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ZVOL

GradeBChicago Board Options Exchange

Volatility Shares Trust - Volatility Premium Plus ETF

Volatility product · Leveraged & Inverse · Volatility Shares · Inception 2023-04-19

This fund tracks market volatility itself rather than stocks or bonds. It is built as a short-term trading instrument, not a buy-and-hold investment.

$7.70−0.54 (−6.50%)

As of Sep 23, 2026, 2:20 PM EDT

History starts Apr 19, 2023.
Intraday session: down, 46 prints from 8.23 to 7.70. Range 7.68 to 7.76. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$7.68$7.72$7.74$7.7610 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM
Expense ratio
1.42%
Fund size
$19M
1Y return
+24.3%
Yield · Last 12 months
70.72%
Holdings
5
Volume · 30D
0.1M sh
NAV per share
$8.09
52W range
low $7.41high $12.31

The ETF.net ZVOL Grade

B

59/ 100

Rank 19 of 54 in Leveraged Inverse (2x & Other)

Confidence Medium

Six-pillar profile for ZVOL. Scores out of 100: Cost 51, Risk 86, Mission not scored, Tradability 55, Holdings not scored, Durability 46. Strongest: Risk (86). Weakest: Durability (46). Based on 4 of 6 pillars.
F< 25
D≥ 25
C≥ 40
B≥ 55
A≥ 70

Score 59 of 100 sits in the B 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.
    CScore 51
    Category rank27/54 · top 50%
  • 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 86
    Category rank3/53 · top 6%
  • Tradability

    How cheaply and easily you can get in and out — liquidity, spread, and premium/discount stability.
    BScore 55
    Category rank24/54 · top 44%
  • 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.
    CScore 46
    Category rank35/54 · mid-pack

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

Our read on ZVOL

ETF.net Research

BShort volatility, but further out the curve. ZVOL takes daily inverse exposure to mid-term VIX futures instead of the front month, aiming to monetize the roll premium in those contracts, and it pays out monthly.

Stated mandate

The Fund seeks daily results, before fees and expenses, corresponding to the S&P 500 VIX Mid-Term Futures Inverse Daily Index.

Why people hold it

  1. 01Most short-vol trades crowd the front month. ZVOL works the mid-term end of the VIX curve, the fourth through seventh contracts, which move less violently than the nearest ones.sec.gov
  2. 02Income is the point, not a byproduct: continuously rolling short VIX futures is expected to produce a volatility premium or roll yield, which the fund declares as a monthly dividend.sec.govvolatilityshares.com
  3. 03A registered 1940 Act fund, with futures exposure held through a wholly owned Cayman subsidiary rather than a bare commodity pool.sec.gov
  4. 04Sits in the upper half of the inverse and leveraged funds we grade, with a risk profile calmer than most of that crowd, thanks to the mid-term contracts and single inverse exposure.

Worth knowing

  1. 01The mandate resets daily. Hold past one day and returns compound, so results can drift well away from the inverse of the index, and a volatility spike cuts against the position.volatilityshares.com
  2. 02Fees run above the neighborhood: 1.42% versus a 1.21% median for bear and leveraged funds. SVXY does short-vol at 0.95%, though from the short-term end of the curve.
  3. 03It is a small, thinly traded fund, so limit orders earn their keep. The issuer also expects part or all of each distribution to be return of capital rather than new profit.volatilityshares.com

ZVOL Holdings

As of Sep 21, 2026, 4:17 AM
Asset class
Other
Holdings
5
Top-10 weight
213210%
Largest holding
CBOE VIX FUTURE Mar2771758.6%
The fund’s holdings, weight-ordered — page 1 of 1.
#TickerCompanyWeight %SharesMarket valueIn ETFs
001CBOE VIX FUTURE Mar2771758.63%-314$-6M1
002CBOE VIX FUTURE Feb2771145.31%-314$-6M1
003CBOE VIX FUTURE Jan2761494.65%-277$-6M1
004CBOE VIX FUTURE Apr278811.41%-38$-789K1

Showing 1–4 of 4 holdings

ZVOL Performance

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

ZVOL$12,427
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. ZVOL $12,427. SPY $11,723. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$8,772$10,735$12,698Sep 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 ZVOL. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.
PeriodZVOL
Year to date+18.1%
1 month+9.2%
3 months+16.1%
1 year+24.3%
3 years+8.7%per year
5 yearsFund is under 5 years oldper year
10 yearsFund is under 10 years oldper 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 ZVOL
YearReturn barZVOL
2026 YTD+18.1%
2025−10.7%
2024+9.4%
2023+51.6%

Since listing, Apr 19, 2023

ZVOL in the news

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

ZVOL 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 Sep 22, 2026.
70.72%Last 12 months
Payout per share
$5.82Last 12 months
Last payment
$0.49 per share
Paid on
Shares bought on or after this date do not qualify for this distribution.
Frequency
Monthly

Distribution history

2023–2026

One bar per payment. 33 payments from 2023 to 2026 YTD. Dec 26, 2023 $0.12; Jan 26, 2024 $0.49; Feb 26, 2024 $0.49; Mar 26, 2024 $0.49; Apr 25, 2024 $0.49; May 22, 2024 $0.49; Jun 25, 2024 $0.49; Jul 24, 2024 $0.49; Aug 28, 2024 $0.49; Sep 26, 2024 $0.49; Oct 29, 2024 $0.49; Nov 26, 2024 $0.49; Dec 16, 2024 $0.49; Jan 29, 2025 $0.49; Feb 26, 2025 $0.49; Mar 27, 2025 $0.49; Apr 28, 2025 $0.49; May 28, 2025 $0.49; Jun 26, 2025 $0.49; Jul 29, 2025 $0.49; Aug 27, 2025 $0.49; Sep 26, 2025 $0.49; Oct 29, 2025 $0.49; Nov 25, 2025 $0.49; Dec 15, 2025 $0.49; Jan 21, 2026 $0.49; Feb 18, 2026 $0.49; Mar 18, 2026 $0.49; Apr 22, 2026 $0.49; May 20, 2026 $0.49; Jun 17, 2026 $0.49; Jul 22, 2026 $0.49; Aug 19, 2026 $0.49. Use the arrow keys to read each point.2023202420252026YTD
Ex-datePay dateAmount per share
Aug 19, 2026Aug 20, 2026$0.49
Jul 22, 2026Jul 23, 2026$0.49
Jun 17, 2026Jun 18, 2026$0.49
May 20, 2026May 21, 2026$0.49
Apr 22, 2026Apr 23, 2026$0.49
Mar 18, 2026Mar 19, 2026$0.49
Feb 18, 2026Feb 19, 2026$0.49
Jan 21, 2026Jan 22, 2026$0.49
Dec 15, 2025Dec 16, 2025$0.49
Nov 25, 2025Nov 26, 2025$0.49
Oct 29, 2025Oct 30, 2025$0.49
Sep 26, 2025Sep 29, 2025$0.49

ZVOL Risk

How much the fund’s monthly returns vary, scaled to a year.
22.1%
Annualised · 36 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.
0.21
vs 3-month T-bills · 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.
−37.2%
41 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.
1.18
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.

ZVOL Cost

Expense ratio1.42%
  • The middle half of Leveraged Inverse (2x & Other) funds
  • Median 1.44%

25 of the 53 Leveraged Inverse (2x & Other) funds charge less.

ZVOL costs $142.00 a year on $10,000. The median Leveraged Inverse (2x & Other) fund costs $144.00.