FLOW vs QUAL: Grades, Fees and Holdings Compared

Global X U.S. Cash Flow Kings 100 ETF

FLOWBNYSE Arca

iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF

QUALACboe

Overlap

4.0%by weight

Expense ratio

QUAL −0.10pt a year

FLOW0.25%QUAL0.15%

Avg volume · 30D

QUAL 1028.9×the volume

FLOW4.16KQUAL4.28M

3Y return · a year

FLOW +5.1pt

FLOW+23.7%QUAL+18.6%

FLOW vs QUAL Performance

Nov 7, 2025 – Nov 9, 2026

+34.8%FLOW+16.3%QUAL

Expense ratio: FLOW 0.25%; QUAL 0.15%, better
Fund size: FLOW $36M; QUAL $47.6B
1Y total return: FLOW +34.8%, better; QUAL +16.3%
Yield (12M): FLOW 1.62%; QUAL No data
Holdings: FLOW 100; QUAL 121
Avg volume (30D): FLOW 4.16K sh; QUAL 4.28M sh, better
NAV per share: FLOW $45.04; QUAL $54.80
52W range

ETF.net Grade

Pillar letters and Scores for FLOW, QUAL, with each pillar’s weight
Pillar	FLOW	QUAL
Cost30% weight	B62	A84Higher
Mission25% weight	B56	A95Higher
Risk15% weight	B59	A74Higher
Tradability15% weight	D36	B60Higher
Holdings10% weight	A72Higher	D37
Durability5% weight	D37	A96Higher

Rank among US Quality Index funds

How we build Categories ›

Same Category. FLOW and QUAL are both graded against the same 26 US Quality Index funds, so their Grades compare head to head.

US Quality Index⁠

Category · 26 funds

See all 26 ›

QUAL ranks 2nd and FLOW 14th of 26 funds in the US Quality Index Category.

Rank 1AJQUAJPMorgan U.S. Quality Factor ETFScore 81
Rank 2AQUALiShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETFScore 77
Rank 3AFQALFidelity Quality Factor ETFScore 76
Rank 12BXSHQInvesco S&P SmallCap Quality ETFScore 56
Rank 14BFLOWGlobal X U.S. Cash Flow Kings 100 ETFScore 55
Rank 14BVUSEVident U.S. Equity Strategy ETFScore 55

Our read on each fund

ETF.net Research

FLOWBGlobal X U.S. Cash Flow Kings 100 ETF

QUALAiShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF

In short

FLOW Global X's entry in the cash-cow trade: roughly 100 US companies ranked on free cash flow yield, the money a business has left after the bills are paid. It undercuts the typical fee in its factor peer group and pays monthly.

QUAL QUAL screens US large and mid caps for high return on equity, low debt and steady earnings, then does it sector by sector, so the portfolio stays spread across the market instead of piling into whichever sector looks healthiest.

Stated mandate

FLOW The Fund seeks to provide investment results that generally correspond, before fees and expenses, to the performance of the Global X U.S. Cash Flow Kings 100 Index.

QUAL The fund tracks an index of U.S. large- and mid-capitalization stocks selected for quality characteristics, including high return on equity, stable earnings, and low debt.

Why people hold it

FLOW The screen is free cash flow yield, so the ranking runs on cash a business actually throws off rather than reported earnings. Roughly 100 US names make the cut.globalxetfs.com
0.25% a year sits under the 0.32% typical for its multifactor cohort, and matches what Schwab charges on FNDX, one of the group's strongest-rated funds.
Distributions are paid monthly, a steadier rhythm than the four-times-a-year schedule most stock funds run on.
Rules-based and index-tracking: holdings come from a published Global X index, not a manager's judgment call.globalxetfs.com

QUAL At 0.15%, it undercuts the typical quality-factor fund, where the cohort median sits at 0.29%.
Sector neutral by design: companies are ranked on return on equity, leverage and earnings variability against rivals in their own GICS sector.msci.com ishares.com
Running since 2013, now a $25B-$100B fund that trades actively, with returns that stay close to its index.

Worth knowing

FLOW A small fund that trades thinly. Spreads and fill quality can cost more than the expense ratio here, so limit orders carry more weight than they would in a giant.
Launched in 2023, so there's no full-cycle record behind the strategy, and it currently sits in the lower half of a crowded multifactor field.
Cheap for a factor fund, not cheap outright. Cohort leaders like VONV and VYM charge 0.06% and 0.04% for broad value and dividend exposure.

