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YieldMax MSTR Option Income Strategy ETF: Buy, Sell, or Hold in 2026?
The Motley Fool· 2026-01-28 04:30
Core Viewpoint - The YieldMax MSTR Option Income Strategy ETF offers a high distribution rate of 75.1%, but it comes with significant drawbacks that may deter even the most income-focused investors [2][3][11] Group 1: ETF Overview - The YieldMax MSTR Option Income Strategy ETF is an income-generating product linked to Strategy, the largest corporate owner of Bitcoin [2] - The ETF has $1.44 billion in assets under management, making it the fourth-largest single-stock ETF [3] Group 2: Income Generation Mechanism - This ETF operates as a covered call product, selling call options on shares of Strategy, which limits the upside potential for investors [5] - The ETF does not pay traditional dividends; instead, it provides distributions, with 94.7% of its most recent distribution being a return of capital (ROC) [7][8] Group 3: Tax Implications and NAV Concerns - Distributions from the ETF are taxed at higher rates (up to 37%) compared to qualified dividends (up to 20%), making traditional dividend stocks potentially more attractive from a tax perspective [9][10] - The return of capital leads to erosion of the ETF's net asset value (NAV) over time, which can cap upside potential and result in scenarios like reverse splits [11]