KAPR vs SMAY: Grades, Fees and Holdings Compared

Innovator U.S. Small Cap Power Buffer ETF - April

KAPRCCboe

FT Vest U.S. Small Cap Moderate Buffer ETF - May

SMAYDCboe

Overlap

0.0%by weight

Expense ratio

KAPR −0.11pt a year

KAPR0.79%SMAY0.90%

Avg volume · 30D

KAPR 2.4×the volume

KAPR17.2KSMAY7.11K

3Y return · a year

KAPR +3.2pt

KAPR+13.6%SMAY+10.4%

KAPR vs SMAY Performance

Nov 5, 2025 – Nov 5, 2026

+13.1%KAPR+7.1%SMAY

Expense ratio: KAPR 0.79%, better; SMAY 0.90%
Fund size: KAPR $180M; SMAY $112M
1Y total return: KAPR +13.1%, better; SMAY +7.1%
Holdings: KAPR 3; SMAY 3
Avg volume (30D): KAPR 17.2K sh, better; SMAY 7.11K sh
NAV per share: KAPR $40.07; SMAY $28.05
52W range

ETF.net Grade

Pillar letters and Scores for KAPR, SMAY, with each pillar’s weight
Pillar	KAPR	SMAY
Cost30% weight	C40Higher	F8
Mission25% weight	Not scored	Not scored
Risk15% weight	B63Higher	C45
Tradability15% weight	B57Higher	D29
Holdings10% weight	Not scored	B60
Durability5% weight	A84Higher	A79

Rank among Russell 2000 Buffer 15% funds

How we build Categories ›

Same Category. KAPR and SMAY are both graded against the same 14 Russell 2000 Buffer 15% funds, so their Grades compare head to head.

Russell 2000 Buffer 15%⁠

Category · 14 funds

See all 14 ›

KAPR ranks 4th and SMAY 14th of 14 funds in the Russell 2000 Buffer 15% Category.

Rank 1BQBKFAllianzim U.S. Small Cap Buffer15 ETFScore 64
Rank 2BQBKVAllianzim U.S. Small Cap Buffer5 ETFScore 59
Rank 3BKOCTInnovator U.S. Small Cap Power Buffer ETFScore 57
Rank 4CKAPRInnovator U.S. Small Cap Power Buffer ETF - AprilScore 52
Rank 5CKJANInnovator U.S. Small Cap Power Buffer ETF - JanuaryScore 51
Rank 13DSNOVFT Vest U.S. Small Cap Moderate Buffer ETF - NovemberScore 35
Rank 14DSMAYFT Vest U.S. Small Cap Moderate Buffer ETF - MayScore 26

Our read on each fund

ETF.net Research

KAPRCInnovator U.S. Small Cap Power Buffer ETF - April

SMAYDFT Vest U.S. Small Cap Moderate Buffer ETF - May

In short

KAPR Small caps are the bumpiest ride in US equities. KAPR straps a cushion to them: it tracks the Russell 2000 ETF across an April-to-March outcome period, absorbing the first 15% of losses in exchange for a ceiling on the upside.

SMAY Small caps with a seatbelt. SMAY absorbs the first 15% of a price decline in the Russell 2000 ETF over each one-year outcome period, trading that cushion for a ceiling on the upside. The clock resets every May.

Stated mandate

KAPR The fund seeks to follow the return of IWM up to a predetermined cap while protecting investors from the first 15% of losses during the outcome period, before fees and expenses.

SMAY The Fund seeks price-return participation in the iShares Russell 2000 ETF up to a 19.15% cap, while protecting the first 15% of losses during the May 18, 2026–May 21, 2027 outcome period.

Why people hold it

KAPR The buffer is the whole point: over each outcome period the fund aims to absorb the first 15% of the Russell 2000 ETF's decline, before fees and expenses.innovatoretfs.com
Costs 0.79% a year, level with Innovator's other small-cap buffer months and below the 0.90% charged by FT Vest's small-cap buffer funds (SMAY, SNOV).
April is your anchor: the period runs April 1 to March 31 with a fresh cap each spring, and sibling funds on other months (KJAN, KJUL, KOCT) let you stagger start dates.
Running since 2020 inside a plain 1940 Act ETF wrapper holding options, not a bank-issued note, so the payoff shape doesn't ride on one issuer's credit.innovatoretfs.com

SMAY The 15% buffer is written into the fund's design, not a target: over a full outcome period it takes the first 15% of a price drop in the iShares Russell 2000 ETF before you feel it.
Defined-outcome mechanics point at small caps, a corner of the buffer market where the field is thin and the reference is a single, widely held Russell 2000 fund.
The May start date lets you stagger entry across the calendar alongside other dated small-cap buffer funds (KJAN, KAPR, KJUL, KOCT) instead of betting on one reset month.
What's inside matches what's on the label: options tied to one reference fund, no drift, no side bets.

