its category.
    A82 out of 100
    Rank 5 of 31

  • Mission

    Whether the fund did what it promised, tested against its stated mandate.
    A100 out of 100
    Rank 1 of 20

  • Risk

    How the fund held up when markets fell: downside volatility, drawdowns and tail loss.
    C48 out of 100
    Rank 16 of 31

  • Tradability

    How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.
    B64 out of 100
    Rank 9 of 31

  • Holdings

    How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.
    C46 out of 100
    Rank 15 of 23

  • Durability

    Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.
    B56 out of 100
    Rank 12 of 31

Our read on BALQ

ETF.net Research

In short

ABlackRock's late entry into the crowded Nasdaq-100 income ring, and it competes on price at 0.35% a year. Holds stocks, sells index calls for premium, then buys index futures to keep some of the upside those calls give away.

Stated mandate

The Fund seeks current income while considering capital appreciation. Its actively managed strategy holds equities, writes Nasdaq-100 Index call options, and buys Nasdaq-100 Index futures.

Why people hold it

  • 0.35% a year sits well under the typical Nasdaq-100 income fund and matches the cheapest large names in the group, GPIQ and JEPQ.
  • The futures sleeve is the twist: it writes Nasdaq-100 calls for premium, then buys Nasdaq-100 futures to add back exposure those calls sold off.ishares.com
  • Actively managed, not a fixed monthly formula. Managers set the option book and the equity sleeve, roughly 110 positions.
  • Income is the stated first job, with capital appreciation a secondary consideration, and the fund's income policy is monthly.

Worth knowing

  • Launched December 2025, so there is no long record of how this option book behaves through a real Nasdaq drawdown.
  • Small and thinly traded next to the established names here, which can mean wider bid-ask spreads.
  • The fund discloses that payouts can include return of capital, meaning part of a distribution may be your own money coming back.ishares.com

BALQ Holdings

Holdings pillarC46 out of 100Rank 15 of 23 in Nasdaq-100 Option Income
Asset class
Stocks
Holdings
112
Top-10 weight
51%
Largest holding
NVDA8.1%

Geography

  • United States99.63%
  • China0.21%
  • Mexico0.16%
The fund’s holdings, weight-ordered — page 1 of 8.
#TickerCompanyWeight %SharesMarket valueHeld by ETFs
1NVDANVIDIA8.12%17,225$3.52M848
2AAPLApple7.99%10,065$3.47M723
3MSFTMicrosoft7.36%6,120$3.19M819
4MUMicron Technology4.83%2,371$2.1M686
5AMZNAmazon.com Inc4.76%8,593$2.07M738
6No dataBlk Csh Fnd Treasury Sl Agency4.37%1,895,940$1.9M437
7AMDAdvanced Micro Devices4.21%3,623$1.83M638
8COSTCostco Wholesale Corp3.39%1,452$1.47M480
9METAMeta Platforms Class A3.02%2,130$1.31M708
10WMTWalmart2.89%10,157$1.25M469
11AVGOBroadcom Inc2.89%3,844$1.25M753
12TSLATesla Inc2.85%3,089$1.24M528
13GOOGLAlphabet Class A2.70%4,191$1.17M707
14GOOGAlphabet Class C2.40%3,747$1.04M480
15CSCOCisco Systems Inc2.30%9,535$997K585

Showing 1–15 of 112 holdings

BALQ Performance

Launched Dec 2, 2025

Shows how $10,000 changes over the selected period, with cash distributions reinvested at the closing price on each ex-dividend date.

Not enough history yet.Not enough history yet.Not enough history yet.Not enough history yet.
BALQ$11,586
SPY tracks large US stocks. It provides market context, rather than representing this fund’s strategy, asset class or investment benchmark.$11,169
Dec 31, 2025 to Oct 30, 2026. BALQ $11,586. SPY $11,169. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$10,000$12,000Dec 2025Jun 2026Oct 2026

Dec 31, 2025 – Oct 30, 2026

Returns run to the Oct 30, 2026 close, with cash distributions reinvested. Each period starts on the same date that many months or years earlier. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.

