ALDB vs BUFF: Grades, Fees and Holdings Compared

Aptus Laddered Deep Buffer ETF

ALDBBCboe

Innovator Laddered Allocation Power Buffer ETF

BUFFBCboe

Overlap

0.0%by weight

Expense ratio

ALDB −0.59pt a year

ALDB0.30%BUFF0.89%

Avg volume · 30D

BUFF 14.7×the volume

ALDB6.84KBUFF101K

ALDB vs BUFF Performance

Jul 31, 2026 – Oct 30, 2026

+1.7%ALDB+1.6%BUFF

Expense ratio: ALDB 0.30%, better; BUFF 0.89%
Fund size: ALDB $12M; BUFF $1.11B
1Y total return: ALDB No data; BUFF +9.5%
Yield (12M): ALDB No data; BUFF 0.00%
Holdings: ALDB 5; BUFF 13
Avg volume (30D): ALDB 6.84K sh; BUFF 101K sh, better
NAV per share: ALDB $25.73; BUFF $53.76
52W range

ETF.net Grade

Pillar letters and Scores for ALDB, BUFF, with each pillar’s weight
Pillar	ALDB	BUFF
Cost30% weight	A100Higher	C47
Mission25% weight	Not scored	Not scored
Risk15% weight	B56	B63Higher
Tradability15% weight	C41	B62Higher
Holdings10% weight	D39	A71Higher
Durability5% weight	F11	A77Higher

Rank among S&P 500 Laddered Buffer funds

How we build Categories ›

Same Category. ALDB and BUFF are both graded against the same 18 S&P 500 Laddered Buffer funds, so their Grades compare head to head.

S&P 500 Laddered Buffer⁠

Category · 18 funds

See all 18 ›

ALDB ranks 3rd and BUFF 5th of 18 funds in the S&P 500 Laddered Buffer Category.

Rank 1BBUFPPGIM Laddered S&P 500 Buffer 12 ETFScore 69
Rank 2BPBFRPGIM Laddered S&P 500 Buffer 20 ETFScore 68
Rank 3BALDBAptus Laddered Deep Buffer ETFScore 65
Rank 4BIVVMiShares Large Cap Moderate Quarterly Laddered ETFScore 64
Rank 5BBUFFInnovator Laddered Allocation Power Buffer ETFScore 58
Rank 6BIVVBiShares Large Cap Deep Quarterly Laddered ETFScore 55

Our read on each fund

ETF.net Research

ALDBBAptus Laddered Deep Buffer ETF

BUFFBInnovator Laddered Allocation Power Buffer ETF

In short

ALDB No data

BUFF Buffer ETFs usually make you pick a start month. BUFF skips the choice: equal slices of 12 Innovator Power Buffer ETFs, one resetting every month, each buffering the first 15% of a 12-month SPY drop in exchange for a capped upside.

Stated mandate

ALDB No data

BUFF The fund seeks exposure to the FTSE Laddered Power Buffer Strategy Index, which equally allocates among 12 U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETFs. Those underlying ETFs seek U.S. equity upside subject to caps while buffering the first 15% of losses.

Why people hold it

ALDB No data

BUFF One ticket, twelve vintages. Each underlying Power Buffer ETF resets in a different month, so your entry date matters less than with a single-vintage buffer fund.innovatoretfs.com
Each sleeve seeks SPY's return up to a cap while absorbing the first 15% of an SPY decline over that sleeve's outcome period, before fees and expenses.innovatoretfs.com
Built to sit still: the index rebalances semi-annually and Innovator states the fund can be held indefinitely, with no outcome period for you to roll.innovatoretfs.com
Listed in 2016, running this laddered strategy since its August 2020 conversion, and now a billion-dollar-plus fund sitting in the upper half of its peer group.innovatoretfs.com

Worth knowing

ALDB No data

BUFF At 0.89% it sits near the category median, but some laddered rivals run cheaper: ALDB at 0.30%, PBFR at 0.50% (and PBFR tracks the same declared index).
Caps cut both ways. Laddering smooths the caps across twelve vintages, and in a roaring market the capped sleeves leave upside on the table.innovatoretfs.com
Not an income vehicle: it has not been paying regular distributions, so returns have to come from price.

