At a glance
HEQQ charges 0.5% a year. It has $29.9M in assets; it paid 0.08% of its price in distributions over the past 12 months, semiannual. Its ten largest positions make up 52.6% of the fund, out of 97 in all.
The short version
JPMorgan Nasdaq Hedged Equity Laddered Overlay ETF (HEQQ) is an actively managed fund. It holds mostly Nasdaq-listed stocks, led by NVIDIA, Apple and Alphabet as of July 31, 2026, plus options tied to the Nasdaq-100 Index that are meant to soften market drops. The hedge is spread across three overlapping three-month periods and gives up some upside in strong markets. It charges 0.50% a year and yielded just 0.08% as of October 27, 2026.
Price history
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HEQQ — over the year to Oct 27, 2026, total return with distributions reinvested.
How it has behaved
| YTD | 1 yr | 3 yr | 5 yr | 10 yr | Since start | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HEQQ price data to Oct 27, 2026 | +2.5% | — | — | — | — | — |
- The deepest fall in its price history was 4.8% (Jun 18, 2026 to Jul 29, 2026), recovered by Aug 12, 2026.
| 2008 financial crisis stocks fell Oct 9, 2007 – Mar 9, 2009 | Before this security existed |
|---|---|
| 2020 COVID crash stocks fell Feb 19, 2020 – Mar 23, 2020 | Before this security existed |
| 2022 bear market stocks fell Jan 3, 2022 – Oct 12, 2022 | Before this security existed |
Dividends and income
No distribution history is available for this fund.
Distributions through Oct 27, 2026.What's inside
As of Jul 31, 2026, the fund held 97 securities; the ten largest made up 52.6% of assets, and 2.18% sat in cash and money-market holdings.
| Holding | Weight | |
|---|---|---|
| NVIDIA Corp. | 8.52% | |
| Apple, Inc. | 7.71% | |
| Alphabet, Inc. | 6.44% | |
| Microsoft Corp. | 6.36% | |
| Amazon.com, Inc. | 5.22% | |
| Micron Technology, Inc. | 4.84% | |
| Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. | 3.94% | |
| Walmart, Inc. | 3.52% | |
| Broadcom, Inc. | 3.10% | |
| Meta Platforms, Inc. | 2.95% | |
| Lam Research Corp. | 2.92% | |
| Seagate Technology Holdings plc | 2.52% | |
| Intel Corp. | 2.34% | |
| Tesla, Inc. | 2.21% | |
| Analog Devices, Inc. | 2.08% |
By country
United States 90.36%Ireland 3%Netherlands 2.42%Canada 0.53%United Kingdom 0.3%By asset type
Stocks 96.74%By sector
Sectors of the companies held, for the 86.8% of the fund in companies that have a stock page here; other holdings and cash aren't classified. Source: N-PORT holdings report as of Jul 31, 2026. Cash, money-market funds and derivatives are shown separately from the securities list.What changed recently
- Over the three months to Jul 31, 2026, investors withdrew a net $1.5M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
- Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: +1.56%, +0.07%, -2.25%.
How it works
HEQQ is actively managed and does not track an index. Under normal conditions it keeps at least 80% of its assets in stocks listed on the Nasdaq Stock Market, mostly Nasdaq-100 Index companies. Its managers pick stocks with what JPMorgan calls a "fundamental data science" approach. They use the firm's own research, company financial statements and other data to forecast each company's prospects. As of July 31, 2026, NVIDIA (8.5%), Apple (7.7%) and Alphabet (6.4%) led its 97 holdings. Because the fund is non-diversified, it can concentrate in fewer stocks.
Options sit on top of the stocks. The fund purchases a put option, which gains value when the market falls below a set "strike" price. It also sells another put with a lower strike. This "put spread" cushions losses within a range of decline, but not falls below the lower strike. To largely pay for it, the fund sells call options, which give up some upside. The options are usually on Nasdaq-100 ETFs, such as the Invesco QQQ Trust, or on the index.
The hedge is "laddered." The fund normally holds three sets of three-month options, started a month apart. One set rolls over roughly each month, which spreads out timing risk. The managers decide how big each set is and may use index futures to manage cash. JPMorgan expects the fund to lag ordinary stock funds in rising markets.
What it really costs
- HEQQ charges 0.5% a year.
