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Launched

Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - August

PAUGCboeInnovatorC

$46.46−0.10 (−0.21%)

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

C52/ 100

Rank 16 of 61 in S&P 500 Buffer 15%

C52/100Rank 16 of 61inS&P 500 Buffer 15%
Intraday session: down, 78 prints from 46.56 to 46.46. Range 46.46 to 46.87. Use the arrow keys to read each point.46.7046.8010 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM
Expense ratio
0.79%
Fund size
$1.04B
1Y total return
+8.9%
Yield · Last 12 months
0.00%
Holdings
3
Avg volume · 30D
87.9K sh
52W range
low $41.92high $47.23
Launched

The ETF.net PAUG Grade

Based on 4 of 6 pillars

C

Score 52 out of 100

Category
S&P 500 Buffer 15%⁠
Rank
16 of 61
Six-pillar profile for PAUG. Scores out of 100: Cost 35, Risk 57, Mission not scored, Tradability 74, Holdings not scored, Durability 84. Strongest: Durability (84). Weakest: Cost (35). Based on 4 of 6 pillars.

Score 52 of 100 falls in the C 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.
    D35 out of 100
    Rank 34 of 61

  • Mission

    Whether the fund did what it promised, tested against its stated mandate.
    Not scored

  • Risk

    How the fund held up when markets fell: downside volatility, drawdowns and tail loss.
    B57 out of 100
    Rank 15 of 60

  • Tradability

    How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.
    A74 out of 100
    Rank 6 of 61

  • Holdings

    How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.
    Not scored

  • Durability

    Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.
    A84 out of 100
    Rank 4 of 61

Our read on PAUG

ETF.net Research

In short

CA shock absorber with a calendar. PAUG soaks up the first 15% of losses on an S&P 500 ETF over each roughly one-year stretch, trades away some upside via a cap, then resets every August 1.

Stated mandate

PAUG seeks to track SPY up to a predetermined upside cap while protecting the first 15% of losses over an approximately annual outcome period, resetting at the end of each period.

Why people hold it

  • The first 15 percentage points of reference-fund losses over the outcome period are absorbed before you feel anything. That buffer is written into the fund's documents, not left to a manager's judgment.innovatoretfs.com
  • What's being shaped is plain vanilla US large cap: the reference asset is SPY, the S&P 500 tracker, not a bespoke smart-beta index built for the brochure.
  • Live since August 2019, so the annual reset has run through several very different markets. It also has eleven monthly siblings, so the choice is a start date, not a strategy.
  • Among the stronger implementations in a crowded buffer field, where a lot of look-alike funds charge similar money for similar mechanics.

Worth knowing

  • Upside is capped, and the cap is set fresh each period. Buy mid-period and you inherit whatever cap and buffer remain, which can look nothing like the headline terms.
  • 0.79% a year is the price of the options engineering. It sits right at the median for buffer funds and well above plain index exposure.
  • One of the quieter tickers in a busy category, so limit orders and a look at the spread matter more here than with a mega-fund.

PAUG Performance

Launched Aug 1, 2019

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.
PAUG$10,894
SPY tracks large US stocks. It provides market context, rather than representing this fund’s strategy, asset class or investment benchmark.$11,199
Oct 31, 2025 to Oct 30, 2026. PAUG $10,894. SPY $11,199. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$10,000$11,000Oct 2025Apr 2026Oct 2026

Oct 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 PAUG. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.
PeriodPAUG
Year to date+7.7%
1 month−0.2%
3 months+1.3%
1 year+8.9%
3 yearsper year+14.9%
5 yearsper year+9.2%
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 PAUG
YearReturn barPAUG
2026 YTD+7.7%
2025+12.3%
2024+15.4%
2023+17.7%
2022−6.9%
2021+7.6%
2020+9.8%

PAUG in the news

PAUG Dividends

Adds up every distribution paid per share over the last 12 months, divided by the last completed close. Distributions are counted by ex-date. Data through Oct 30, 2026.
0.00%Last 12 months
Payout per share
NoneLast 12 months

No distributions in the last 12 months.

Distribution history

Payments through 2019

One bar per payment. 1 payment in 2019. Nov 19, 2019 $0.34. Use the arrow keys to read each point.2019
Ex-datePay dateAmount per share
Nov 19, 2019Nov 21, 2019$0.34

PAUG Risk

Risk pillarB57 out of 100Rank 15 of 60 in S&P 500 Buffer 15%
How much the fund’s monthly returns vary, scaled to a year.
6.2%
Annualised · 36 months to Oct 2026
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.
1.58
vs 3-month T-bills · to Oct 2026
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.
−11.8%
Trough Oct 2022
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.
0.49
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.

PAUG Cost

Compare PAUG and CAUG

Overpaying vs CAUG, tied cheapest in S&P 500 Buffer 15%

$9,025

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

  • PAUG 0.79%

    $15,174

  • CAUG 0.30% Tied cheapest

    $6,149

$10,000
30 years

Cost over time

  • PAUG 0.79%
  • CAUG 0.30%
  • Overpaying
One line per fund, from year 0 to year 30. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$0$5K$10K$15K$20K051015202530PAUG $15,174CAUG $6,149

Year by year

YearPAUGCAUGOverpaying
10$1,405$545$860
20$5,331$2,113$3,218
30$15,174$6,149$9,025

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