When an investor is seeking to evaluate the viability of an ETF strategy, usually one of the go-to methods is to examine how the fund is performing after it has been on the market for a year or so. However, for ETFs that have been available less than a year, investors need to find other barometers for measuring the success of a strategy. One such metric is how much attention the fund has already accrued within its short stint on the market. Take a look at the Calamos Autocallable Income ETF (CAIE), for instance. Launched in June 2025, CAIE looks to offer consistent monthly income through the use of autocallable yield notes.
CAIE’s approach to alternative income has led to it winning a number of awards. Just recently, Calamos Investments and CAIE won the “Fund Innovation of the Year” award at the 2026 Mutual Fund & ETF Awards from With Intelligence.
See More: Calamos Autocallable ETF Wins Award for Innovation
This isn’t the first time that CAIE has been in the winner’s circle, either. Nor is it even the second time. Back in September 2025, CAIE was the recipient of the “Most Innovative Product” award at the 2025 SRP Americas Awards. Then, later in November 2025, CAIE won the “Deal of the Year” award at SPI’s “Awards for Excellence” 2025.
CAIE: An Award-Winning Investment Strategy
CAIE’s hat trick in the awards circuit shows that this fund is garnering significant interest from the greater investment community. When looking under the hood of the fund’s strategy and seeing how it operates, it’s easy to see why.
Autocallable yield notes provide income and eventual principal tied to a predetermined index and barrier level. As long as that index doesn’t drop below the barrier level, the note will continue to offer income on regular periods. At the end of the note’s outcome period, if the index is above the barrier level, investors receive principal. Otherwise, they may be subject to loss of principal based on how low the index is relative to the barrier.
Due to the structure of autocallable yield notes and their barrier levels, many institutional investors use these products to generate yield, even if the market is seeing a bit of volatility. CAIE offers the advantages of autocallables in a laddered portfolio, along with the benefits of the transparent and accessible ETF wrapper.
This approach has helped CAIE accrue significant inflows from the investment community. As of February 13, 2026, the fund has over $710 million in assets under management.
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Before investing, carefully consider the fund’s investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses. Please see the prospectus and summary prospectus containing this and other information which can be obtained by calling 1-866-363-9219. Read it carefully before investing.
An investment in the Fund(s) is subject to risks, and you could lose money on your investment in the Fund(s). There can be no assurance that the Fund(s) will achieve its investment objective. Your investment in the Fund(s) is not a deposit in a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) or any other government agency. The risks associated with an investment in the Fund(s) can increase during times of significant market volatility. The Fund(s) also has specific principal risks, which are described below. More detailed information regarding these risks can be found in the Fund’s prospectus.
The principal risks of investing in the Calamos Autocallable Income ETF include: autocallable structure risk, contingent income risk, early redemption risk, barrier risk, authorized participant concentration risk, calculation methodology risk, cash holdings risk, correlation risk, costs of buying and selling fund shares, counterparty risk, credit risk, derivatives risk, equity securities risk, index risk, interest rate risk, investment in a subsidiary, laddered portfolio risk, liquidity risk, market maker risk, market risk, new fund risk, non-diversification risk, premium-discount risk, secondary market trading risk, swap agreement risk, tax risk, trading issues risk, valuation risk, and volatility target index risk.
Autocallable Structure Risk –The Fund’s returns are correlated to the performance of a synthetic portfolio of autocallable notes tracked by the Laddered Autocall Index.
Unmanaged index returns, unlike fund returns, do not reflect fees, expenses or sales charges. Investors cannot invest directly in an index. Total return assumes the reinvestment of income. Current performance may be higher or lower than the performance data shown. Yields represented by trailing 12 month yield for: US Equity- S&P 500; U.S High Yield – Bloomberg US Aggregate Corporate High Yield Index; US 10-year – 10-year US Treasury yield; Equity Premium Income: Cboe S&P 500® 2% OTM BuyWrite Index; Autocallable Income: MerQube US Large Cap Vol Advantage Autocallable Index. MerQube US Large Cap Vol Advantage Autocallable Index is not a proxy for Calamos Autocallable Income ETF (CAIE). The results of the MerQube index will differ to those of CAIE. Investors should consider the risks of investing in CAIE and review the prospectus prior to investing. Performance data quoted represents past performance, which is no guarantee of future results. Current performance may be lower or higher than the performance quoted. The principal value of an investment will fluctuate so that your shares, when sold, may be worth more or less than their original cost.
Autocallable notes have specific structural features that may be unfamiliar to many investors:
–Contingent Income Risk: Coupon payments from the Autocalls are not guaranteed and will not be made if the Underlying Index falls below the Coupon Barrier on observation dates. This means the Fund may generate significantly less income than anticipated during market downturns.
–Early Redemption Risk: Autocalls in the Portfolio may be called before their scheduled maturity if the Underlying Reference Index reaches or exceeds the Autocall Barrier on observation dates. This automatic early redemption could force reinvestment of that portion of the portfolio at lower rates if market yields have declined.
–Barrier Risk: If the Underlying Reference Index falls below the Protection Level Barrier at the maturity of an Autocall in the Portfolio, that portion of the Portfolio will be fully exposed to the negative performance of the Underlying Reference Index from its initial level. This conditional protection creates a binary outcome that can result in sudden, significant losses if barriers are breached.
Total return assumes the reinvestment of income. Current performance may be higher or lower than the performance data shown. Yield represented by trailing 12 month yield for: Autocallable Income: MerQube US Large Cap Vol Advantage Autocallable Index. MerQube US Large Cap Vol Advantage Autocallable Index is not a proxy for Calamos Autocallable Income ETF (CAIE). The results of the MerQube index will differ to those of CAIE
