ETF Evaluator: Innovator S&P Investment Grade Prfrd ETF () Follow This ETF

Innovator S&P Investment Grade Prfrd ETF Overview

Innovator S&P Investment Grade Prfrd ETF (EPRF) is a passively managed Taxable Bond Preferred Stock exchange-traded fund (ETF). Innovator ETFs launched the ETF in 2016.

The investment seeks investment results that generally correspond (before fees and expenses) to the price and yield of the S&P U.S. High Quality Preferred Stock Index. The fund normally invests at least 90% of its total assets in the securities that comprise the index. The index is composed of all preferred stocks that are constituents of the S&P U.S. Investment Grade Preferred Stock Index (the “Base Index”).

About Innovator S&P Investment Grade Prfrd ETF (EPRF)

There are 3 members of the management team with an average tenure of 6.23 years: Dustin Lewellyn (2018), Ernesto Tong (2018) and Christine Johanson (2024). Management tenure is more important for actively managed ETFs than passive index ETFs.

The ETF has 2 primary benchmarks: S&P 500 (TR) (1970) index with a weighting of 100% and S&P U.S. Aggregate Bd TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. Innovator S&P Investment Grade Prfrd ETF has 78 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 40.5% of the ETF’s assets. The ETF meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a diversified fund. The ETF is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.

Innovator S&P Investment Grade Prfrd ETF is part of the Hybrid Securities global asset class and is within the Taxable Bond ETF group. Innovator S&P Investment Grade Prfrd ETF has 0.0% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 0.0% There is 0.0% allocated to foreign stock, and 100.0% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 0.0% (0.0% domestic bond, 0.0% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). Innovator S&P Investment Grade Prfrd ETF has 0.0% of the portfolio in cash.

Assets Under Management

The fund has $68 million in total assets, which is below the $1 billion average for the Preferred Stock category. Normally, lower assets under management translates to higher average expense ratios, and greater total assets are desired. However, for some investment categories, such as small-cap investing, it may be difficult for the manager to fully employ the desired active strategy if assets grow too large or too quickly.

EPRF Performance and Fees

The expense ratio measures how much of a fund’s assets are used for administrative expenses and operating expenses, including adviser fees and fees for the transfer agent and custodial services. The Innovator S&P Investment Grade Prfrd ETF expense ratio is average compared to funds in the Preferred Stock category. Innovator S&P Investment Grade Prfrd ETF has an expense ratio of 0.47%, which is 19% lower than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a B. While it is difficult to predict returns, it is known that high annual expense ratios reduce your rate of return, and excessive fees are difficult to overcome. Active management normally comes with higher expense ratios than passive index management. Certain investment categories such as small company and foreign also normally have higher expense ratios. It is best to compare fund expense ratios against the category averages for meaningful assessments.

High portfolio turnover can translate to higher expenses and lower aftertax returns. Innovator S&P Investment Grade Prfrd ETF has a portfolio turnover rate of 27%, which indicates that it holds its assets around / 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 38% for the Preferred Stock category.

Recently, in the month of July 2026, Innovator S&P Investment Grade Prfrd ETF returned 1.0%, which earned it a grade of A, as the Preferred Stock category had an average return of -0.0%. The letter grades of A, B, C, D and F are based upon relative rankings within the investment category. A grade of A, for example, would indicate that the return is in the highest 20% for that time period compared to all ETFs in that category.

Innovator S&P Investment Grade Prfrd ETF has a trailing yield of 6.16%, which is below the 6.18% category average. The fund normally distributes its income monthly.

It’s natural to seek the best-performing investments, but you must consider the relationship between risk and return and the impact of costs and taxes on your realized returns.

Innovator S&P Investment Grade Prfrd ETF Grades

Year to date, the ETF has returned -2.5%, 3.8 percentage points worse than the category, which translates into a grade of F. The fund has returned -1.8% over the past year (grade of F), 2.6% over the past three years (grade of F) and -2.1% per year over the past five years (grade of F) and 1.2% per year over the past 10 years (grade of F).

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