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ZALT

GradeAChicago Board Options Exchange

Innovator U.S. Equity 10 Buffer ETF - Quarterly

Buffered · Innovator · Inception 2023-10-02

$34.66−0.17 (−0.50%)

As of Sep 23, 2026, 3:10 PM EDT

History starts Oct 2, 2023.
Intraday session: down, 69 prints from 34.83 to 34.66. Range 34.63 to 34.77. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$34.70$34.7510 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM
Expense ratio
0.69%
Fund size
$789M
1Y return
+9.4%
Yield · Last 12 months
—
Holdings
6
Volume · 30D
0.1M sh
NAV per share
$34.49
52W range
low $31.59high $34.84

The ETF.net ZALT Grade

A

73/ 100

Rank 1 of 77 in S&P 500 Buffer 9-12%⁠

Confidence Medium

Six-pillar profile for ZALT. Scores out of 100: Cost 82, Risk 77, Mission not scored, Tradability 56, Holdings not scored, Durability 62. Strongest: Cost (82). Weakest: Tradability (56). Based on 4 of 6 pillars.
F< 25
D≥ 25
C≥ 40
B≥ 55
A≥ 70

Score 73 of 100 sits in the A band. Bands: A ≥ 70, B ≥ 55, C ≥ 40, D ≥ 25, F < 25; the scale skips E.

  • Cost

    What you pay to own it — the expense ratio plus trading frictions, ranked within its category.
    AScore 82
    Category rank16/77 · top 21%

  • Mission

    How faithfully it does the job it claims — tracking its mandate or index with minimal slippage.
    Not scored
    —

  • Risk

    How violently it can move — volatility, drawdown depth, and downside capture versus its category.
    AScore 77
    Category rank3/73 · top 4%

  • Tradability

    How cheaply and easily you can get in and out — liquidity, spread, and premium/discount stability.
    BScore 56
    Category rank32/77 · top 42%

  • Holdings

    What it actually owns — the quality, breadth, and concentration of the underlying portfolio.
    Not scored
    —

  • Durability

    Whether it will still be here — the fund’s assets, age, flows, and issuer staying power.
    BScore 62
    Category rank27/77 · top 35%

Graded as of Sep 22, 2026 · Based on 4 of 6 pillars

Our read on ZALT

ETF.net Research

AThe defined-outcome trade on a three-month clock: ZALT follows SPY up to a cap and buffers the first 10% of a decline, then resets both every quarter. Four fresh caps a year, at a fee under the shallow-buffer median.

Stated mandate

The fund seeks to follow SPY's return up to a predetermined cap while providing a 10% downside buffer over each three-month outcome period. It may be held indefinitely, with the defined outcomes resetting at the end of each period.

Why people hold it

  1. 01Resets on a quarterly clock: a new cap is set the first day of each calendar quarter and the 10% buffer starts over. Can be held indefinitely, no rolling into a new ticker.sec.govcboe.com
  2. 02At 0.69% it undercuts the going rate for 10% buffer funds on the S&P 500, where peers like SIXZ, JULT and BJUN charge 0.74% to 0.79%.
  3. 03The cushion is built from FLEX options on SPY itself, so the thing you are hedged against is the same fund most investors already watch.sec.gov
  4. 04Sits among the stronger implementations in its shallow-buffer peer group on cost and ease of trading.

Worth knowing

  1. 01Three months of upside buys a lower ceiling. Each quarter's cap is priced off three-month options, so it lands well below what a 12-month buffer fund can offer.sec.gov
  2. 02Buy mid-quarter and you inherit whatever cap and buffer are left, not the full 10%. The prospectus says so plainly.sec.gov
  3. 03The fee comes out of the cushion: with the 0.69% fee counted, the prospectus puts the net buffer at 9.82% per period. No distributions so far, so return shows up in price.sec.gov

ZALT Holdings

As of Sep 22, 2026, 10:01 PM
Asset class
Stocks
Holdings
6
Top-10 weight
101%
Largest holding
SPY 09/30/2026 1.85 C100.5%

Sectors

The fund’s holdings, weight-ordered — page 1 of 1.
#TickerCompanyWeight %SharesMarket valueIn ETFs
001—SPY 09/30/2026 1.85 C100.54%10,411$803M1
002—US BANK MMDA - USBGFS 9 09/01/20370.12%982,303$982K161
003—SPY 09/30/2026 746.76 P0.08%10,411$656K1

Showing 1–3 of 3 holdings

ZALT Performance

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

ZALT$10,936
SPY tracks large US stocks. It provides market context, rather than representing this fund’s strategy, asset class or investment benchmark.$11,723
Sep 22, 2025 to Sep 22, 2026. ZALT $10,936. SPY $11,723. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$9,353$10,646$11,940Sep 2025Mar 2026Sep 2026

Sep 22, 2025 – Sep 22, 2026

Returns run to the Sep 22, 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 ZALT. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.
PeriodZALT
Year to date+6.9%
1 month+1.2%
3 months+3.0%
1 year+9.4%
3 yearsFund is under 3 years old—per year
5 yearsFund is under 5 years old—per year
10 yearsFund is under 10 years old—per year

As of the close, 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 ZALT
YearReturn barZALT
2026 YTD+6.9%
2025+9.4%
2024+11.9%
2023+3.9%

Since listing, Oct 2, 2023

ZALT in the news

ETF.net Research hasn’t filed on ZALT yet — coverage lands here as it’s written.

ZALT Dividends

This fund pays no distributions.
—Last 12 months
Payout per share
—Last 12 months

No distributions in the last 12 months.

ZALT Risk

How much the fund’s monthly returns vary, scaled to a year.
3.9%
Annualised · 34 months to Aug 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.
1.64
vs 3-month T-bills · 34 months to Aug 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.
−8.2%
35 months · trough Apr 2025
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.
0.29
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.

ZALT Cost

Expense ratio0.69%
  • The middle half of S&P 500 Buffer 9-12% funds
  • Median 0.79%

13 of the 77 S&P 500 Buffer 9-12% funds charge less.

ZALT costs $69.00 a year on $10,000. The median S&P 500 Buffer 9-12% fund costs $79.00.