ACIO vs. USEP

Last updated Apr 1, 2026

Compare and contrast key facts about Aptus Collared Income Opportunity ETF (ACIO) and Innovator U.S. Equity Ultra Buffer ETF - September (USEP).

ACIO and USEP are both exchange-traded funds (ETFs), meaning they are traded on stock exchanges and can be bought and sold throughout the day. ACIO is an actively managed fund by Aptus Capital Advisors. It was launched on Jul 10, 2019. USEP is a passively managed fund by Innovator that tracks the performance of the S&P 500 Index. It was launched on Aug 30, 2019.

Performance

ACIO vs. USEP - Performance Comparison

The chart below illustrates the hypothetical performance of a $10,000 investment in Aptus Collared Income Opportunity ETF (ACIO) and Innovator U.S. Equity Ultra Buffer ETF - September (USEP). The values are adjusted to include any dividend payments, if applicable.

ACIO vs. USEP - Yearly Performance Comparison

	2026 (YTD)	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019
ACIO Aptus Collared Income Opportunity ETF	-3.83%	9.03%	21.92%	15.90%	-10.31%	18.03%	9.85%	6.53%
USEP Innovator U.S. Equity Ultra Buffer ETF - September	-1.68%	11.75%	12.39%	18.62%	-7.98%	5.73%	7.13%	3.60%

Returns By Period

In the year-to-date period, ACIO achieves a -3.83% return, which is significantly lower than USEP's -1.68% return.

ACIO

• 1D: 1.84%
• 1M: -3.52%
• YTD: -3.83%
• 6M: -3.16%
• 1Y: 8.91%
• 3Y*: 12.20%
• 5Y*: 8.76%
• 10Y*: —

USEP

• 1D: 1.47%
• 1M: -2.27%
• YTD: -1.68%
• 6M: -0.00%
• 1Y: 12.37%
• 3Y*: 12.04%
• 5Y*: 6.93%
• 10Y*: —

*Multi-year figures are annualized to reflect compound growth (CAGR)

ACIO vs. USEP - Expense Ratio Comparison

Both ACIO and USEP have an expense ratio of 0.79%.

ACIO

Aptus Collared Income Opportunity ETF

USEP

Innovator U.S. Equity Ultra Buffer ETF - September

Return for Risk

ACIO vs. USEP — Risk / Return Rank

Compare risk-adjusted metric ranks to identify better-performing investments over the past 12 months.

ACIO

ACIO Risk / Return Rank: 48
ACIO Sharpe Ratio Rank: 46
ACIO Sortino Ratio Rank: 45
ACIO Omega Ratio Rank: 46
ACIO Calmar Ratio Rank: 53
ACIO Martin Ratio Rank: 49

USEP

USEP Risk / Return Rank: 80
USEP Sharpe Ratio Rank: 76
USEP Sortino Ratio Rank: 79
USEP Omega Ratio Rank: 83
USEP Calmar Ratio Rank: 77
USEP Martin Ratio Rank: 87

The rank (0–100) shows how this investment's returns compare to the risk taken. Higher = better. Based on the past 12 months of data, combining Sharpe, Sortino, and other metrics used by quantitative funds and institutional investors.

ACIO vs. USEP - Risk-Adjusted Trends Comparison

This table presents a comparison of risk-adjusted performance metrics for Aptus Collared Income Opportunity ETF (ACIO) and Innovator U.S. Equity Ultra Buffer ETF - September (USEP). Risk-adjusted metrics are performance indicators that assess an investment's returns in relation to its risk, enabling a more accurate comparison of different investment options.

	ACIO	USEP	Difference
Sharpe ratio Return per unit of total volatility	0.80	1.40	-0.59
Sortino ratio Return per unit of downside risk	1.19	2.07	-0.87
Omega ratio Gain probability vs. loss probability	1.17	1.33	-0.16
Calmar ratio Return relative to maximum drawdown	1.28	2.10	-0.82
Martin ratio Return relative to average drawdown	4.55	10.59	-6.04
Data is calculated on a 1-year rolling basis and updated daily. The trend shows the change in the indicator over the past month.

ACIO vs. USEP - Sharpe Ratio Comparison

The current ACIO Sharpe Ratio is 0.80, which is lower than the USEP Sharpe Ratio of 1.40. The chart below compares the historical Sharpe Ratios of ACIO and USEP, offering insights into how both investments have performed under varying market conditions. These values are calculated using daily returns over the previous 12 months.

Sharpe Ratios by Period

	ACIO	USEP	Difference
Sharpe Ratio (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	0.80	1.40	-0.59
Sharpe Ratio (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period	0.79	0.94	-0.15
Sharpe Ratio (All Time) Calculated using the full available price history	0.77	0.89	-0.13

Correlation

The correlation between ACIO and USEP is 0.84, which is considered to be high. That indicates a strong positive relationship between their price movements. Having highly-correlated positions in a portfolio may signal a lack of diversification, potentially leading to increased risk during market downturns.

Dividends

ACIO vs. USEP - Dividend Comparison

ACIO's dividend yield for the trailing twelve months is around 0.42%, while USEP has not paid dividends to shareholders.

	TTM	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019
ACIO Aptus Collared Income Opportunity ETF	0.42%	0.37%	0.44%	0.72%	1.51%	0.61%	1.02%	1.32%
USEP Innovator U.S. Equity Ultra Buffer ETF - September	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.64%

Drawdowns

ACIO vs. USEP - Drawdown Comparison

The maximum ACIO drawdown since its inception was -14.19%, which is greater than USEP's maximum drawdown of -13.37%. Use the drawdown chart below to compare losses from any high point for ACIO and USEP.

Drawdown Indicators

	ACIO	USEP	Difference
Max Drawdown Largest peak-to-trough decline	-14.19%	-13.37%	-0.82%
Max Drawdown (1Y) Largest decline over 1 year	-7.22%	-6.07%	-1.15%
Max Drawdown (5Y) Largest decline over 5 years	-14.00%	-11.84%	-2.16%
Current Drawdown Current decline from peak	-5.51%	-2.62%	-2.89%
Average Drawdown Average peak-to-trough decline	-3.25%	-1.94%	-1.31%
Ulcer Index Depth and duration of drawdowns from previous peaks	2.04%	1.20%	+0.84%

Volatility

ACIO vs. USEP - Volatility Comparison

Aptus Collared Income Opportunity ETF (ACIO) has a higher volatility of 3.39% compared to Innovator U.S. Equity Ultra Buffer ETF - September (USEP) at 2.70%. This indicates that ACIO's price experiences larger fluctuations and is considered to be riskier than USEP based on this measure. The chart below showcases a comparison of their rolling one-month volatility.

Volatility by Period

	ACIO	USEP	Difference
Volatility (1M) Calculated over the trailing 1-month period	3.39%	2.70%	+0.69%
Volatility (6M) Calculated over the trailing 6-month period	6.42%	4.25%	+2.17%
Volatility (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	11.12%	8.90%	+2.22%
Volatility (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period, annualized	11.09%	7.38%	+3.71%
Volatility (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period, annualized	11.71%	8.13%	+3.58%