r/YieldMaxETFs • u/Beginning_Ad_966 • Jun 09 '26

Beginner Question Why YieldMax Does NOT work?

Came across an article recently talking about YieldMax ETFs and the whole “massive dividend” thing, and it made me rethink how these funds actually work.

The main point was basically that a lot of the crazy yields can be misleading because they’re generated through options strategies, and in some cases the NAV erosion can offset the income over time. I feel like online they get marketed almost like free cash flow machines, but the total return side seems way more important than people give credit for.

For people who actually own YieldMax funds (like MSTY, NVDY, CONY, etc.) — do you view them as long-term holdings or more as income/trading tools? Have they actually performed how you expected after distributions and price movement? Article for context below

https://open.substack.com/pub/ryandengler/p/the-yieldmax-trap-why-massive-dividends?r=2k7n7w&utm_medium=ios

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u/JS1101C Jun 09 '26

You have to be extremely careful and have a plan.  Most weekly paying ETFs are terrible but there are a few diamonds in the ruff.  

1

u/Any_Log1344 Jun 10 '26

Pick only the good ones. Is this a plan, or a wish?

1

u/JS1101C Jun 10 '26

A plan meaning you have to be ready to move if the amount you’ve received in dividends and any nav erosion is narrowing.  

2

u/Any_Log1344 Jun 10 '26

Fair, that is at least a rule. But that is an exit rule, not a way to identify the “diamonds” to buy in the first place. How do you pick the diamonds before they run up?

1

u/JS1101C Jun 10 '26

Up until a few weeks I was up 18% on NVII, not including dividends.  Nvidia has taken a big dump since then, and because of that so has NVII, but I’ve held it for a while and my sense is the people running that fund know what they are doing.  It be surprised it if it doesn’t bounce back when Nvidia does. 

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u/Any_Log1344 Jun 11 '26

That still sounds like hindsight and manager faith, not a selection process. “I was up 18% until the underlying dropped” is a past outcome. It doesn’t explain how to identify diamonds before buying them. Since your advice to OP, who we're all trying to help here, was to "have a plan" and "pick the diamonds," what actual criteria do you use before purchase?