Vanguard Leads Inflows as iShares Sees Net Redemptions in Taxable Bond ETFs

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Weekly Channel Summary

The Taxable Bond ETF channel, encompassing 714 funds from 147 issuers, holds approximately $2.32 trillion in total assets. Investors added a net $6.6 billion to the channel over the past week. This brings year-to-date net inflows to a robust $332.6 billion and the one-year total to $525.4 billion.

This Week’s Performance Leaders and Laggards

International taxable bond categories led performance this week, returning 1.34% as a group. Conversely, long-duration government bond funds struggled, posting the weakest results with an average loss of -0.78%. Despite a minor weekly dip, Convertible bond ETFs remain the clear leader on a year-to-date basis, up an impressive 15.43%.

Category Performance Snapshot

Category WTD 1 Month 3 Month 6 Month YTD 1 Year
Taxable – International 1.34% 0.28% -1.44% -2.57% -0.99% 1.48%
Taxable – Emerging 0.96% 0.25% 1.26% 0.06% 1.72% 8.33%
Taxable – Preferred Stock 0.54% -0.03% -1.19% -0.79% 0.98% 3.91%
Taxable – High Yield 0.32% -0.13% 0.48% 1.11% 1.74% 5.22%
Taxable – Multisector 0.21% -0.47% 0.43% 0.52% 1.10% 4.64%
Taxable – Short-Term 0.18% -0.09% 0.27% 0.47% 0.81% 3.54%
Taxable – Government Short 0.16% 0.14% 0.30% 0.55% 0.77% 3.08%
Taxable – Ultrashort 0.12% 0.33% 1.02% 1.84% 2.26% 4.43%
Taxable – Inflation Protected 0.09% -0.26% -0.54% 0.61% 1.15% 2.96%
Taxable – Bank Loans 0.08% 0.63% 1.03% 1.84% 1.45% 4.18%
Taxable – Corporate 0.08% -1.45% -0.76% -0.95% -0.68% 2.82%
Taxable – Government Ultrashort 0.08% 0.35% 0.93% 1.81% 2.11% 3.87%
Taxable – Emerging USD 0.02% -1.47% -0.01% 0.55% 0.93% 7.17%
Taxable – Government Intermediate 0.00% -0.85% -0.67% -0.75% -0.76% 2.02%
Taxable – International USD -0.04% -1.09% 0.17% -0.13% 0.37% 1.35%
Taxable – Core Enhanced -0.06% -1.26% -0.65% -0.64% -0.34% 3.11%
Taxable – Core -0.08% -1.27% -0.74% -0.78% -0.56% 2.69%
Taxable – Convertible -0.11% -6.28% 0.93% 9.99% 15.43% 23.23%
Taxable – Securitized -0.17% -1.21% -0.76% -0.59% -0.16% 4.25%
Municipal – Single State -0.24% -0.16%
Taxable – Long-Term -0.43% -3.82% -2.19% -2.92% -2.56% 0.83%
Taxable – Government Long -0.78% -3.27% -2.17% -2.61% -2.75% 0.11%

Top & Bottom 5 ETFs by Weekly Performance

The week’s performance divergence was evident at the fund level, with international bond ETFs claiming the top spots. The State Street SPDR Bloomberg Short Term International Treasury Bond ETF (BWZ) was the best performer, gaining 2.11%. At the other end of the spectrum, long-duration US Treasury funds faced significant headwinds, with the PIMCO 25+ Year Zero Coupon US Treasury Index Exchange-Traded Fund (ZROZ) falling -2.81%.

Ticker Fund Name WTD Performance
Top Performers
BWZ State Street SPDR Bloomberg Short Term International Treasury Bond ETF 2.11%
ELD WisdomTree Emerging Markets Local Debt Fund 1.68%
WIP State Street SPDR FTSE International Government Inflation-Protected Bond ETF 1.62%
ISHG iShares 1-3 Year International Treasury Bond ETF 1.53%
VPC Virtus Private Credit Strategy ETF 1.51%
Bottom Performers
ZROZ PIMCO 25+ Year Zero Coupon US Treasury Index Exchange-Traded Fund -2.81%
DWWN Principal Long Duration ETF -2.63%
GOVZ iShares 25+ Year Treasury STRIPS Bond ETF -2.58%
EDV Vanguard Extended Duration Treasury ETF -2.33%
MBSX Regan Fixed Rate MBS ETF -1.84%

Analyzing the Weekly Flows

Investors directed a net $6.6 billion into taxable bond ETFs over the week, continuing a strong year of inflows. Multi-Sector funds were the most popular segment, attracting over $4.2 billion in new assets. From a credit perspective, Investment Grade strategies dominated, pulling in nearly $5.0 billion, while Intermediate and Ultrashort duration funds collectively gathered over $5.1 billion.

