BJUN vs ZALT

BJUNCInnovator U.S. Equity Buffer ETF

ZALTAInnovator U.S. Equity 10 Buffer ETF - Quarterly

In short

BJUN A one-year seatbelt on the S&P 500. BJUN absorbs the first 9% of SPY's losses and tracks it upward to a preset cap, then resets each June 1 with a fresh cap and a fresh buffer.

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

BJUN The fund seeks to match the return of SPY up to a predetermined cap while protecting investors from the first 9% of losses during the 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

• BJUN Terms are defined up front: it aims to absorb the first 9% of an SPY decline over the 12-month outcome period, matching gains up to a cap set at the start.innovatoretfs.com
• It is a plain 1940 Act ETF built from options on SPY, not a bank-issued note, so no single issuer's credit sits between you and the payoff.innovatoretfs.com
• Running since June 2019, so the June series has cycled through many annual resets, and it stands in the upper half of a crowded shallow-buffer field.
• Trades with less friction than much of the dated-buffer group, which matters when you choose your own entry and exit rather than the fund's.

• 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

• BJUN The cap is what you hand over for the cushion, and it is struck fresh each June 1. You do not know the new ceiling until the period begins.innovatoretfs.com
• Buffer and cap are measured across the full outcome period. Step in midstream and you get whatever protection and upside are left, not the headline 9%.innovatoretfs.com
• 0.79% a year is the going rate in this group, not the floor: laddered BUFB runs 0.10% and quarterly-reset ZALT 0.69%. This line also pays no regular distributions.

• 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 BJUN profile⁠

Full ZALT profile⁠