Worth knowing

KAPR Thinly traded next to the heavyweights of the buffer world, so spreads deserve a look, and the stated buffer and cap apply to holders who own it start to finish of a period.innovatoretfs.com
Upside stops at the cap struck each April, and the 15% cushion is measured before the 0.79% fee. Buy mid-period and you inherit whatever cap and remaining buffer exist that day.innovatoretfs.com
Options do the work instead of shares, so Russell 2000 dividends don't flow through and the fund has not been making regular distributions.innovatoretfs.com

SMAY The buffer and the cap belong to the full outcome period. Buy in the middle and you get whatever cushion and headroom are left, not the stated 15%.
At 0.90% a year, it sits above the 0.79% charged by the Innovator small-cap buffer funds running the same playbook.
It trades lightly, so spreads at the point of entry or exit can matter more than they would in a busier fund.

Full KAPR profile⁠

Full SMAY profile⁠

KAPR vs SMAY Holdings

How KAPR and SMAY differ

Overlap by weight

0.0%

About this figure: SMAY holds other funds. We compare those funds, not the stocks inside them.

Level by level

Holdings0 in both0.0%
Countryby domicile100%
Sector11 Sectors99.99%

Sector

Sector weights in KAPR and SMAY, widest gap first
Sector	Gap	KAPR	SMAY
Consumer Discretionary	Same weight	8.6%	8.6%
Health Care	Same weight	20.9%	20.9%
Financials	Same weight	18.0%	18.0%
Technology	Same weight	14.4%	14.4%
Industrials	Same weight	13.4%	13.4%
Real Estate	Same weight	6.5%	6.5%
Energy	Same weight	6.3%	6.3%
Materials	Same weight	4.3%	4.3%
Utilities	Same weight	2.7%	2.7%
Consumer Staples	Same weight	2.6%	2.6%
Communication	Same weight	2.3%	2.3%

Country, concentration and asset class

Country by domicile

Country weights in KAPR and SMAY, widest gap first
Country	Gap	KAPR	SMAY
United States	Same weight	98.4%	98.4%
Brazil	Same weight	0.6%	0.6%
Switzerland	Same weight	0.3%	0.3%
Canada	Same weight	0.2%	0.2%
United Kingdom	Same weight	0.2%	0.2%
Taiwan	Same weight	0.1%	0.1%
Norway	Same weight	0.1%	0.1%
Singapore	Same weight	0.1%	0.1%
Other countries (5)	Same weight	0.1%	0.1%

Concentration

Weight in the 10 largest Holdings

KAPR103.5%
SMAY102.3%

Securities held

KAPR3
SMAY2

Asset class

KAPR: Stocks
SMAY: Multi-Asset

Holdings

Only in KAPR3
In both0
Only in SMAY2

Only in KAPR

3 securities, 100% of KAPR by weight

Iwm 03/31/2027 2.48 C101.93%
Iwm 03/31/2027 248 P1.29%
Us Bank Mmda - Usbgfs 9 09/01/20370.30%

Only in SMAY

2 securities, 100% of SMAY by weight

2027-05-21 iShares Russell 2000 ETF C 2.7897.45%
2027-05-21 iShares Russell 2000 ETF P 277.604.04%

Weight gaps

KAPR and SMAY share no securities.

All 6 KAPR holdings⁠All 4 SMAY 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.

KAPR vs SMAY Cost

Overpaying SMAY vs KAPR

$1,866

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

KAPR 0.79%
$15,174
SMAY 0.90%
$17,040

Amount$10,000

Years30 years

Cost over time

KAPR 0.79%
SMAY 0.90%
Overpaying

Year by year

Year	KAPR	SMAY	Overpaying
10	$1,405	$1,593	$188
20	$5,331	$6,015	$684
30	$15,174	$17,040	$1,866

Expense ratio

0.79%KAPR, cheaper
0.90%SMAY

KAPR0.79%SMAY0.90%

0.30%1.01%

Middle half of Russell 2000 Buffer 15% funds
Median 0.77%

KAPR 8th cheapest of 14 funds

SMAY 12th cheapest of 14 funds

KAPR vs SMAY Dividends

Last 12 months to Nov 5, 2026

Payout (12M): KAPR None; SMAY None

Distribution history

KAPRAll KAPR payments⁠

No distribution history available.

SMAYAll SMAY payments⁠

No distribution history available.

KAPR vs SMAY Risk

Fall from peak · 5 years

This chart needs five years of history for both funds.

Risk facts

VolatilityStd dev, 3 years: KAPR 10.2%SMAY 9.3%, better
Return per unit of riskSharpe ratio, 3 years: KAPR 1.03, betterSMAY 0.82
Worst fallMax drawdown, 5 years: KAPR −16.9%SMAY −14.5%since May 2023
Market sensitivityBeta, 5 years: KAPR 0.61SMAY 0.58; Market = 1

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