Flows by Segment

Segment Fund Count AUM 5 Day 30 Day 90 Day YTD 1 Year
Multi-Sector 300 $973.78B $4,216M $23,379M $71,522M $149,489M $243,264M
Corporate 158 $409.37B $1,226M $5,914M $25,567M $45,151M $77,031M
Government 130 $720.82B $619M $12,837M $37,416M $115,044M $173,409M
Bank Loans 49 $69.57B $302M $2,330M $6,922M $12,084M $15,613M
Securitized 46 $108.22B $216M $921M $4,333M $7,904M $11,562M
Cat Bonds 1 $82M $1M $5M $7M $48M $72M
Preferred Stock 30 $43.01B -$17M $1,183M $2,298M $2,883M $4,401M

Flows by Credit Type

Credit Type Fund Count AUM 5 Day 30 Day 90 Day YTD 1 Year
Credit: Investment Grade 369 $1,857.87B $4,980M $36,247M $109,160M $264,517M $407,685M
Credit: Blend 188 $271.68B $1,041M $8,029M $26,968M $56,137M $92,098M
Credit: High Yield 153 $194.96B $529M $2,234M $11,777M $11,754M $25,268M
Specialty: Interest Rate Volatility 1 $89M $1M $24M $67M $69M $69M

Flows by Duration

Duration Fund Count AUM 5 Day 30 Day 90 Day YTD 1 Year
Duration: Intermediate 413 $1,331.45B $2,690M $22,803M $84,714M $176,226M $295,231M
Duration: Ultrashort 146 $493.71B $2,463M $11,738M $40,644M $111,042M $148,026M
Duration: Short 90 $305.11B $1,240M $5,452M $17,737M $39,415M $62,597M
Duration: Long 62 $194.33B $158M $6,542M $4,878M $5,794M $19,266M

Top & Bottom 5 ETFs by 5-Day Flow

The iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (HYG) led all funds with a substantial $1.22 billion inflow, indicating strong tactical interest in the high yield space. However, this was countered by significant redemptions from other major credit funds. The iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF (LQD) experienced the largest outflow at $991 million, followed by the iShares Broad USD High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (USHY), which shed $598 million.

Ticker Fund Name 5-Day Flow
Inflows
HYG iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond ETF $1,220M
BND Vanguard Total Bond Market ETF $471M
VCSH Vanguard Short-Term Corporate Bond ETF $370M
PULS PGIM Ultra Short Bond ETF $330M
VCIT Vanguard Intermediate-Term Corporate Bond ETF $326M
Outflows
LQD iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF -$991M
USHY iShares Broad USD High Yield Corporate Bond ETF -$598M
TLT iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF -$531M
IQMM ProShares GENIUS Money Market ETF -$475M
IEI iShares 3-7 Year Treasury Bond ETF -$349M

Issuer League Table Update

iShares and Vanguard continue to dominate the taxable bond landscape, commanding 36.31% and 26.27% of the market share, respectively. This week, Vanguard was the clear winner in asset gathering, attracting nearly $2.3 billion in net new money. In contrast, ProShares saw the largest net redemptions at $469 million, while market leader iShares also finished the week with net outflows totaling $387 million.

Top 5 Issuers by AUM

Brand Fund Count AUM AUM Market Share
iShares 88 $844.09B 36.31%
Vanguard 31 $610.63B 26.27%
SPDR 36 $172.76B 7.43%
JPMorgan 20 $96.51B 4.15%
Schwab 12 $78.12B 3.36%

Top & Bottom 3 Issuers by 5-Day Flow

Brand 5-Day Flow
Inflows
Vanguard $2,297M
JPMorgan $746M
SPDR $538M
Outflows
ProShares -$469M
iShares -$387M
Simplify -$110M

For a deeper dive into these trends, access our FREE, in-depth Taxable 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.