Here's a funny thing about Apple Inc. (AAPL) these days: millions of investors are already heavily invested in the iPhone maker, whether they realize it or not. And now, a new round of ETFs is trying to sell them even more Apple stock. Well, sort of. They're selling something that looks like Apple exposure, but comes with a very different proposition: don't just hold Apple, monetize it.
Think about the broad market funds you probably own, or at least know about. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY). The Vanguard Information Technology ETF (VGT). Apple isn't just a prominent holding in these funds; in many cases, it's the single largest holding, making up between 6% and 16% of the portfolio. Even more diversified growth funds like the Vanguard Growth Index Fund ETF (VUG) have double-digit exposure to Apple. So, in all likelihood, you're already invested in Apple. You might not have bought the stock directly, but through these ETFs, you own a piece of it.
Now, enter the twist. The YieldMax AAPL Option Income Strategy ETF (APLY) comes along and offers a very different pitch. It uses synthetic leverage and options techniques—mainly selling covered calls—to generate income. That income translates to a spectacular distribution yield of over 70%. It also offers weekly payouts, which is like catnip for income-loving retail traders. It sounds like having your cake and eating it too: you get Apple exposure plus a huge, steady stream of cash.
But as the saying goes, there's no free lunch. And in finance, when something looks too good to be true, it usually is. The covered call strategy has a well-known trade-off: you sacrifice the upside potential of the underlying stock. If Apple's stock price goes up, a regular shareholder gets to enjoy that full appreciation. But funds like APLY give up that advantage in exchange for the income they generate. They're selling away the right to participate in big rallies above a certain price.
There are other costs, too. APLY has a high expense ratio of 1%, plus distribution costs that chip away at its net asset value. The result? Over the past year or so, while Apple's stock price has appreciated around 20%, APLY's price has moved in the opposite direction by roughly the same magnitude. So you're getting that juicy yield, but you might be losing on the capital appreciation side.
This creates what you might call the double-exposure problem. If you're an investor who holds broad-based ETFs like SPY or VGT and then adds APLY to your portfolio, you're inadvertently doubling down on Apple. You own it once for growth (through the ETF) and once for income (through APLY). That doesn't introduce diversification; it increases concentration. You're just stacking another Apple-linked position on top, this time via options instead of direct equity.
The structure looks different—it's wrapped in options strategies and promises of high yield—but the core exposure is still Apple. And in some ways, the risk is amplified. Now you're tied not only to Apple's performance as a company but also to the mechanics of the options strategy: capped upside, potential capital erosion from costs, and the complexities of how those covered calls perform week to week. It's turning a portfolio staple into something that behaves more like a casino chip—a derivative bet with different rules and different risks. So before you reach for that 70% yield, it's worth asking: are you diversifying, or are you just making the same bet in a more complicated, expensive wrapper?