- Using the prospectus's standard example, $10,000 invested would cost about $51 in the first year and $628 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).
| Cost of $10,000 (SEC example) | 1 yr | 3 yrs | 5 yrs | 10 yrs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HEQQ | $51 | $160 | $280 | $628 |
Structure and tax notes
- Generates much of its income from selling options (directly or through notes). That income is usually taxed as ordinary income rather than as qualified dividends, and the strategy gives up some upside in strong markets.
In a retirement portfolio
HEQQ holds a concentrated, technology-heavy basket of Nasdaq stocks with a hedge meant to soften losses, not stop them, and its track record is short.
HEQQ is designed to hold large Nasdaq growth stocks with smaller price swings than owning them outright. That could help someone who may need to sell shares in a bad year. The evidence is thin. The fund launched March 26, 2025, after the 2008, 2020 and 2022 downturns. Its price history here starts June 9, 2026, so there is no full calendar year to judge. Through October 27, 2026, its deepest drop was 4.8%, from June 18 to July 29, and it recovered by August 12.
Income is minimal. The yield was 0.08% as of October 27, 2026, paid twice a year, so drawing cash would mostly mean selling shares. The fund costs 0.50% a year, or $51 on $10,000 in the first year under the SEC's standard example. Past results don't predict the future, and a plan should look at the whole portfolio, not one fund.
Who it may suit — and who should look elsewhere
May suit
- Investors who want Nasdaq-100-style growth stocks such as NVIDIA, Apple and Microsoft and would accept smaller gains for a cushion against moderate drops.
- Those who prefer a hedge run inside one ETF, with three staggered three-month periods, to purchasing and rolling put options themselves.
- Investors comfortable paying 0.50% a year, about $51 in the first year on $10,000 under the SEC example, for active stock picking plus hedging.
Look elsewhere if
- Investors who want the full Nasdaq-100 upside. The calls it sells give up some gains, and JPMorgan expects it to lag in rising markets.
- Anyone seeking income. The yield was 0.08% as of October 27, 2026, paid twice a year.
- Those who want broad diversification or a long record. Technology was 48.4% of the portfolio as of July 31, 2026, and the fund launched in March 2025.
Close alternatives
Matched by holdings overlap from the latest N-PORT reports.
No close alternatives found.
Questions investors ask
What does HEQQ invest in?
Mostly large Nasdaq-listed stocks, plus options that form a hedge. As of July 31, 2026, HEQQ had 97 holdings. The largest were NVIDIA (8.5%), Apple (7.7%), Alphabet (6.4%), Microsoft (6.4%) and Amazon (5.2%), and the top 10 made up 52.6% of the portfolio. Technology stocks were 48.4%. The hedge used options tied to the Invesco QQQ Trust, a Nasdaq-100 ETF. Net assets were about $29.9 million on that date.
Is HEQQ a buffer ETF?
No. Buffer ETFs usually set a defined level of protection and a cap over a fixed period. HEQQ does not promise a set buffer or cap. Instead it rolls "put spreads," which cushion losses within a range of decline, across three overlapping three-month periods. It sells call options to largely pay for them, and managers decide how much goes into each period. Losses below the lower put's strike, or trigger price, are not covered. Gains above the call's strike are given up.
Does HEQQ pay dividends?
Yes, but very little. HEQQ's yield was 0.08% as of October 27, 2026, about $0.05 per share over the prior 12 months, and it pays twice a year. The fund does sell call options, but that premium mainly offsets the cost of its put-option hedge rather than funding payouts. Its stated objective is capital appreciation, not income. Regular cash from it would mostly have to come from selling shares.
What's the difference between HEQQ and QQQ?
The Invesco QQQ Trust replicates the Nasdaq-100 Index. HEQQ picks its own Nasdaq-listed stocks and adds a hedge using options on Nasdaq-100 ETFs such as QQQ. HEQQ's managers can hold companies outside the index and weight holdings differently. The fund aims for a competitive return for the risk taken, measured against the Nasdaq-100 over a three-to-five-year cycle, with smaller price swings. It is designed to fall less in moderate declines but lag in strong rallies. HEQQ charges 0.50% a year.
What is HEQQ's expense ratio?
HEQQ's expense ratio was 0.50% a year in the prospectus filed April 30, 2026, and all of it is the management fee. The SEC's standard example assumes $10,000 invested, a 5% annual return and shares sold at the end of each period. On that basis, costs would be about $51 after one year, $160 after three, $280 after five and $628 after ten. The expense ratio does not include trading costs from portfolio turnover, which was 24% in the prospectus.