JANZ vs ZALT

JANZDTrueShares Structured Outcome (January) ETF

ZALTAInnovator U.S. Equity 10 Buffer ETF - Quarterly

In short

JANZ The buffer ETF that refuses to cap you. TrueShares pioneered the uncapped format in 2020: no ceiling on gains, just a partial share of the S&P 500's price move, with the first 8% to 12% of a calendar-year drop buffered.

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

JANZ The Fund seeks returns tracking the S&P 500 Price Return Index while buffering the first 8%–12% of index losses over a 12-month period. Its current period runs from January 1 through December 31, 2026.

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

• JANZ No cap, by design. Most buffer funds trade away a ceiling on gains; this series pioneered the uncapped format in 2020 and takes a partial slice of index upside instead.true-shares.com
• The buffer is the headline: it aims to absorb the first 8% to 12% of S&P 500 price losses (the adviser targets 10%) over the January to December period, then resets.true-shares.com
• Siblings start in other months (FEBZ, MARZ, JULZ and more), so the uncapped format can be spread across staggered start dates instead of one January entry point.

• 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

• JANZ 0.80% sits near the typical buffer-fund fee, though cheaper takes exist: AUGP and PQX charge 0.50%, ZALT 0.69%.
• Uncapped is not free. Upside arrives as a share of index gains, not all of them, and option pricing sets that share each period.true-shares.comtrue-shares.com 2
• The reference is the S&P 500 Price Return Index, so dividends sit outside the math. It is also a small fund that trades thinly, which can mean wider spreads.

• 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 JANZ profile⁠

Full ZALT profile⁠