QUAL About 120 large and mid caps, leaning on the same familiar giants as a broad US index fund. This is a tilt on core equity, not new ground.
Sector neutrality cuts both ways: it keeps a foot in every sector rather than stepping away from ones with weak fundamentals.msci.com
Cheap, not cheapest. JQUA (0.12%) and VFQY (0.13%) shave a basis point or three off the fee.

Full FLOW profile⁠

Full QUAL profile⁠

FLOW vs QUAL Holdings

How FLOW and QUAL differ

Overlap by weight

4.0%

Shared holdings make up 16.0% of FLOW and 4.0% of QUAL.

Level by level

Holdings9 in both4.0%
Sector11 Sectors68.9%
Countryby domicile98.8%
Asset classStocks100%

Sector

Sector weights in FLOW and QUAL, widest gap first
Sector	Gap	FLOW	QUAL
Consumer Discretionary	FLOW +13.7 points	23.5%	9.8%
Energy	FLOW +13.6 points	17.0%	3.4%
Financials	QUAL +13.2 points	0.0%	13.2%
Technology	QUAL +12.2 points	22.1%	34.3%
Utilities	QUAL +2.2 points	0.0%	2.2%
Consumer Staples	FLOW +2.0 points	6.9%	4.9%
Materials	FLOW +1.9 points	3.8%	1.9%
Industrials	QUAL +1.3 points	7.5%	8.8%
Real Estate	QUAL +1.0 points	0.6%	1.6%
Communication	QUAL +0.7 points	8.6%	9.3%
Health Care	QUAL +0.4 points	10.1%	10.5%

Country, concentration and asset class

Country by domicile

Country weights in FLOW and QUAL, widest gap first
Country	Gap	FLOW	QUAL
Switzerland	QUAL +1.2 points	0.0%	1.2%
United States	FLOW +0.8 points	99.6%	98.8%
India	FLOW +0.4 points	0.4%	0.0%

Concentration

Weight in the 10 largest Holdings

FLOW21.4%
QUAL44.0%

Securities held

FLOW100
QUAL118

Asset class

FLOW: Stocks
QUAL: Stocks

Holdings

Only in FLOW91
In both9
Only in QUAL109

Only in FLOW

91 securities, 84.1% of FLOW by weight

Cardinal Health Inc2.30%
Dr Horton Inc2.12%
Altria Group Inc2.11%
Tenet Healthcare Corp2.07%
Comcast Corp-Class A2.07%
Kraft Heinz Co/The1.94%
Eqt Corp1.90%
Newmont Corp1.89%
Bristol-Myers Squibb Co1.88%
Occidental Petroleum Corp1.85%
Las Vegas Sands Corp1.80%
Diamondback Energy Inc1.79%
Expedia Group Inc1.79%
Marathon Petroleum Corp1.69%
Valero Energy Corp1.61%
Hp Inc1.59%
Aptiv PLC1.59%
Adt Inc1.51%
Leidos Holdings Inc1.47%
Ovintiv Inc1.42%
Apa Corp1.37%
Tapestry Inc1.37%
Godaddy Inc - Class A1.30%
Zoom Communications Inc1.27%
Hf Sinclair Corp1.26%
Sirius Xm Holdings Inc1.21%
Incyte Corp1.17%
Cf Industries Holdings Inc1.17%
Tko Group Holdings Inc1.11%
Jm Smucker Co/The1.11%
Davita Inc1.10%
Stanley Black & Decker Inc1.07%
First Solar Inc1.01%
Lululemon Athletica Inc0.99%
Maplebear Inc0.97%
Hasbro Inc0.95%
Molson Coors Beverage Co - B0.92%
Exelixis Inc0.91%
Masco Corp0.89%
Crown Holdings Inc0.87%
Docusign Inc0.87%
Gartner Inc0.85%
Pinterest Inc- Class A0.84%
Bath & Body Works Inc0.82%
Lyft Inc-A0.81%
Booz Allen Hamilton Holdings0.81%
Toll Brothers Inc0.81%
Albemarle Corp0.78%
Chord Energy Corp0.72%
Macy's Inc0.72%