Trailing total return for BALQ. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.
PeriodBALQ
Year to date+15.9%
1 month−7.3%
3 months−0.3%
1 yearFund is under 1 year oldNo data
3 yearsFund is under 3 years oldper yearNo data
5 yearsFund is under 5 years oldper yearNo data
10 yearsFund is under 10 years oldper yearNo data

With distributions reinvested.

Calendar-year total return with cash distributions hypothetically reinvested at the ex-dividend date’s closing price. The current year shows year to date.

Annual total returns for BALQ
YearReturn barBALQ
2026 YTD+15.9%
2025−0.4%

History from Dec 4, 2025

BALQ in the news

BALQ Dividends

Last payment
$0.37 per share
Paid on
Shares bought on or after this date do not qualify for this distribution.
Frequency
Monthly

Distribution data unavailable.

Distribution history

2025–2026

One bar per payment. 10 payments from 2025 to 2026 YTD. Dec 30, 2025 $0.47; Feb 2, 2026 $0.35; Mar 2, 2026 $0.43; Apr 1, 2026 $0.55; May 1, 2026 $0.37; Jun 1, 2026 $0.49; Jul 1, 2026 $0.69; Aug 3, 2026 $0.51; Sep 1, 2026 $0.41; Oct 1, 2026 $0.37. Use the arrow keys to read each point.20252026YTD
Ex-datePay dateAmount per share
Nov 2, 2026Pays Nov 5, 2026$0.37
Oct 1, 2026Oct 6, 2026$0.37
Sep 1, 2026Sep 4, 2026$0.41
Aug 3, 2026Aug 6, 2026$0.51
Jul 1, 2026Jul 7, 2026$0.69
Jun 1, 2026Jun 4, 2026$0.49
May 1, 2026May 6, 2026$0.37
Apr 1, 2026Apr 7, 2026$0.55
Mar 2, 2026Mar 5, 2026$0.43
Feb 2, 2026Feb 5, 2026$0.35
Dec 30, 2025Jan 5, 2026$0.47

BALQ Risk

Risk pillarC48 out of 100Rank 16 of 31 in Nasdaq-100 Option Income
How much the fund’s monthly returns vary, scaled to a year.
Launched Dec 2025; fills in after 12 months
How it’s calculated: standard deviation

The sample standard deviation of monthly total returns, multiplied by the square root of 12.

Uses up to 36 complete months, with at least 12 required. Total returns include reinvested distributions.

Return above 3-month US Treasury bills per unit of volatility.
Launched Dec 2025; fills in after 12 months
How it’s calculated: Sharpe ratio

Subtract each month’s Treasury-bill return from the fund’s monthly total return.

Divide the average of those excess returns by their sample standard deviation, then multiply by the square root of 12.

Uses up to 36 complete months, with at least 12 required. Each month uses the Treasury yield quoted at the end of the previous month.

The largest fall from a peak to the low that followed.
Launched Dec 2025; fills in after 12 months
How it’s calculated: maximum drawdown

The largest percentage decline from an earlier peak, using total returns with reinvested distributions.

Uses up to five years through the last close, with at least 12 months required.

How strongly the fund’s returns move with its asset-class index.
1.40
vs its asset-class index
How it’s calculated: beta

The beta figure is supplied by FMP. The comparison index depends on the fund’s broad asset class.

FMP measures it over up to five years of monthly returns.

BALQ Cost

Compare BALQ and EDGQ

Overpaying vs EDGQ, cheapest in Nasdaq-100 Option Income

$7,126

On $10,000 over 30 years. 7% growth a year before fees, expense ratio only.

  • BALQ 0.35%

    $7,126

  • EDGQ 0.00% Cheapest

    $0

$10,000
30 years

Cost over time

  • BALQ 0.35%
  • EDGQ 0.00%
  • Overpaying
One line per fund, from year 0 to year 30. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$0$2K$4K$6K$8K051015202530BALQ $7,126EDGQ $0

Year by year

YearBALQEDGQOverpaying
10$634$0$634
20$2,454$0$2,454
30$7,126$0$7,126

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