CHICAGO, April 03, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Innovator Capital Management, LLC (Innovator), pioneer and provider of the largest lineup of Defined Outcome ETFs, today announced that its first four Premium Income Barrier ETFs have begun trading. The Premium Income Barrier ETFs are the first ETFs on the market that seek to provide protective barriers to investors seeking high rates of income in a single ETF Innovator first announced the listing and presumptive trading of the suite of investment products on March 30.

Innovator aims to help investors navigate and manage heightened levels of risk and volatility exhibited in the markets by directly utilizing risk management tools in the construction of an ETF. By investing in Flexible Options (“FLEX Options") that reference the S&P 500 and in U.S. Treasury bills, the suite of products seeks to offer a range of income levels and protective barriers. The construction of the ETFs aims to provide fixed level of investment income over the period with limited exposure to interest rate risk and no exposure to corporate credit risk. There is no guarantee that the Fund will be successful in its attempt to provide a Barrier. It is important for investors to understand that the Fund bears all losses of the equity index if the equity index losses exceed the barrier sought.

The initial four Innovator Premium Income Barrier ETFs distribution rates and barrier levels are enumerated below:

*The Distribution Rates are shown gross of each fund’s 0.79% management fee. “Distribution Rate” refers to the maximum potential return, before fees and expenses and any shareholder transaction fees and any extraordinary expenses, if held over the full Outcome Period. “Barrier” refers to the initial amount of downside protection the fund seeks to provide, before fees and expenses, over the full Outcome Period. If the decrease in the price of the reference asset at the end of the Outcome Period exceeds the barrier level, investors will experience the entirety of reference asset losses. Outcome Period is the length of time over which the defined outcomes are sought. Upon fund launch, the distribution rates can be found on a daily basis via www.innovatoretfs.com.

“In our ongoing conversations with our clients, it has become clear to us that there is a substantial demand for an income-focused ETF that will help investors mitigate risk,” said Bruce Bond, CEO of Innovator ETFs. “We’ve experienced substantial growth across our broader suite of Defined Outcome ETFs and could not be more excited to continue to develop our offerings with the launch of these strategies.”

The Barrier ETFs will declare 12-month distribution amounts on the first day of each outcome period, to be paid out quarterly. Innovator plans to launch additional series of Barrier ETFs in July, October, and January.

“The Barrier ETFs™ are similar to other ETFs that seek to generate income via option premiums; where the Barrier ETFs™ distinguish themselves is by seeking a protective barrier against losses,” noted Graham Day, CIO of Innovator ETFs.

Monday, April 3rd, also marks the resetting of Innovator’s April series of Defined Outcome ETFs™, along with five other ETFs that have quarterly outcome periods. The new caps and buffer levels are listed below:

* “Cap” refers to the maximum potential return, before fees and expenses and any shareholder transaction fees and any extraordinary expenses, if held over the full Outcome Period. The Caps above are shown gross of each fund’s management fee (.79% annually for all funds in the table above, except for BALT (.69% annual, .175% quarterly); IOCT (.85%); and EOCT (.89%)). Along with BALT, TFJL and TSLH operate on quarterly outcome periods and, at .79% annual fees, the funds carry .2% fees on a quarterly basis.
**“Buffer” refers to the amount of downside protection the fund seeks to provide, before fees and expenses, over the full Outcome Period. Outcome Period is the intended length of time over which the defined outcomes are sought. Upon commencement of any fund’s Outcome Period, the Caps can be found on a daily basis via www.innovatoretfs.com
*** Although BALT targets a 20% buffer, the buffer may fall into a range of 15% to 20%; there is no guarantee that the buffer will be within this range or that the Fund will provide the buffer. The Upside Cap above is shown gross of the .175% quarterly (0.69% annual) management fee for BALT. Upon commencement of the Outcome Period, the remaining Cap and/or Buffer can be found on a daily basis via www.innovatoretfs.com
****“Floor” refers to the projected maximum amount of loss an investor can expect to incur prior to the downside protection the fund seeks to provide, before fees and expenses, over the full Outcome Period. The Floor is only operative against Underlying share price losses exceeding approximately 5% for TFJL and 10% for TSLH over the duration of the Outcome Period. There is no guarantee that the Fund will be successful in its attempt to provide the Floor. If an investor is considering purchasing Shares during the Outcome Period, and the Fund has already increased in value, then a shareholder may experience losses prior to gaining the protection offered by the Floor, which is not guaranteed.

