Goldman Sachs Ultra Short Bond ETF

Goldman Sachs Ultra Short Bond ETF (GSST) is an actively managed fund that holds short-term, investment-grade US dollar bonds. It aims for income while keeping its effective duration, a measure of interest-rate sensitivity, at one year or less. It leans heavily on financial companies and held about 14% in collateralized loan obligations as of August 31, 2026. It charges 0.16% a year after a fee waiver, slightly below the 0.18% average of similar funds.

• Over the year to Oct 27, 2026, GSST returned +3.9%, 2nd of 8 among similar funds.
• Its 5-year annualized return was +4.0%.
• In the 2020 COVID crash it fell 2.8% and regained its old high 3.2 months after the low.
• Its worst full calendar year was 2021 (+0.1%); its best was 2023 (+6.1%).
• The deepest fall in its price history was 3.5% (Mar 4, 2020 to Mar 25, 2020), recovered by Jun 29, 2020.

As of Aug 31, 2026, the fund held 353 securities; the ten largest made up 10.43% of assets, and 16.89% sat in cash and money-market holdings.

The bonds mature in 4.2 years on average (weighted by size), with an average coupon of 4.2%.

• Over the three months to Aug 31, 2026, investors added a net $116.1M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
• Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: +0.29%, +0.33%, +0.37%.

GSST does not track an index. Goldman Sachs's managers pick the bonds and measure results against the FTSE Three-Month U.S. Treasury Bill Index. The fund keeps at least 80% of net assets in US dollar bonds. These include Treasuries and agency debt, bank obligations, corporate notes, commercial paper, mortgage- and asset-backed securities, collateralized loan obligations (CLOs, which are bundles of business loans) and repurchase agreements. It can also buy dollar bonds from foreign banks, companies and governments.

At purchase, holdings must be investment grade (at least A-2 short-term or BBB- long-term at S&P, or the Moody's or Fitch equivalent) or judged comparable by the manager. The fund keeps more than 25% of assets in the financial services industry. It targets an effective duration of one year or less. Its average maturity was 4.2 years as of August 31, 2026, but many holdings are floating-rate notes whose interest resets often, which reduces rate risk. There is no fixed rebalancing schedule, and portfolio turnover was 127%.

As of August 31, 2026, the fund held 385 positions, with 10.4% in the top ten and 16.9% in cash. It is not a money market fund, and its share value moves. It mostly creates and redeems shares for cash, so it may be less tax-efficient than ETFs that swap securities in kind.

• GSST charges 0.16% a year, versus an average of 0.18% for the similar funds below (3rd of 8, cheapest first).
• Of that, 0.2% is the management fee; the rest covers other fund expenses.
• The fee includes a 0.04% waiver from the adviser, which may end.
• Using the prospectus's standard example, $10,000 invested would cost about $16 in the first year and $251 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).

Its very short duration has kept price drops small and brief, which makes it a place to park money needed soon rather than a growth engine.

GSST could hold money a retiree expects to spend within a year or two. It launched in April 2019, so it has no 2008 record. In the 2020 COVID crash, it fell 2.8% from March 4 to March 23. Its deepest drop, 3.5%, was fully regained by June 29, 2020, about three months later. In 2022 it slipped 1% and was back at its peak by December 19. Its weakest calendar year, 2021, still returned 0.15%, according to the prospectus.

It pays monthly. Its trailing yield was 4.16% as of October 27, 2026, and that income will change as short-term rates change. On $10,000, costs come to about $16 in the first year. Watch the credit risk and the tilt toward financial companies. Past results don't predict the future, 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).