BJUL vs ZALT

BJULBInnovator U.S. Equity Buffer ETF

ZALTAInnovator U.S. Equity 10 Buffer ETF - Quarterly

In short

BJUL Running since 2018, BJUL keeps a July clock: it absorbs the first 9% of the reference S&P 500 ETF's losses over each 12-month outcome period, in exchange for a cap on the upside.

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

BJUL BJUL seeks to match the return of the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust, subject to an upside cap, while protecting against the first 9% of losses during the annual outcome period.

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

• BJUL The deal in one line: the first 9% of the reference S&P 500 ETF's decline is absorbed over the outcome period, and gains above a cap set at each July reset are given up.
• Live since 2018, so it carries many completed annual resets rather than a single-cycle history, which is rare in a category mostly built after it.
• Among dozens of shallow-buffer funds wrapped around the same S&P 500 ETF, this one lands in the upper half of the group on our review.

• 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

• BJUL The 9% cushion and the cap belong to the full outcome period. Step in mid-period and you get whatever protection and upside room remain, not the headline terms.
• At 0.79% a year it sits right at the buffer-fund median, and relatives like ZALT (0.69%) and the laddered BUFB (0.10%) run cheaper.
• Volume is light, so spreads deserve a look before trading, and regular distributions are not part of the package; the payoff shows up in the share price.

• 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 BJUL profile⁠

Full ZALT profile⁠