With all the attention bestowed upon it in recent weeks, novices may get the impression that the PIMCO Total Return ETF (NYSEArca: BOND) is the only exchange traded fund sponsored by the California-based bond house.
Of course, that is far from true. PIMCO issues 16 other ETFs in addition to BOND. Some of those other PIMCO ETFs, including the PIMCO Enhanced Short Maturity ETF (NYSEArca: MINT) and the PIMCO 25+ Year Zero Coupon U.S. Treasury Index Fund (NYSEArca: ZROZ) have proven rather successful. [A Star Among PIMCO ETFs]
MINT, managed by Jerome Schneider, is the largest actively managed ETF while only two non-leveraged ETFs have offered better year-to-date performances than ZROZ.
Add the PIMCO Low Duration Exchange-Traded Fund (NYSEArca: LDUR) to the list of PIMCO ETF successes. LDUR, also managed by Schneider, debuted in January and already has $140.3 million in assets under management, a total surpassed by just eight other new ETFs. [Another Good Year for New ETFs]
“Despite the upheaval at PIMCO, we see no cause for concern with LDUR, as Schneider has been and continues to be the manager of the ETF, which aims for an average portfolio duration of one to three years based on PIMCO’s forecast for interest rates,” said Morningstar analyst Robert Goldsborough in a new research note.
Although 10-year Treasury yields have plummeted this year, a move that has stoked billions of inflows to bond ETFs focusing on the longer end of the yield curve, LDUR’s timing could prove to be sound. Arguably , it already has when considering that many investors have not been shy about allocating to shorter duration fixed income ETFs in preparation of a 2015 interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve.