PEPS vs TPUT

PEPSBParametric Equity Plus ETF

TPUTAT. Rowe Price Capital Appreciation Market Opportunities 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.

TPUT Most S&P 500 income ETFs sell calls on stocks they own. This one sells puts instead: premiums up front, equity exposure only if the market falls to the strike. Giroux's Capital Appreciation team runs it for 0.25%.

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.

TPUT The fund seeks current income while retaining the potential for capital appreciation.

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.

• TPUT Writes out-of-the-money put options on the S&P 500 or SPY rather than calls on a stock portfolio, a different income engine from the covered-call funds that fill this cohort.sec.gov
• At 0.25%, it sits in the cheapest tier of S&P 500 options-income ETFs, level with IVVW and materially under XYLD and SPYI.troweprice.com
• Seven T. Rowe Price managers run it, including David Giroux, using the Capital Appreciation strategy's dynamic asset allocation model to time the writing.troweprice.com
• Stated goal is current income while retaining the potential for capital appreciation, with the written puts as the on-ramp into stocks at lower prices.sec.gov

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.

• TPUT Put writing trades away the melt-up: if the index keeps climbing, the fund keeps the premium, not the rally.sec.gov
• If the index settles below the strike, the fund owes the shortfall less the premium collected, the same math as owning at that price.troweprice.com
• A 2026 launch, small and thinly traded so far, which can mean wider spreads. Distributions may include return of capital.

Full PEPS profile⁠

Full TPUT profile⁠