Yield is not return
A fund can pay 30% a year while its price falls 35%. What you keep is total return: price change plus distributions. Every fund page shows both side by side.
Compare MSTY, NVDY and QQQ →Learn
Short, factual guides with a live example for each.
Ex-date vs. pay date
You must own shares before the ex-date to be paid. Cash arrives on the pay date, often a day or more later. Selling on the ex-date still gets you paid; buying that day does not.
See the exact order of events →Living off distributions
Withdrawing a fixed amount each month while the price trends down forces you to sell shares, which lowers future payouts. Replay it with real history before you commit.
Replay $500/month from QYLD →Weekly vs. monthly payers
Funds like QDTE and XDTE pay weekly; some YieldMax funds switched from monthly to weekly. A smaller single payment may simply be a more frequent one. Compare trailing 12-month totals.
See QDTE distribution history →Reverse splits
Several single-stock income funds did 1-for-5 or 1-for-10 reverse splits. Your share count drops but your dollar value does not change. We convert history into current share units.
ULTY split history →Return of capital
Section 19a notices estimate how much of a distribution is income, gains or return of capital. ROC is a tax classification; it is not by itself a loss. Final numbers come on your 1099.
QQQI distribution sources →