At a glance
MLPD charges 0.6% a year, below the 0.86% average of the 7 funds most like it (the cheapest of 8). It has $31.0M in assets, the 8th largest of that group; it paid 13.82% of its price in distributions over the past 12 months, monthly. Over the past year it returned +15.5% with distributions reinvested (S&P 500: +11.5%), the best of those 8 funds.
The short version
Global X MLP & Energy Infrastructure Covered Call ETF (MLPD) follows the Cboe MLPX ATM BuyWrite Index: it holds one fund, the Global X MLP & Energy Infrastructure ETF, and writes monthly call options on it. The cash collected for those options helped produce a 13.82% yield over the 12 months to October 27, 2026, paid monthly, but the fund gives up nearly all of the holding's price gains. It charges 0.60% a year.
Price history
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MLPD +15.5% 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLPD official prospectus, to Dec 31, 2025 | — | +11.17% | — | — | — | +12.84% |
| MLPD price data to Oct 27, 2026 | +10.0% | +15.5% | — | — | — | +12.7% |
- Over the year to Oct 27, 2026, MLPD returned +15.5%, 1st of 8 among similar funds.
- Its worst full calendar year was 2025 (+11.8%); its best was 2025 (+11.8%).
- The deepest fall in its price history was 12.9% (Apr 2, 2025 to Apr 8, 2025), recovered by Jun 3, 2025.
Show as a table
| Year | Price data | Prospectus (official) |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | +10.0% | — |
| 2025 | +11.8% | +11.17% |
| 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
Show as a table
| Year | Per share | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | $2.4800 | |
| 2025 | $3.3600 |
What's inside
As of Jul 31, 2026, the fund held 1 securities; the ten largest made up 101.03% of assets.
| Fund held | Weight | |
|---|---|---|
| GLOBAL X MLP & ENERGY INFRAS MUTUAL FUND | 101.03% |
By country
United States 101.03%By asset type
Stocks 101.03%What changed recently
- Over the three months to Jul 31, 2026, investors added a net $2.4M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
- Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: +0.48%, +2.11%, -2.52%.
How it works
MLPD aims to match, before fees, the Cboe MLPX ATM BuyWrite Index, a covered call strategy from Cboe Global Indices. It owns one asset and writes call options on it. A call gives its purchaser the right to acquire the asset at a set price, the strike, on a set date; the writer collects an upfront payment called a premium. The asset is the Global X MLP & Energy Infrastructure ETF, which holds master limited partnerships (publicly traded partnerships) and other energy infrastructure companies. That ETF made up 101.03% of MLPD's net assets on July 31, 2026; the written calls, an obligation, counted for -1.12%.
Each month, on the roll date (usually the Thursday before the third Friday), the fund closes its calls and writes new one-month calls on about 100% of the position. The strike is set at the money, roughly the ETF's average price from 12:59 to 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time. The calls are FLEX options, exchange-traded contracts with customizable terms guaranteed by the Options Clearing Corporation.
If the ETF falls, the premium offsets the loss only partly. If it rises, the calls cancel out nearly all of the gain; the prospectus says a 15% rise would be roughly fully offset. Shares purchased between roll dates carry a different mix of upside and cushion.
What it really costs
- MLPD charges 0.6% a year, versus an average of 0.86% for the similar funds below (1st of 8, cheapest first).
- Using the prospectus's standard example, $10,000 invested would cost about $61 in the first year and $750 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).
| Cost of $10,000 (SEC example) | 1 yr | 3 yrs | 5 yrs | 10 yrs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLPD | $61 | $192 | $335 | $750 |
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.
- Invests in other funds rather than directly in stocks or bonds, so its holdings are those funds.
In a retirement portfolio
It pays monthly distributions drawn largely from option premiums, but its dependence on one energy infrastructure fund makes it a supplement to an income plan rather than its foundation.
MLPD could add monthly income: its yield over the 12 months to October 27, 2026, was 13.82%. Much of that comes from option premiums, usually taxed as ordinary income, and payouts can vary. Launched in May 2024, the fund has no record from the 2008, 2020 or 2022 downturns. Its only full calendar year, 2025, returned 11.17%. Its deepest drop, 12.9% from April 2 to April 8, 2025, was recovered by June 3, about 1.8 months later. A longer energy slump could hurt more, and because the calls cap gains, rebounds may be slow, a risk for anyone cashing in shares or taking income in a bad year.
