Weekly Channel Summary
The Municipal ETF channel continues to show significant scale and growth, currently managing $181B in total assets across 132 ETFs from 46 distinct issuers. Investor demand remains robust, with the channel attracting $0.89B in net new capital over the past five trading days. This recent activity contributes to a powerful long-term trend, with Year-to-Date (YTD) flows reaching $36.80B and the trailing one-year total standing at $37.48B.
This Week’s Performance Leaders and Laggards
Performance across the municipal landscape was broadly positive this week, led by the Single State category, which delivered a 0.18% return. Conversely, the High Yield category was the relative laggard with a modest gain of 0.06%. Despite the slower weekly pace, High Yield remains a competitive segment for long-term holders, currently boasting a YTD return of 3.77%, while the Intermediate category leads the group with a 4.48% YTD gain.
Category Performance Snapshot
| Category | WTD | 1 Month | 3 Month | 6 Month | YTD | 1 Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single State | 0.18% | 0.06% | 1.20% | 4.52% | 3.09% | 3.71% |
| Intermediate | 0.16% | 0.19% | 1.21% | 4.72% | 4.48% | 5.09% |
| Long | 0.14% | -0.07% | 1.43% | 5.62% | 2.24% | 3.20% |
| Short | 0.09% | 0.31% | 0.37% | 2.19% | 3.80% | 4.02% |
| High Yield | 0.06% | 0.04% | 1.11% | 4.71% | 3.77% | 4.41% |
Top & Bottom 5 ETFs by Weekly Performance
At the individual fund level, the RJ Eagle Municipal Income ETF (RJMI) secured the top spot this week with a return of 0.31%. On the downside, the VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF (XMPT) and Nomura National High-Yield Municipal Bond ETF (HTAX) struggled, posting weekly returns of -0.29% and -0.21%, respectively.
| Ticker | Fund Name | WTD Performance |
|---|---|---|
| Top Performers | ||
| RJMI | RJ Eagle Municipal Income ETF | 0.31% |
| FTMH | Franklin Municipal High Yield ETF | 0.29% |
| FTMU | Franklin Municipal Income ETF | 0.27% |
| TAXS | Northern Trust Short-Term Tax-Exempt Bond ETF | 0.26% |
| GMNY | Goldman Sachs Dynamic New York Municipal Income ETF | 0.26% |
| Bottom Performers | ||
| XMPT | VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF | -0.29% |
| HTAX | Nomura National High-Yield Municipal Bond ETF | -0.21% |
| HIMU | iShares High Yield Muni Active ETF | -0.11% |
| JMHI | JPMorgan High Yield Municipal ETF | -0.10% |
| NMB | Simplify National Muni Bond ETF | -0.08% |
Analyzing the Weekly Flows
The channel realized a net flow of $893M this week, reflecting a broad-based appetite for tax-exempt income. The Fixed Income: Municipal – Intermediate category remains the dominant force, capturing $372M in weekly inflows to bring its total AUM to a staggering $120.4B. The Short category also saw healthy participation with $253M in new assets, while all other major municipal categories also finished the week with positive net flows.
Category Flows Summary
| Category | Fund Count | AUM | 5 Day | 30 Day | 90 Day | YTD | 1 Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Municipal – Intermediate | 52 | $120.4B | $372M | $2,247M | $9,274M | $20,630M | $21,100M |
| Municipal – Short | 24 | $28.0B | $253M | $824M | $2,145M | $7,672M | $7,849M |
| Municipal – High Yield | 18 | $14.6B | $140M | $695M | $1,332M | $4,801M | $4,710M |
| Municipal – Single State | 28 | $13.5B | $112M | $411M | $1,645M | $3,179M | $3,304M |
| Municipal – Long | 9 | $4.4B | $16M | $34M | $167M | $513M | $520M |
Top & Bottom 5 ETFs by 5-Day Flow
Leading the pack for inflows was the iShares Short-Term National Muni Bond ETF (SUB), which brought in $112M. On the other end of the spectrum, the SPDR Nuveen ICE Municipal Bond ETF (TFI) and Franklin California Municipal Income ETF (FTCA) experienced the largest outflows, shedding -$23M and -$5M respectively.
| Ticker | Fund Name | 5-Day Flow |
|---|---|---|
| Inflows | ||
| SUB | iShares Short-Term National Muni Bond ETF | $112M |
| HYD | VanEck High Yield Muni ETF | $71M |
| VTEC | Vanguard California Tax-Exempt Bond ETF | $55M |
| CGMU | Capital Group Municipal Income ETF | $54M |
| JMUB | JPMorgan Municipal ETF | $50M |
| Outflows | ||
| TFI | SPDR Nuveen ICE Municipal Bond ETF | -$23M |
| FTCA | Franklin California Municipal Income ETF | -$5M |
| FTMH | Franklin Municipal High Yield ETF | -$5M |
| FTNY | Franklin New York Municipal Income ETF | -$5M |
| PZA | Invesco National AMT-Free Municipal Bond ETF | -$5M |
Issuer League Table Update
The issuer landscape is heavily concentrated, with iShares and Vanguard controlling 33.70% and 26.47% of the market share, respectively. In terms of momentum, Vanguard was the clear leader this week, attracting $211M in fresh capital. Meanwhile, among the active participants, Simplify saw the largest outflow relative to its size, losing -$3M over the five-day period.
Top 5 Issuers by AUM
| Brand | Fund Count | AUM | AUM Market Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| iShares | 10 | $60.98B | 33.70% |
| Vanguard | 8 | $47.91B | 26.47% |
| JPMorgan | 4 | $12.76B | 7.05% |
| SPDR | 5 | $9.39B | 5.19% |
| Capital Group | 3 | $8.08B | 4.46% |
Top & Bottom 3 Issuers by 5-Day Flow
| Brand | 5-Day Flow |
|---|---|
| Inflows | |
| Vanguard | $211M |
| iShares | $158M |
| VanEck | $117M |
| Outflows | |
| Simplify | -$3M |
| Rareview Funds | $0M |
| X-Square | $0M |
For a deeper dive into these trends, access our FREE, in-depth Municipal ETF reports in the right side panel of this page.
Disclosures
This material is for informational purposes only and should not be considered investment advice. All investments, including ETFs, involve risk, including the possible loss of principal. Investors should consider their investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses carefully before investing.
This analysis was developed by the team at ETF Action. We leverage advanced AI tools to assist in the drafting and refinement of our content, based on our expert prompts, direction, and final review.
