- Pays: monthly.
- First paid: shortly after its November 20, 2025 launch — every payment since is charted below.
- What it is: the Nasdaq sibling of CAIE — a laddered portfolio of 52+ autocallable exposures on a MerQube Nasdaq-100 autocall index, earning contingent coupons for taking deep-crash risk.
- Headline rate: 18.00% annualized distribution rate (as of 7/31/2026), on a 0.86% expense ratio.
- Why higher than CAIE: the Nasdaq-100 is more volatile than large-cap blend, so its crash insurance commands richer premiums — same machine, higher voltage.
CAIQ's coupons are contingent: they pay while the underlying index stays above a coupon barrier, and stop if it falls through. The richer rate versus CAIE is compensation for a barrier that Nasdaq volatility is more capable of reaching.
CAIQ pays monthly. Each point below is one distribution since the fund launched in November 2025.
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Each point is one payment; the line ends at the most recent payout. The table below totals them by year.
| Recent Ex-Dividend Dates | Distribution / Share |
|---|
"Next expected" is estimated from CAIQ's recent payment rhythm — the fund announces exact dates shortly before each payout, and the data feed can lag a few days. You must own shares before the ex-dividend date to receive that payout; the cash typically arrives days later. See every fund's upcoming date on the live dividend calendar.
A real total-return estimate, assuming every payout was reinvested — including what happened to the share price. Before taxes and fees. Past performance does not predict the future.
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CAIQ takes the design Calamos proved with CAIE — a laddered book of 52+ autocallable exposures with staggered observation dates — and points it at the Nasdaq-100. More index volatility means the market pays more for crash insurance, which is why CAIQ's distribution rate runs meaningfully above its large-cap sibling. The cost of that extra yield is a barrier that a tech-led selloff can actually reach.
The August 2026 wave brought CAIQ direct competition on its own index: MPIA and ACQQ both run autocallable strategies on the Nasdaq-100 but haven't paid anything yet. CAIQ is the one with actual checks to inspect. Mechanics in plain English in our autocallable ETF explainer.
| Year | Total Distributions / Share | Payments | Change vs Prior Year |
|---|
Data source: Yahoo Finance. Figures are per share; the current year may be partial and figures should be verified against official sources.
Calculated from complete calendar years in the data above. Past results don't guarantee future payments.
When Is CAIQ's Next Ex-Dividend Date?
CAIQ pays monthly. The exact date of each payout is announced by the fund only shortly beforehand, so no site can promise the next date — but the live schedule box above shows the most recent ex-dividend date and the expected window for the next one, computed from CAIQ's actual payment rhythm. Remember: you must own shares before the ex-dividend date to receive that payout.
CAIQ's Record So Far
CAIQ — the Calamos Nasdaq Autocallable Income ETF — launched November 20, 2025, five months after its sibling CAIE proved US investors wanted autocallable income in ETF form. It gathered roughly $328 million in its first nine months and has paid monthly from the start, at an annualized rate recently around 18%.
The Volatility Trade Inside It
Autocallable coupons are priced off how scared the market is of the underlying index. The Nasdaq-100 — tech-heavy, momentum-driven, crash-prone — keeps that fear premium rich, which flows straight into CAIQ's monthly checks. The same fear is the honest warning: barriers that “only” a 30-40% decline can breach are more reachable for this index than for most. The 2025-26 bull tape hasn't tested that yet.
Where CAIQ Fits
As the longest-running Nasdaq-dedicated fund in the autocallable category — with an actual payment record where its newest competitors have only targets — CAIQ is the natural comparison point for every Nasdaq autocall launch that follows it. Put this chart next to CAIE to see how index choice changes the same machine, and next to QQQI or JEPQ to see the opposite trade — selling Nasdaq upside instead of insuring its downside.
New to Autocallable ETFs?
Coupon barriers, autocall dates, crash insurance — the whole machine in plain English, no jargon required.
Read the Autocallable ETF Explainer