COWZ and SPHD Target Different Cash Flows. Only One Screens for Your Dividend Check
Two popular cash-focused ETFs both claim to follow the money, but they measure cash at completely different points in the process, and for investors building retirement income, that distinction changes everything about what lands in their account.
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Free cash flow is the money a business has left after paying its bills and funding its own investments. A dividend is the slice of that money a company chooses to send to shareholders. Two popular cash-focused ETFs measure cash at those two different points, and that choice determines everything an income investor gets.
The Invesco S&P 500 High Dividend Low Volatility ETF (NYSEARCA:SPHD) pays monthly and has distributed $2.46659 per share over the trailing twelve months. Pacer US Cash Cows 100 ETF (CBOE:COWZ) never screens for dividends at all, yet it posted a 27.12% one-year price return against 8.69% for SPHD. Investors nearing retirement should ask what their fund actually measures: the cash a company makes, or the cash that lands in your account.
SPHD Picks Stocks by the Dividend Check Itself
According to Invesco’s fact sheet, SPHD invests at least 90% of its total assets in the stocks of the S&P 500 Low Volatility High Dividend Index. That index holds 50 S&P 500 securities that historically have provided high dividend yields and low volatility. The fund and index rebalance and reconstitute twice a year, in January and July.
The latest monthly distribution was $0.20156 per share, with an ex-dividend date of September 21, 2026. The month before, it paid $0.21963 (ex-dividend August 24, 2026). About a year earlier, the payment with an ex-dividend date of September 22, 2025 came to $0.17847.
Those numbers move from month to month because they depend on what the underlying companies pay. No monthly amount is guaranteed.
COWZ Tracks the Cash Before Anyone Pays It Out
Pacer ETFs says COWZ screens the Russell 1000 Index for the top 100 companies by free cash flow yield. It excludes financials and companies with negative projected free cash flow based on analyst estimates, then weights holdings by trailing twelve-month free cash flow. 24/7 Wall St. covered that screen earlier this month, so here’s the short version.
Free cash flow yield is free cash flow divided by enterprise value, meaning a company’s stock market value plus its debt, minus its cash. Pacer describes the free cash flow yield as a screening metric rather than a yield investors directly receive.
Pacer ETFs reports that as of September 30, 2026, the Pacer US Cash Cows 100 Index carried a free cash flow yield of 6.91% versus 2.55% for the Russell 1000, and a price-to-earnings ratio of about 16 versus about 24. On the same date, Pacer ETFs put the index’s dividend yield (annual dividends divided by share price) at 2.30%, compared with 1.07% for the Russell 1000. That figure describes the index COWZ tracks, which can differ from what the fund itself pays.
Even funds that ignore dividends end up owning dividend payers, since companies with plenty of extra cash often return some of it to shareholders. As of the July 31, 2026 SEC filing, holdings included AT&T (NYSE:T | T Price Prediction) alongside Adobe (NASDAQ:ADBE), a lower-income name. The largest position, Booking Holdings (NASDAQ:BKNG), weighed in at 2.22%, and the top ten holdings totaled 20.4%.
Every Cash Strategy Gives Something Up
SPHD passes on companies that generate huge amounts of cash but return it through buybacks or reinvestment instead of dividends. In exchange, every holding earned its spot partly through its dividend history, which fits someone who wants a regular monthly deposit.
COWZ gives up that certainty. Some holdings pay generous dividends, others pay little, and the fund doesn’t care which. It fits someone who wants total return (price gains plus distributions) from businesses with lots of cash relative to their value.
COWZ Leads on Price Return in Every Window
Prices and returns are as of 12:01 PM ET on October 19, 2026.
| Metric | COWZ | SPHD |
|---|---|---|
| Share price | $70.21 | $49.84 |
| Year-to-date price return | 17.95% | 7.77% |
| One-year price return | 27.12% | 8.69% |
| Five-year price return | 71.73% | 40.45% |
COWZ is ahead in all three periods. Remember that price return only tracks the share price. Total return adds the distributions back in, and that gap matters more for a fund like SPHD, which is built to pay out cash every month.
Matching Each Fund to the Right Investor
SPHD fits the investor who wants a monthly check drawn from 50 S&P 500 stocks with histories of high dividends and low volatility. Its index reconstitutes again in January, so keep an eye on how the next few monthly payments compare with the $0.20156 September figure.
COWZ fits the investor who cares more about how much cash a business generates than about how much it hands back. Pacer ETFs’ next index characteristics update will show whether that free cash flow yield gap over the Russell 1000 holds up.
Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.
Ryne Mauck is an investment writer covering exchange-traded funds, retirement planning, and portfolio strategy. Through his work at 24/7 Wall St. and other investment platforms, including Seeking Alpha, he aims to provide clear, research-driven insights that help investors make more informed decisions while maintaining a long-term approach to investing.
Ryne holds a B.Sc. in Finance and an M.A. in Political Science. He is a formerly registered Municipal Advisor Representative and has passed the Series 50, Series 63, and Series 65 exams. His articles are not intended to be, nor should they be interpreted as, financial advice.