The Funds' investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses should be considered carefully before investing. The prospectus contains this and other important information, and it may be obtained at innovatoretfs.com. Read it carefully before investing.

The Funds have characteristics unlike many other traditional investment products and may not be suitable for all investors. For more information regarding whether an investment in the Fund is right for you, please see “Investor Suitability” in the prospectus.

Media Contact
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Although each Fund seeks to achieve the defined outcomes stated in its investment objective, there is no guarantee that it will do so. The returns that the Funds seek to provide do not include the costs associated with purchasing shares of the Fund and certain expenses incurred by the Fund.

The Outcomes may only be realized by investors who continuously hold Shares from the commencement of the Outcome Period until its conclusion. Investors who purchase Shares after the Outcome Period has begun or sell Shares prior to the Outcome Period's conclusion may experience investment returns very different from those that the Fund seeks to provide.

Important risk information regarding Barrier ETFs

There are material differences between traditional fixed income asset classes and the Innovator Barrier ETFs, which seek to provide a high level of income. The NAV of Barrier ETFs are tied to the underlying options on the S&P 500, a broad-based measure of the large cap U.S. equity market. The value of fixed income products is tied to the value of the fixed income instruments the products hold. Within a corporate capital structure, equity is generally subordinate to fixed income assets and, as such, carries a higher level of risk than fixed income assets.

Investment Objective: The Funds seeks to provide investors, over a 1 year period (outcome period), with an investment that provides a high level of income through a Defined Distribution Rate and that is not subject to any losses experienced by the U.S. Equity Index that are at or below a the respective Barrier (10,20,30,40) and is subject to initial losses experienced by the U.S. Equity Index beginning at the Barrier and to the full extent of U.S. Equity Index losses on a one-to-one basis beginning after the barrier threshold has been crossed.

Barrier ETFs distribution rate sought by the Funds are based upon a yield rate that is comprised of the yield generated by the U.S. Treasuries and the premiums received from the Fund selling FLEX Options (the “Yield Rate”).

Over each Outcome Period, shareholders will also be subject to U.S. Equity Index losses that are based upon an investment “barrier,” which is an investment strategy whereby a payoff depends on whether an underlying asset has breached a predetermined performance level. The Funds seek to provide a pre-determined barrier at 10, 20, 30, or 40%, respectively, of U.S. Equity Index losses for each Outcome Period (the “Barrier”) by selling FLEX Options that reference the U.S. Equity Index for each Outcome Period (the “Barrier Options”). There is no guarantee that the Fund will be successful in its attempt to implement the Barrier. At the commencement of the new Outcome Period, the Fund will sell new Barrier Options with an expiration date of approximately one year and invest in U.S Treasuries with a maturity date that aligns with the expiration of the new Outcome Period.

Fund shareholders also will be subject to all losses experienced by the U.S. Equity Index if the U.S. Equity Index experiences losses that exceed the Barrier at the end of the Outcome Period. If at the end of the Outcome Period the U.S. Equity Index has experienced a positive price return, or price return losses that are less than the Barrier, the Fund is designed to provide returns that equal the Yield Rate. However, if the U.S. Equity Index has decreased in value below the Barrier at the end of the Outcome Period, the Fund's investments will generate Outcomes that equal the Yield Rate less the entirety of the U.S. Equity Index's losses over the course of the Outcome Period. The Fund will not benefit from any increases in the U.S. Equity Index over the course of an Outcome Period but is subject to the possibility of significant losses experienced by the U.S. Equity Index if the value of the U.S. Equity Index drops below the Barrier at the end of the Outcome Period. An investor could lose its entire investment. The Fund will not receive or benefit from any dividend payments made by the constituents of the U.S. Equity Index.

A shareholder may lose its entire investment. In the event an investor purchases Shares after the commencement of the Outcome Period or sells Shares prior to the expiration of the Outcome Period, the Barrier that the Fund seeks to provide may not be available. In addition, the operationality of the Barrier is such that the Fund may experience dramatic changes in value of its NAV at the end of the Outcome Period, even if the changes in the U.S. Equity Index are minimal. If the U.S. Equity Index's value is at or near the Barrier at the end of the Outcome Period, small changes in the value of the U.S. Equity Index could result in dramatic changes in the value of the Barrier Options and therefore the Fund's NAV. Investors should understand these risks before investing in the Fund.