Full ALDB profile⁠

Full BUFF profile⁠

ALDB vs BUFF Holdings

How ALDB and BUFF differ

Overlap by weight

0.0%

Shared holdings make up 0.0% of ALDB and 0.0% of BUFF.

Level by level

Holdings0 in both0.0%
Asset classEquity100%
Countryby domicile100%
Sector11 Sectors100%

Sector

Sector weights in ALDB and BUFF, widest gap first
Sector	More in ALDBMore in BUFF	ALDB	BUFF
Financials	Same weight	11.3%	11.3%
Industrials	Same weight	7.6%	7.6%
Technology	Same weight	40.1%	40.1%
Communication	Same weight	9.9%	9.9%
Health Care	Same weight	9.4%	9.4%
Consumer Discretionary	Same weight	8.7%	8.7%
Consumer Staples	Same weight	4.4%	4.4%
Energy	Same weight	3.4%	3.4%
Utilities	Same weight	1.9%	1.9%
Real Estate	Same weight	1.7%	1.7%
Materials	Same weight	1.6%	1.6%

Country, concentration and asset class

Country by domicile

Country weights in ALDB and BUFF, widest gap first
Country	More in ALDBMore in BUFF	ALDB	BUFF
United States	Same weight	99.5%	99.5%
Switzerland	Same weight	0.3%	0.3%
China	Same weight	0.1%	0.1%
Mexico	Same weight	0.1%	0.1%
Ireland	Same weight	0.0%	0.0%
United Kingdom	Same weight	0.0%	0.0%

Concentration

Weight in the 10 largest Holdings

ALDB100.0%
BUFF83.3%

Securities held

ALDB5
BUFF13

Asset class

ALDB: Equity
BUFF: Equity

Holdings

Only in ALDB5
In both0
Only in BUFF13

Only in ALDB

5 securities, 100% of ALDB by weight

Aptus October Deep Buffer ETF25.20%
Aptus January Deep Buffer ETF24.95%
Aptus April Deep Buffer ETF24.89%
Aptus July Deep Buffer ETF24.88%
Cash & Other0.08%

Only in BUFF

13 securities, 100% of BUFF by weight

Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - April8.37%
Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - January8.33%
Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - September8.33%
Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - February8.33%
Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - May8.32%
Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - October8.32%
Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - March8.32%
Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - August8.32%
Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - December8.31%
Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - November8.30%
Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - June8.30%
Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - July8.30%
Us Bank Mmda - Usbgfs 9 09/01/20370.14%

Weight gaps

ALDB and BUFF share no securities.

All ALDB holdings⁠All 13 BUFF holdings⁠

How we measure overlap

Each holding counts at its smaller weight in the two funds, summed over the full Holdings. Sector, country and asset class use the same rule on each fund’s split. Cash, FX and derivative lines stay out of the counts. Two bond funds get no overlap figure.

ALDB vs BUFF Cost

Overpaying BUFF vs ALDB

$10,723

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

ALDB 0.30%
$6,149
BUFF 0.89%
$16,872

Amount$10,000

Years30 years

Cost over time

ALDB 0.30%
BUFF 0.89%
Overpaying

Year by year

Year	ALDB	BUFF	Overpaying
10	$545	$1,576	$1,031
20	$2,113	$5,953	$3,840
30	$6,149	$16,872	$10,723

Expense ratio

0.30%ALDB, cheaper
0.89%BUFF

ALDB0.30%BUFF0.89%

0.30%1.21%

Middle half of S&P 500 Laddered Buffer funds
Median 0.89%

ALDB cheapest of 18 funds

BUFF 9th cheapest of 18 funds

ALDB vs BUFF Dividends

Last 12 months to Oct 30, 2026

Yield (12M): ALDB No data; BUFF 0.00%
Payout (12M): ALDB None; BUFF None

Distribution history

Per share, 2016 to 2020, same scale for both

ALDBAll ALDB payments⁠

No distribution history available.

BUFF16 paymentsAll BUFF payments⁠

ALDB vs BUFF Risk

Fall from peak · 5 years

This chart needs five years of history for both funds.

Risk facts

VolatilityStd dev, 3 years: ALDB No dataBUFF 5.8%
Return per unit of riskSharpe ratio, 3 years: ALDB No dataBUFF 1.45
Worst fallMax drawdown, 5 years: ALDB No dataBUFF −10.2%
Market sensitivityBeta, 5 years: ALDB 0.46BUFF 0.47; Market = 1

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