iShares BBB Rated Corporate Bond ETF

iShares BBB Rated Corporate Bond ETF (LQDB) tracks the iBoxx USD Liquid Investment Grade BBB 0+ Index. It holds U.S. dollar bonds from companies rated BBB, the lowest rung of investment grade. These bonds usually pay more interest than higher-rated ones, but they are more likely to be downgraded. The fund charges 0.15% a year, about double the 0.07% average of similar funds. With about $59 million in net assets as of August 31, 2026, it is small.

• Over the year to Oct 27, 2026, LQDB returned -1.6%, 6th of 8 among similar funds.
• Its 5-year annualized return was +0.1%.
• Its worst full calendar year was 2022 (-15.5%); its best was 2023 (+9.6%).
• The deepest fall in its price history was 21.7% (Sep 22, 2021 to Oct 20, 2022), recovered by Sep 15, 2025.

As of Aug 31, 2026, the fund held 1,699 securities; the ten largest made up 3.72% of assets, and 10.27% sat in cash and money-market holdings.

The bonds mature in 9.9 years on average (weighted by size), with an average coupon of 4.64%.

• Over the three months to Aug 31, 2026, investors added a net $4.3M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
• Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: +0.17%, -1.57%, +0.48%.

LQDB follows the iBoxx USD Liquid Investment Grade BBB 0+ Index, which S&P Dow Jones Indices runs. To qualify, a bond must be fixed-rate and in U.S. dollars. It must come from a company based in a developed market and be rated BBB or the equivalent by Fitch, Moody's or S&P. The issuer needs at least $1 billion of debt outstanding, and the bond itself needs at least $500 million. New entries must have at least six months left before they mature. As of February 28, 2026, the index held 3,195 bonds, with large shares in consumer goods and services and in financials.

Bonds are weighted by market value, with each issuer capped at 3%. The index rebalances monthly. Bonds that stop qualifying leave at month-end and can't come back for three months. New entries normally stay at least six months unless they are cut to junk (below investment grade), default or are fully repaid.

BlackRock doesn't buy every bond in the index. It uses representative sampling: it buys a subset of bonds that together match the index on duration (how sensitive prices are to interest-rate changes), maturity, credit quality and yield. As of August 31, 2026, the fund held 1,699 issues. It must keep at least 80% of its assets in index bonds, and it may lend out securities worth up to one-third of its total assets.

• LQDB charges 0.15% a year, versus an average of 0.07% for the similar funds below (7th of 8, cheapest first).
• Using the prospectus's standard example, $10,000 invested would cost about $15 in the first year and $192 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).

LQDB pays monthly interest from investment-grade corporate bonds, and its trailing yield was 4.9% as of October 27, 2026.

LQDB could add monthly income from BBB-rated corporate bonds. Over the 12 months through October 27, 2026, it paid $4.08 per share, a 4.9% yield. It does not protect against rising interest rates. The fund launched in May 2021, so it has no record for 2008 or 2020. In the 2022 bear market it fell 18.6% from peak to low. Its worst calendar year was 2022, when it lost 15.55%. Its deepest drop, 21.7%, took about 35 months to recover, ending in September 2025. A retiree who had to sell shares in a year like that would have locked in losses. The fund costs 0.15% a year, or $15 in the first year on $10,000 in the SEC's standard example. Several larger similar funds charge 0.03% to 0.04%. Past results don't predict future returns, and any plan should look at the whole portfolio, not one fund.

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