ETF Evaluator:
YieldMax Ultra Option Income Strat ETF ()
Follow This ETF
(as of Aug 26)
Best Performing in Derivative Income Over the Last Year
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Risk
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Risk
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ETF Details
YieldMax Ultra Option Income Strat ETF Overview
YieldMax Ultra Option Income Strat ETF (ULTY) is an actively managed Nontraditional Equity Derivative Income exchange-traded fund (ETF). YieldMax ETFs launched the ETF in 2024.
The investment seeks current income, secondary objective being exposure to the share price of select U.S. listed securities, subject to a limit on potential investment gains.
The fund is an actively managed exchange-traded fund that seeks current income while providing direct and/or indirect exposure to the share price of select U.S. listed securities, subject to a limit on potential investment gains. It uses both traditional and synthetic covered call strategies that are designed to produce higher income levels when the underlying securities experience more volatility. The fund is non-diversified.
About YieldMax Ultra Option Income Strat ETF (ULTY)
There are 3 members of the management team with an average tenure of 1.23 years: Jay Pestrichelli (2024), Scott Snyder (2025) and Quinn Berry (2025). Management tenure is more important for actively managed ETFs than passive index ETFs.
The ETF has 1 primary benchmark: S&P 500 (TR) (1970) index with a weighting of 100%. YieldMax Ultra Option Income Strat ETF has 100 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 45.9% of the ETF’s assets. The ETF meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a nondiversified fund. The ETF is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.
YieldMax Ultra Option Income Strat ETF is part of the Equity global asset class and is within the Nontraditional Equity ETF group. YieldMax Ultra Option Income Strat ETF has 18.6% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 77.0% There is 18.6% allocated to foreign stock, and 0.0% 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). YieldMax Ultra Option Income Strat ETF has 5.4% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $741 million in total assets, which is above the $727 million average for the Derivative Income 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.
ULTY 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 YieldMax Ultra Option Income Strat ETF expense ratio is high compared to funds in the Derivative Income category. YieldMax Ultra Option Income Strat ETF has an expense ratio of 1.30%, which is 56% higher than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a F. 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. YieldMax Ultra Option Income Strat ETF has a portfolio turnover rate of 721%, which indicates that it holds its assets around / 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 69% for the Derivative Income category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, YieldMax Ultra Option Income Strat ETF returned -6.2%, which earned it a grade of F, as the Derivative Income category had an average return of -1.5%. 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.
YieldMax Ultra Option Income Strat ETF has a trailing yield of 41.24%, which is above the 19.96% category average.
The fund normally distributes its income weekly and its capital gains annually.
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.
YieldMax Ultra Option Income Strat ETF Grades
Year to date, the ETF has returned 2.4%, 0.2 percentage points worse than the category, which translates into a grade of D. The fund has returned -11.4% over the past year (grade of F).
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ULTY Trailing NAV Total Returns Data as of 7/31/26
| Last Month |
Last Quarter |
Ann'l. 1Yr |
Ann'l. 3Yr |
Ann'l. 5Yr |
Ann'l. 10Yr |
|
| ULTY Return (NAV) | -6.2% | -2.2% | -11.4% | na | na | na |
| ULTY Return (Price) | -6.0% | -2.1% | -11.4% | na | na | na |
| NAV +/- Price Return | -0.178% | -0.142% | 0.005% | na | na | na |
| Derivative Income Avg | -1.5% | 0.6% | 11.2% | 13.7% | 8.8% | 7.5% |
| ULTY Grade (NAV) | F | D | F | na | na | na |
| +/- Category (NAV) | -4.7% | -2.9% | -22.6% | na | na | na |
| ULTY Tax-Cost Ratio | na | na | 10.8% | na | na | na |
ULTY Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| ULTY Return (NAV) | 2.4% | -0.2% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| ULTY Return (Price) | 2.8% | -0.5% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| NAV +/- Price Ret | 0.189% | 1.230% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| Derivative Income Avg | 2.6% | 10.6% | 18.5% | 17.5% | -11.3% | 19.4% | 1.4% | 19.2% | -7.1% | 12.1% | 8.7% |
| ULTY Grade (NAV) | D | F | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| +/- Category | -0.2% | -10.8% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| Risk Measures | |
| Beta: | na |
| R-Squared: | na |
| Standard Deviation: | na |
| Category Risk Index: | na |
| Category Risk Rating: | |
| Total Risk Index: | na |
| Total Risk Rating: | |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Yield: | 41.2% |
| Total Assets: | $ 741 Mil |
| Share Class Assets: | $ 741 Mil |
| Turnover: | 721.0% |
| Expense Ratio: | 1.30% |
| Index Fund: | No |
| Index Tracked: | S&P 500 (TR) (1970) |
| Index Weighting: | 100% |
| Leveraged: | No |
| Socially Responsible Fund: | No |
| Capital Gains Distribution Frequency: | Annually |
| Income Distribution Frequency: | Weekly |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 3 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 2.4 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 1.2 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Pestrichelli Jay (2024), Snyder Scott (2025), Berry Quinn (2025) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 7/31/26)
| # of Holdings: | 100 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 45.9% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | Yes |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 18.6% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 77.0% |
| Foreign Stock: | 18.6% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.0% |
| Domestic Bond: | 0.0% |
| Foreign Bond: | 0.0% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | -0.9% |
| Cash: | 5.4% |
Purchase Information
| Legal Structure: | Open Ended Investment Company |
| Fund Family: | YieldMax ETFs |
| Phone Number: | 866-864-3968 |
| Website: | |
| Inception Date: | February 28, 2024 |
Expenses and Fees
| Expense Ratio (%): | 1.30% (Rating: High) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 0.83% |
