FJUL vs SIXJ

FJULCFT Vest U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - July

SIXJBAllianzIM U.S. Equity 6 Month Buffer10 Jan/Jul ETF

In short

FJUL The July rung of First Trust's twelve-month buffer ladder: 10% of SPY's price-return losses absorbed, upside capped, and the whole contract reset each July. Running since 2020.

SIXJ Most buffer ETFs lock you into a 12-month cycle. SIXJ runs a six-month one, resetting each January and July: it tracks SPY's share-price move, absorbs the first 10% of losses, and takes a fresh upside cap twice a year.

Stated mandate

FJUL The Fund seeks returns matching the price return of the State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust up to a 16.82% upside cap, while buffering the first 10% of losses during the July 20, 2026–July 16, 2027 outcome period.

SIXJ The Fund seeks to match the share-price return of SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust over a six-month outcome period, subject to an upside cap and protection against the first 10% of losses.

Why people hold it

• FJUL The terms are written down before you show up: a 10% downside buffer on SPY's price return and a stated upside cap, both fixed for the July-to-July outcome period.ftportfolios.com
• Twelve identical monthly siblings run on the same recipe (FJAN through FDEC), so start dates can be laddered instead of hinging on one July entry.
• Live since 2020 and now a billion-dollar-plus fund, it is a seasoned rung of the ladder with many annual resets behind it.

• SIXJ The 10% buffer and the cap reset every January 1 and July 1, so terms refresh twice a year instead of on the usual annual clock.
• 0.74% expense ratio, on the lean side for a defined-outcome fund and below the typical fee among its shallow-buffer peers.
• The reference asset is SPY itself, the original S&P 500 ETF, so the payoff is keyed to a plain vanilla benchmark rather than a bespoke index.
• Rates among the stronger implementations in a crowded shallow-buffer field, alongside AllianzIM's other six-month siblings like SIXZ and SIXD.

Worth knowing

• FJUL At 0.85% a year it sits above the buffer group's 0.79% median, and well above cheaper builds like ZALT (0.69%) or the laddered BUFB (0.10%).
• The reference is SPY's price return, so dividends sit outside the buffered math, and the fund itself has made no distributions.
• Buffer and cap are defined for the full July-to-July window; buy mid-period and your own cap and remaining buffer differ from the headline terms.ftportfolios.com

• SIXJ Buffer and cap are designed to work over the full six-month period. Buy mid-period and you get whatever cushion and upside room remain at that moment.
• It tracks SPY's share-price return, so dividends aren't passed through and the fund isn't structured to pay income.
• Volume is light next to the largest buffer funds, so bid-ask spreads can run wider, especially in fast-moving markets.

Full FJUL profile⁠

Full SIXJ profile⁠