The Funds' website, www.innovatoretfs.com, provides important Fund information as well information relating to the potential outcomes of an investment in a Fund on a daily basis.

The Fund uses its net assets (including the premiums received by selling Barrier Options) to purchase U.S. Treasuries that expire at the end of the Outcome Period. The U.S. Treasuries are entitled to an interest rate, which when added to the premiums received for selling Barrier Options, produce the Yield Rate. The Yield Rate is distributed to shareholders in Fund Distributions. The amount of the Fund Distributions is dependent, in part, upon the income received from the U.S. Treasuries, which is not guaranteed. If the U.S. Treasuries fail to pay income or pay less income than anticipated, the Yield Rate will not be obtained, and a Fund Distribution will be less than anticipated.

Investing involves risks. Loss of principal is possible. The Funds face numerous market trading risks, including active markets risk, authorized participation concentration risk, correlation risk, liquidity risk, management risk, market maker risk, market risk, non-diversification risk, operation risk, options risk, trading issues risk, upside participation risk and valuation risk. For a detail list of fund risks see the prospectus.

FLEX Options Risk The Fund will utilize FLEX Options issued and guaranteed for settlement by the Options Clearing Corporation (OCC). In the unlikely event that the OCC becomes insolvent or is otherwise unable to meet its settlement obligations, the Fund could suffer significant losses. Additionally, FLEX Options may be less liquid than standard options. In a less liquid market for the FLEX Options, the Fund may have difficulty closing out certain FLEX Options positions at desired times and prices. The values of FLEX Options do not increase or decrease at the same rate as the reference asset and may vary due to factors other than the price of reference asset.

These Funds are designed to provide point-to-point exposure to the price return of the Reference Asset via a basket of Flex Options. As a result, the ETFs are not expected to move directly in line with the Reference Asset during the interim period.

Buffer and Accelerated ETF shareholders are subject to an upside return cap (the "Cap") that represents the maximum percentage return an investor can achieve from an investment in the funds' for the Outcome Period, before fees and expenses. If the Outcome Period has begun and the Fund has increased in value to a level near to the Cap, an investor purchasing at that price has little or no ability to achieve gains but remains vulnerable to downside risks. Additionally, the Cap may rise or fall from one Outcome Period to the next. The Cap, and the Fund's position relative to it, should be considered before investing in the Fund. The Funds' website, www.innovatoretfs.com, provides important Fund information as well information relating to the potential outcomes of an investment in a Fund on a daily basis.

The Funds with buffer mechanisms only seek to provide shareholders that hold shares for the entire Outcome Period with their respective buffer level against Reference Asset losses during the Outcome Period. You will bear all Reference Asset losses exceeding 9, 15 or 30%. Depending upon market conditions at the time of purchase, a shareholder that purchases shares after the Outcome Period has begun may also lose their entire investment. For instance, if the Outcome Period has begun and the Fund has decreased in value beyond the pre-determined buffer, an investor purchasing shares at that price may not benefit from the buffer. Similarly, if the Outcome Period has begun and the Fund has increased in value, an investor purchasing shares at that price may not benefit from the buffer until the Fund's value has decreased to its value at the commencement of the Outcome Period.

THE CORPORATIONS MAKE NO WARRANTIES AND BEAR NO LIABILITY WITH RESPECT TO THE PRODUCT(S).

Cboe Global Markets, Inc., and its affiliates do not recommend or make any representation as to possible Benefits from any securities, futures or investments, or third-party products or services. Cboe Global Markets, Inc., is not affiliated with S&P DJI, Milliman, or Innovator Capital Management. Investors should undertake their own due diligence regarding their securities, futures and investment practices.

Cboe Global Markets, Inc., and its affiliates make no warranty, expressed or implied, including, without limitation, any warranties as of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, accuracy, completeness or timeliness, or as to the results to be obtained by recipients of the products.

* ETF.com’s editorial team chose the finalists and then the ETF.com Awards Selection Committee, an independent panel comprised of fifteen of the ETF industry’s leading analysts, consultants and investors, decided the winners.

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