PIMCO Active Bond Exchange-Traded Fund

PIMCO Active Bond Exchange-Traded Fund (BOND) is an actively managed ETF. Its PIMCO managers choose a mix of mostly investment-grade bonds, and mortgage-backed securities made up about 48% of holdings as of June 30, 2026. It aims for steady monthly income and can put up to 30% of its assets in junk bonds. The trade-off is cost: its 0.51% expense ratio is about ten times the 0.05% average of similar funds.

• Over the year to Oct 27, 2026, BOND returned -1.1%, 7th of 8 among similar funds.
• Its 5-year annualized return was +0.2% and its 10-year +2.0%.
• In the 2020 COVID crash it fell 10.9% and regained its old high 3.9 months after the low.
• Its worst full calendar year was 2022 (-14.6%); its best was 2019 (+8.5%).
• The deepest fall in its price history was 19.7% (Aug 3, 2021 to Oct 21, 2022), recovered by Oct 14, 2025.

As of Jun 30, 2026, the fund held 1,567 securities; the ten largest made up 35.33% of assets.

The bonds mature in 20.2 years on average (weighted by size), with an average coupon of 4.99%.

• Over the three months to Jun 30, 2026, investors added a net $583.9M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
• Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: +0.31%, +0.38%, +0.38%.

BOND does not track an index. Its PIMCO managers pick holdings by looking for undervalued sectors and securities one at a time, which the prospectus calls a "bottom up" approach. At least 80% of assets go into bonds and similar debt from U.S. and foreign governments and companies. Most of it is investment grade. Up to 30% may be high yield ("junk") bonds, and up to 15% may be in emerging markets. Duration measures how much bond prices react to changes in interest rates. The fund's average duration normally ranges from two to eight years, depending on PIMCO's forecasts.

Much of the fund's exposure comes from contracts rather than bonds bought outright. As of June 30, 2026, the largest position was a repurchase agreement, which is a short-term loan backed by collateral, with BofA Securities at 6.8%. Next came several "to-be-announced" mortgage contracts, which commit the fund to buy pools of home loans at a later date. The fund also had a 4.1% stake in PIMCO's own Mortgage-Backed Securities Active ETF. It held 444 derivatives, including interest rate swaps and Treasury futures. Its debt holdings added up to 111% of net assets, so the fund carried more bond exposure than its cash alone would buy.

PIMCO says it aims for fairly steady dividends and tries to limit taxable capital gains. Even so, portfolio turnover was 435%, according to the prospectus filed October 27, 2026, so trading is frequent.

• BOND charges 0.51% a year, versus an average of 0.05% for the similar funds below (8th of 8, cheapest first).
• Of that, 0.45% is the management fee; the rest covers other fund expenses.
• The fee includes a 0.02% waiver from the adviser, which may end.
• Using the prospectus's standard example, $10,000 invested would cost about $52 in the first year and $663 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).

The fund's stated objective puts current income first, and it pays monthly, with a trailing yield of 5.35% as of October 27, 2026.

BOND could supply monthly income. It paid $4.75 per share over the 12 months to October 27, 2026, a 5.35% yield. Bond funds still have bad years. In the 2022 bear market, BOND fell 16.6% between January 3 and October 12, and it took about 35 months to recover. Its loss for calendar year 2022 was 14.5%. In the 2020 COVID crash it dropped 10.9% in ten days but recovered in about four months. The fund launched in 2012, so it has no record from 2008. A retiree who had to sell shares in late 2022 would have locked in losses. Cost adds up too. In the SEC's standard example, fees on $10,000 come to about $663 over 10 years. Past results don't predict future returns, and a plan should look at the whole portfolio, not one fund.

Matched by bond funds with the closest average maturity and issuer mix (N-PORT).