State Street SPDR MSCI USA StrategicFactors ETF (QUS) Volatility Skew
Implied volatility skew shows how IV varies across strike prices for a given expiration. Steeper skews indicate higher demand for downside protection relative to upside speculation.
State Street SPDR MSCI USA StrategicFactors ETF (QUS) operates in the Financial Services sector, specifically the Asset Management industry, with a market capitalization near $1.49B, listed on AMEX, carrying a beta of 0.76 to the broader market. The State Street SPDR MSCI USA StrategicFactors ETF seeks to provide investment results that, before fees and expenses, correspond generally to the total return performance of the MSCI USA Factor Mix A-Series Capped Index (the "Index")Seeks to track a Smart Beta index that blends low volatility, quality and value exposures together in a single strategyThe resulting mix may offer a low-volatility strategy with an equal focus on high-quality and attractively valued firmsMulti-factor smart beta strategies can bridge the gap between active and passive management, providing an opportunity for investors to rethink exposures and potentially maximize risk-adjusted returns more efficiently public since 2015-04-16.
Snapshot as of May 15, 2026.
- Spot Price
- $183.53
- ATM IV
- 13.0%
- IV Skew 25Δ
- 0.027
- IV Rank
- 25.2%
- IV Percentile
- 46.8%
- Term Structure Slope
- 0.004
As of May 15, 2026, State Street SPDR MSCI USA StrategicFactors ETF (QUS) at-the-money implied volatility is 13.0%. IV rank is 25.2% (where 0% is the 52-week low and 100% is the 52-week high). IV percentile is 46.8%. The 25-delta skew is +0.027: calls carry premium over puts, indicating upside speculation or squeeze risk. High IV rank typically favors premium-selling strategies; low IV rank favors premium-buying.
QUS Strategy Selection at Current Volatility Levels
For State Street SPDR MSCI USA StrategicFactors ETF options at 13.0% ATM IV, low IV rank (25.2%) favors premium-buying or long-vol structures: long calls or puts, debit spreads, calendar spreads, long straddles. The risk: low-rank regimes can persist for months while time decay eats premium-buyers alive. The 25-delta skew tilts to calls, so call-credit spreads or covered-call writes harvest more premium than put-credit spreads of the same width. Pair the vol-rank read with the dealer-gamma view and the upcoming-events calendar to confirm the strategy fits both the structural regime and the path-dependent risk. The variance risk premium - the persistent gap between implied and subsequently realized vol - is positive in equity markets on average; high IV rank typically reflects a stretch where the premium is wider than usual.
Learn how volatility skew is reported and how to read the data →
Frequently asked QUS volatility skew questions
- What is the current QUS ATM implied volatility?
- As of May 15, 2026, State Street SPDR MSCI USA StrategicFactors ETF (QUS) at-the-money implied volatility is 13.0%. IV rank is 25.2% on a 0-100% scale anchored to the 1-year IV range. ATM IV is the volatility input that makes a Black-Scholes-equivalent model reproduce the listed at-the-money option prices.
- Is QUS IV high or low historically?
- IV is subdued relative to its 1-year history, conditions that typically favor premium-buying strategies (long calls, long puts, debit spreads, calendar spreads).
- What does QUS volatility skew tell options traders?
- Volatility skew is the pattern by which IV varies across strikes for a given expiration. State Street SPDR MSCI USA StrategicFactors ETF shows upside-skewed pricing: 25-delta calls trade richer than 25-delta puts, often reflecting upside speculation or squeeze risk. Skew matters for risk-defined strategy selection: when downside puts are rich, put-credit spreads capture more premium; when upside calls are rich, call-credit spreads or covered-call writes harvest more.