BUFF ETF — Innovator Laddered Allocation Power Buffer ETF

Innovator Laddered Allocation Power Buffer ETF (BUFF)

Updated October 12, 2026.

BUFF is an ETF. its expense ratio is 0.89%. Total return is 130.9% over the past 10 years, 195.1 points behind SPY at 326.0%.

Innovator Laddered Allocation Power Buffer ETF is a fund that invests in a laddered portfolio of twelve Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETFs, rebalancing semi-annually to maintain equal weighting across the underlying holdings. The fund does not currently distribute income to shareholders and carries an expense ratio of 0.89%. It may appeal to equity investors seeking a diversified, rules-based allocation strategy with built-in rebalancing discipline rather than traditional dividend income.

BUFF performance versus SPY

Price and return data through 2026-10-12.

Total return is 130.9% over the past 10 years, 195.1 points behind SPY at 326.0%. Over the past year its total return — price change plus distributions reinvested — is 12.3%. Its deepest 1-year drawdown was 3.6%.

BUFF key facts

Issuer

Innovator ETFs

Asset type

ETF

Asset class

Equity

Inception date

10/20/2016

Expense ratio

0.89%

Distribution frequency

None

Last close

$54.46 (stale; as of 2026-10-12)

AUM

$1,072,374,420

Average volume

41148.0

Ex-dividend date

07/15/2020

Payment date

07/17/2020

Beta

0.44

How Dividend Vision calculates yield and returns

Distribution rate (the posted rate) uses calculation basis unavailable. Issuer rates can use a different denominator and date, including ex-date NAV. Trailing-12-month yield is the sum of split-adjusted cash distributions with ex-dates in the last 12 months, divided by the published price. It lags a recent raise or cut. Total return uses split-adjusted close with distributions reinvested on the ex-dividend date (a modeling convention, not the cash-settlement date) from the first stored bar on or after inception through the latest bar, compared with the same window on the benchmark. That is the security's total return, not your personal gain/loss.

Yield and safety methodology · Distribution rate methodology · Distribution Safety Score methodology

Sources and review

Primary sources: Innovator ETFs; prices and distributions from Dividend Vision, derived from vendor EOD data.

Reviewed by Bert Sweet, CEO and Co-owner of Dividend Vision. Methodology: Distribution Safety Score.

BUFF risks and drawbacks

Total return has trailed SPY over the available window. The deepest 1-year drawdown on record here is 3.6%.

Who may consider BUFF — and who may not

It is a weaker fit for investors who need monthly cash flow (BUFF does not currently distribute); investors hunting double-digit covered-call yields; investors whose main goal is matching SPY total return. This is educational context, not a recommendation to buy or sell.

Frequently asked questions

More securities from Innovator ETFs.