Only in QUAL

109 securities, 95.9% of QUAL by weight

Microsoft8.23%
Apple7.41%
NVIDIA5.48%
Eli Lilly4.34%
Meta Platforms Class A4.07%
Visa Class A3.68%
Tjx3.44%
Mastercard Class A2.62%
Lam Research2.40%
Exxonmobil Holdings Corp2.34%
Johnson & Johnson2.24%
Berkshire Hathaway Inc Class B2.07%
Applied Material Inc2.05%
Kla1.88%
Alphabet Class A1.65%
Netflix1.52%
Ross Stores Inc1.44%
Merck & Co Inc1.41%
Automatic Data Processing Inc1.35%
Arista Networks1.32%
Alphabet Class C1.31%
Costco Wholesale Corp1.23%
Walmart1.12%
Linde PLC1.10%
3M0.98%
Procter & Gamble0.94%
Lockheed Martin0.94%
Chipotle Mexican Grill0.92%
Garmin0.89%
Coca-Cola0.89%
Fortinet0.85%
Gilead Sciences0.79%
Williams Sonoma Inc0.77%
Illinois Tool Inc0.76%
Applovin Class A0.74%
Prologis Reit0.74%
Trane Technologies PLC0.70%
Cintas0.70%
Ulta Beauty Inc0.62%
Howmet Aerospace0.61%
Ww Grainger Inc0.58%
Fastenal0.57%
Cadence Design Systems0.54%
Xcel Energy Inc0.53%
Consolidated Edison0.53%
BlackRock0.52%
Vertex Pharmaceuticals0.48%
Motorola Solutions Inc0.48%
Pultegroup0.44%
Atmos Energy0.44%

Weight gaps

All 9 Holdings in both funds, largest gap first.

Holding weights in FLOW and QUAL, widest gap first
Holding	Gap	FLOW	QUAL
Accenture Plc-Cl AACN	FLOW +1.69 points	2.77%	1.08%
Omnicom GroupOMC	FLOW +1.68 points	1.77%	0.09%
Cognizant Tech Solutions-ACTSH	FLOW +1.65 points	1.84%	0.19%
Eog Resources IncEOG	FLOW +1.64 points	1.96%	0.32%
Intuit IncINTU	FLOW +1.59 points	2.17%	0.58%
Expand Energy CorpEXE	FLOW +1.50 points	1.57%	0.07%
Adobe IncADBE	FLOW +0.91 points	1.85%	0.94%
Best Buy Co IncBBY	FLOW +0.83 points	1.23%	0.40%
Deckers Outdoor CorpDECK	FLOW +0.50 points	0.81%	0.31%

All 99 FLOW holdings⁠All 118 QUAL 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.

FLOW vs QUAL Cost

Overpaying FLOW vs QUAL

$2,022

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

FLOW 0.25%
$5,159
QUAL 0.15%
$3,137

Amount$10,000

Years30 years

Cost over time

FLOW 0.25%
QUAL 0.15%
Overpaying

Year by year

Year	FLOW	QUAL	Overpaying
10	$455	$274	$181
20	$1,769	$1,071	$698
30	$5,159	$3,137	$2,022

Expense ratio

0.25%FLOW
0.15%QUAL, cheaper

QUAL0.15%FLOW0.25%

0.12%0.60%

Middle half of US Quality Index funds
Median 0.39%

QUAL 3rd cheapest of 26 funds

FLOW 10th cheapest of 26 funds

FLOW vs QUAL Dividends

Last 12 months to Nov 9, 2026

Yield (12M): FLOW 1.62%; QUAL No data
Payout (12M): FLOW $0.74; QUAL No data
Last payment: FLOW $0.06; QUAL $0.12
Ex-dividend: FLOW Nov 4, 2026; QUAL Sep 15, 2026
Paid on: FLOW Nov 9, 2026; QUAL Sep 18, 2026
Frequency: FLOW Monthly; QUAL Quarterly

Distribution history

Per share, 2023 to 2026, same scale for both

FLOWMonthly · 40 paymentsAll FLOW payments⁠

QUALQuarterly · 8 paymentsAll QUAL payments⁠

FLOW vs QUAL Risk

Fall from peak · 5 years

This chart needs five years of history for both funds.

Risk facts

VolatilityStd dev, 3 years: FLOW 15.8%QUAL 11.8%, better
Return per unit of riskSharpe ratio, 3 years: FLOW 1.19QUAL 1.25, better
Worst fallMax drawdown, 5 years: FLOW −21.6%since Jul 2023QUAL −28.2%
Market sensitivityBeta, 5 years: FLOW 0.70QUAL 0.90; Market = 1

FLOW and QUAL in the news

All news⁠

New ETFs
Two old strategies got ETF tickers. Jensen's new one lets a rule pick the stocks.
Oct 5, 2026QUAL
New ETFs
Jensen's first passive ETF charges 0.25% for a 10-year profit test
Oct 5, 2026QUAL
Category Review
Cash-flow quality returned 42% while QUAL returned 17%
Updated Sep 22, 2026QUAL

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