iShares Short Maturity Municipal Bond Active ETF

iShares Short Maturity Municipal Bond Active ETF (MEAR) is an actively managed BlackRock fund. It holds short-term, investment-grade municipal bonds, and their interest is generally free from federal income tax. It keeps price swings small by targeting an effective duration (a gauge of interest-rate sensitivity) of 1.5 years or less. It charges 0.26% a year, close to the 0.28% average of similar funds.

• Over the year to Oct 27, 2026, MEAR returned +1.9%, 2nd of 8 among similar funds.
• Its 5-year annualized return was +2.5% and its 10-year +1.9%.
• In the 2020 COVID crash it fell 2.7% and regained its old high 3.3 months after the low.
• Its worst full calendar year was 2021 (+0.1%); its best was 2023 (+4.0%).
• The deepest fall in its price history was 2.7% (Mar 6, 2020 to Mar 23, 2020), recovered by Jun 30, 2020.

As of Jul 31, 2026, the fund held 275 securities; the ten largest made up 12.58% of assets, and 35.75% sat in cash and money-market holdings.

The bonds mature in 13.1 years on average (weighted by size), with an average coupon of 4.48%.

• Over the three months to Jul 31, 2026, investors added a net $12.6M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
• Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: +0.21%, +0.31%, -0.14%.

MEAR does not track an index. Its manager, BlackRock Fund Advisors (BFA), picks bonds with the aim of earning as much tax-free income as it can. Normally at least 80% of net assets goes into municipal securities. These are debts issued by states, cities, US territories and their agencies, and their interest is exempt from federal income tax and from the alternative minimum tax (AMT). Up to 20% may go into bonds whose interest is subject to the AMT.

The fund buys investment-grade fixed- and floating-rate bonds, notes and variable rate demand obligations (debt whose interest rate resets often). Each has five years or less left to maturity. It also holds money market instruments. It aims to keep effective duration at 1.5 years or less and its weighted average maturity under three years. As of July 31, 2026, it held 347 positions from 275 issuers. The top 10 made up 12.6% of assets, led by Main Street Natural Gas (1.9%), PEFA (1.8%) and Texas Municipal Gas Acquisition & Supply Corp. IV (1.7%). About 36% was reported as cash.

There's no fixed rebalancing schedule, and portfolio turnover was 37%, according to the prospectus. Shares are usually created and redeemed for cash rather than bonds. That means the fund may have to sell bonds at awkward times, which can create taxable gains. It is not a money market fund, so its share price moves.

• MEAR charges 0.26% a year, versus an average of 0.28% for the similar funds below (5th of 8, cheapest first).
• Of that, 0.25% is the management fee; the rest covers other fund expenses.
• Using the prospectus's standard example, $10,000 invested would cost about $27 in the first year and $331 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).

Its short-maturity, investment-grade municipal holdings have kept price swings small, with a deepest drop of 2.7% since its 2015 launch.

MEAR could hold money set aside for near-term spending. Its deepest drop since launch was 2.7%, from March 6 to March 23, 2020, and it was back to its prior high by June 30, 2020. In the 2022 bear market it slipped 0.3% and recovered by December 1, 2022. It had no losing calendar year from 2016 through 2025. Its weakest year was 2021, at 0.06%. It launched in 2015, so it has no 2008 record. So far, selling in a bad year has meant small losses at most.

It pays income monthly. The trailing yield was 2.8% as of October 27, 2026. It costs 0.26% a year, or $27 in the first year on $10,000 under the SEC's standard example. The catch is low growth: 1.74% a year over 10 years to December 31, 2025. 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).