PEPS vs SPUT

PEPSBParametric Equity Plus ETF

SPUTCInnovator Equity Premium Income – Daily PutWrite ETF

In short

PEPS Active management at index-fund pricing. PEPS holds a U.S. large-cap base, then writes S&P 500 calls against offsetting long exposure: a beta-neutral overlay built to add return rather than swap upside for income.

SPUT Most S&P 500 income ETFs sell calls on stock they own. SPUT flips the trade: an actively run large-cap sleeve paired with puts written on the index every single day, with cash paid out monthly.

Stated mandate

PEPS The Fund seeks long-term capital appreciation. It is actively managed, using a U.S. large-cap equity base and beta-neutral call overwriting on the S&P 500 with offsetting long exposure to seek incremental total return.

SPUT The Fund seeks current income while providing capital appreciation through an actively managed equity portfolio and a daily put-write options strategy.

Why people hold it

• PEPS 0.10% is index-fund pricing for an actively managed strategy. Even the cheap, well-regarded active peers cost more: DFAU at 0.12%, FELC at 0.18%.
• Not a covered-call fund. The sold S&P 500 calls are paired with offsetting long exposure, so the overlay seeks incremental total return instead of capping upside.
• Ordinary 1940 Act ETF wrapper, U.S. large-cap equity, distributions paid quarterly. The complexity lives in the overlay, not the tax paperwork.
• Cost is the standout: the typical active U.S. equity ETF in this group charges several times what PEPS does, and fee drag is the one input you know in advance.

• SPUT Income comes from writing puts on the S&P 500, not calls on its own shares, so the options engine sits alongside the equity sleeve instead of on top of it.innovatoretfs.com
• Puts are written daily rather than once a month, spreading strike-setting across many entry points instead of one date on the calendar.innovatoretfs.com
• Pays monthly, and the stock side is a broad active portfolio of roughly 500 names rather than a handful of megacaps.

Worth knowing

• PEPS Launched in November 2024. The overlay has not yet run through a full market cycle, so there is limited history to judge it on.
• A small, thinly traded fund. Bid-ask spreads can run wider than a mega-cap index ETF's, which shows up most on larger orders.
• The options leg adds moving parts: short index calls lose value in a sharp rally, and the offsetting long exposure is what has to make that back.

• SPUT The 0.79% fee sits above what most S&P 500 income funds charge: IVVW runs 0.25%, GPIX 0.35%.
• Launched in 2025, still small and thinly traded, so bid-ask spreads can run wider than in the category's heavyweights.
• Innovator discloses that monthly distributions can include return of capital, meaning part of a payout may be your own money coming back.innovatoretfs.com

Full PEPS profile⁠

Full SPUT profile⁠