Costs are 0.60% a year, or $61 in year one and $750 over 10 years on $10,000 in the SEC's standard example. Past results don't predict future ones, and a plan needs to look at the whole portfolio, not one fund.
Who it may suit — and who should look elsewhere
May suit
- Investors wanting monthly income: the yield over the 12 months to October 27, 2026, was 13.82%, much of it from option premiums.
- Investors willing to trade nearly all monthly gains in energy infrastructure stocks for option income, at a cost of 0.60% a year.
- Investors holding it in an IRA or other tax-deferred account, where option income's usual ordinary-income tax treatment matters less.
Look elsewhere if
- Investors wanting energy infrastructure's full upside; the calls give up nearly all monthly gains that the Global X MLP & Energy Infrastructure ETF keeps.
- Those needing defined downside protection: premiums only partly offset declines, whereas buffer ETFs such as BUFR aim to absorb a preset slice of losses.
- Those seeking broad diversification or a long record: MLPD rests on one energy infrastructure ETF and has traded only since May 2024.
Close alternatives
Matched by other buffer (defined-outcome) funds, largest first.
| Fund | Cost | Net assets | 1 yr | 3 yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLPD this fund | 0.6% | $31.0M | +15.5% | — |
| BUFR FT Vest Laddered Buffer ETF | 0.95% | $10.49B | +11.6% | +16.8% |
| BUFD FT Vest Laddered Deep Buffer ETF | 0.95% | $2.04B | +9.5% | +13.9% |
| PJAN Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - Ja… | 0.79% | $1.44B | +10.5% | +14.8% |
| PDEC Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - De… | 0.79% | $984.1M | +11.6% | +14.9% |
| FDEC FT Vest US Equity Buffer ETF - December | 0.85% | $1.31B | +12.9% | +18.5% |
| FJAN FT Vest US Equity Buffer ETF - January | 0.85% | $1.47B | +12.3% | +17.4% |
| FFEB FT Vest U.S. Equity Buffer Fund - February | 0.85% | $1.42B | +12.9% | +18.6% |
Questions investors ask
Does MLPD pay monthly dividends?
Yes. MLPD pays distributions (a fund's version of dividends) every month. Over the 12 months to October 27, 2026, it paid $3.44 per share, a yield of 13.82%. Much of that income comes from premiums collected by writing call options, which is usually taxed as ordinary income rather than as lower-taxed qualified dividends. Payouts are not fixed: option premiums rise and fall with market conditions, so monthly amounts can change.
What's the difference between MLPD and the Global X MLP & Energy Infrastructure ETF?
MLPD owns that ETF and adds monthly covered calls on top. As of July 31, 2026, the Global X MLP & Energy Infrastructure ETF made up 101.03% of MLPD's net assets. Each month MLPD writes at-the-money call options on about 100% of that stake. The premiums add income and partly cushion declines, but the calls cancel out nearly all of the ETF's price gains in each one-month period, so MLPD will usually trail it in strong rallies.
Is MLPD good for retirement income?
It can provide high monthly income, but with real trade-offs. Its yield over the 12 months to October 27, 2026, was 13.82%, and it returned 11.17% in 2025, its only full calendar year. However, it depends on a single energy infrastructure ETF, gives up nearly all monthly price gains, and has existed only since May 2024, so it has not been tested by a long market slump. It may suit a small income slice of a diversified portfolio rather than a core position.
What is MLPD's expense ratio?
MLPD's expense ratio, the yearly fee taken from fund assets, is 0.60%, all of it management fee, per its prospectus filed February 26, 2026. In the SEC's standard example, $10,000 earning 5% a year would cost about $61 over one year, $335 over five years and $750 over 10. That is below the 0.79% to 0.95% charged by large options-based buffer ETFs such as PJAN and BUFR, though those funds aim to limit losses rather than generate income, so the comparison is rough.
Is MLPD risky?
It carries concentrated sector risk, though its short record has been fairly calm. MLPD's deepest drop was 12.9%, from April 2 to April 8, 2025, and it recovered by June 3, 2025. Its weakest calendar quarter through 2025 still gained 0.63%. But it launched in May 2024, so it never faced the 2008, 2020 or 2022 downturns. It rests on one energy infrastructure ETF exposed to commodity prices, regulation and MLP tax risks, and option premiums only partly offset losses.