PEPS vs XPAY

PEPSBParametric Equity Plus ETF

XPAYBRoundhill S&P 500 Target 20 Managed Distribution 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.

XPAY Most S&P 500 income funds sell upside to fund the check. XPAY skips that: it holds index exposure through FLEX options and pays out 20% of its year-end NAV in twelve monthly slices, mostly as return of capital.

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.

XPAY The fund seeks current income while also seeking exposure to the performance of the S&P 500 Index.

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.

• XPAY The payout is a formula, not a forecast: 20% of the December closing NAV, divided by twelve. The per-share monthly amount is set for the full calendar year and published up front.roundhillinvestments.comroundhillinvestments.com 2
• Distributions are designed to arrive as return of capital, which is not taxed in the year received and instead reduces your cost basis.prnewswire.com
• At 0.49% it costs less than the typical fund in its S&P 500 income cohort, and unlike buy-write peers such as IVVW it is not selling index upside to raise the cash.roundhillinvestments.com
• Roundhill states the mechanism plainly (SPY FLEX options, an annual December reset, return-of-capital payouts) and the fund runs to that script. Upper half of a crowded cohort.roundhillinvestments.com

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.

• XPAY The distribution is paid from fund assets whatever the market does. In a year the index returns less than the payout, NAV falls, and next year's per-share amount resets lower.roundhillinvestments.comprnewswire.com
• Return of capital is not free money. It trims your cost basis, so a later sale can carry a larger gain (or a smaller loss).prnewswire.com
• Full S&P 500 downside, no buffer, plus a 2024 launch and moderate trading. Shorter record and thinner liquidity than the category's biggest names.roundhillinvestments.com

Full PEPS profile⁠

Full XPAY profile⁠