CPSU
Calamos S&P 500 Structured Alt Protection ETF - June
stock NYSE ETF

Interesting compare but I think the 5% cap blanket is doing a lot of the heavy lifting. Buffer ETFs reprice the cap on each reset based on prevailing option pricing, so 2010-2019 vintages would've had caps closer to 7-10% in low-vol windows, not a flat 5%. That probably moves the buffer line meaningfully closer to SPY and farther from BND.
The other thing is they do different jobs - BND pays a coupon and is rate-sensitive, the buffer flattens both tails and pays nothing if you stay below the cap. So even with the same CAGR they're not interchangeable in a portfolio. I'd rather hold BND because at least the carry is real money, the buffer is essentially paying an insurance premium every year.
Could be off on the exact cap mechanics for MAXJ/CPSU specifically but the general point holds - care to redo the test with vintage-realistic caps?

Interesting compare but I think the 5% cap blanket is doing a lot of the heavy lifting. Buffer ETFs reprice the cap on each reset based on prevailing option pricing, so 2010-2019 vintages would've had caps closer to 7-10% in low-vol windows, not a flat 5%. That probably moves the buffer line meaningfully closer to SPY and farther from BND.
The other thing is they do different jobs - BND pays a coupon and is rate-sensitive, the buffer flattens both tails and pays nothing if you stay below the cap. So even with the same CAGR they're not interchangeable in a portfolio. I'd rather hold BND because at least the carry is real money, the buffer is essentially paying an insurance premium every year.
Could be off on the exact cap mechanics for MAXJ/CPSU specifically but the general point holds - care to redo the test with vintage-realistic caps?