AUGT vs ZALT

AUGTCAllianzIM U.S. Equity Buffer10 Aug ETF

ZALTAInnovator U.S. Equity 10 Buffer ETF - Quarterly

In short

AUGT A one-year seatbelt on the S&P 500. It absorbs the first 10% of the decline in the big S&P 500 ETF it references and gives up gains above a cap that resets annually, all for 0.74% a year, below the shallow-buffer median.

ZALT The 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

AUGT The fund seeks to match SPY’s share-price return over a one-year outcome period, subject to an upside cap and protection against the first 10% of SPY losses.

ZALT 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

• AUGT At 0.74% it undercuts the 0.79% median for shallow-buffer funds, including August-dated peer BAUG. Fee drag comes straight out of the cap you get.
• The reference is the S&P 500 ETF itself, not an abstract index, and the buffer absorbs the first 10% of its share-price decline over the outcome period.
• AllianzIM runs the same 10% structure in other calendar months (JULT, SEPT, OCTT) at the same fee, and this one sits in the upper half of its peer group.

• ZALT Resets 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
• At 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%.
• The 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
• Sits among the stronger implementations in its shallow-buffer peer group on cost and ease of trading.

Worth knowing

• AUGT The cap is reset for each new outcome period off option prices at the time, so the ceiling shifts from year to year and is not known in advance.
• Buy mid-period and you inherit whatever buffer and cap remain, not the headline 10%. The stated terms describe a hold from one reset to the next.
• Thinly traded on a small asset base, so bid-ask spreads can run wider than in the giants of the buffer aisle.

• ZALT Three 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
• Buy mid-quarter and you inherit whatever cap and buffer are left, not the full 10%. The prospectus says so plainly.sec.gov
• The 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

Full AUGT profile⁠

Full ZALT profile⁠