TDAQ: A 17% Yielding Covered Call ETF Really Can Outperform QQQ, But Not In The Long Run

Benjamin C. Barry 6 Followers Follow Summary The TappAlpha Innovation 100 Growth & Daily Income ETF has posted a 24.54% total return since its inception on September 4, 2025 through August 25, 2026, beating QQQ’s total return of 24.15% by 39 basis points. The difference spans 356 calendar days and 244 shared trading-session price records, and it occurred along a path where QQQ was up 28.17% overnight but down 3.13% during the regular session. TDAQ paid $4.12 per share in distribution yield while the stock's price rose just 6.51%. With risk characteristics close to QQQ, a brief track record, and an expense ratio of 0.83%, I rate TDAQ a Hold versus QQQ. Editor's note: Seeking Alpha is proud to welcome Benjamin C. Barry as a new contributing analyst. You can become one too! Share your best investment idea by submitting your article for review to our editors. Get published, earn money, and unlock exclusive SA Premium access. This article was written by Benjamin C. Barry 6 Followers Follow Benjamin Barry is a self-directed investor and research-oriented writer. He has over twelve years of work experience in audit, technology risk, financial controls, and data analysis. This has included a stint at a Big Four firm, working in financial services, and holding several senior roles in business. In investing, he brings this background to bear by being a bit skeptical. He always looks at the underlying data, the hidden assumptions, and how backtested results compare with actual results. He writes on Investing, ETFs, Asset Allocation, Momentum/Trend Following, Options Trading, Income Strategies, Gold/Precious Metals, Real Estate Investing, and Portfolio Risk Management. His focus is on systematic and rules-based approaches. He doesn’t limit himself to any one area; he’ll consider any strategy or security that has favorable risk-adjusted returns and well-understood risks. On his personal portfolio, he’s worked in Growth, Income, Treasuries, Gold, and Options Strategies. He’s interested in repeatable strategies, diversification, controlling drawdowns, and understanding real-world factors such as costs and slippage. His credentials include an MS in Information Systems Audit and Control, an MA in Professional Writing, a BA in English Literature, and he is a Certified Information Systems Auditor. He writes on Seeking Alpha to share his work in a public forum. The purpose is to expose his analysis to outside scrutiny, to demonstrate how to turn high-level concepts into actionable analysis, and to share what works and what doesn’t. This helps his audience avoid succumbing to appealing but ultimately flimsy claims or marketing hype. Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have no stock, option or similar derivative position in any of the companies mentioned, but may initiate a beneficial Long position through a purchase of the stock, or the purchase of call options or similar derivatives in QQQ over the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article. Seeking Alpha's Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.