ETF Evaluator:
Abacus Flexible Bond Leaders ETF ()
Follow This ETF
(as of Aug 24)
Best Performing in Nontraditional Bond Over the Last Year
| 7.1% | Simplify Kayne Anderson Ey&InfrasCrdtETF (KNRG) |
| 6.8% | WisdomTree Interest Rt Hdg Hi Yld Bd ETF (HYZD) |
| 6.3% | ProShares High Yield—Interest Rate Hdgd (HYHG) |
| 6.0% | FolioBeyond Alt Inc and Int Rt Hdg ETF (RISR) |
| 5.6% | NEOS Enhanced Income Credit Select ETF (HYBI) |
Risk
Index
Risk
Index
ETF Details
Abacus Flexible Bond Leaders ETF Overview
Abacus Flexible Bond Leaders ETF (ABXB) is a passively managed Taxable Bond Nontraditional Bond exchange-traded fund (ETF). FCF Funds launched the ETF in 2020.
The investment seeks to provide investment results that closely correspond, before fees and expenses, to the performance of the Abacus Flexible Bond Leaders Index.
To pursue its investment objective, the fund invests, under normal market circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets (plus any borrowings for investment purposes) in component securities of the underlying index. The index is designed to track rules-based, quantitative strategy that seeks to provide current income and capital preservation by flexibly allocating across a diversified mix of fixed income categories which are derived from a universe of fixed income asset groups.
About Abacus Flexible Bond Leaders ETF (ABXB)
There are 3 members of the management team with an average tenure of 1.64 years: Vince (Qijun) Chen (2024), Fei Xue (2024) and Tom MacDonald (2024). Management tenure is more important for actively managed ETFs than passive index ETFs.
The ETF has 2 primary benchmarks: Bloomberg US Agg Bond TR USD index with a weighting of 100% and Abacus Flexible Bond Leaders NR USD index with a weighting of 100%. Abacus Flexible Bond Leaders ETF has 9 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 99.4% of the ETF’s assets. The ETF meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a diversified fund. The ETF is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.
Abacus Flexible Bond Leaders ETF is part of the Fixed Income global asset class and is within the Taxable Bond ETF group. Abacus Flexible Bond Leaders ETF has 23.7% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 0.0% There is 0.0% allocated to foreign stock, and 0.0% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 98.5% (74.8% domestic bond, 23.7% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). Abacus Flexible Bond Leaders ETF has 1.5% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $1 million in total assets, which is below the $320 million average for the Nontraditional Bond category. Normally, lower assets under management translates to higher average expense ratios, and greater total assets are desired. However, for some investment categories, such as small-cap investing, it may be difficult for the manager to fully employ the desired active strategy if assets grow too large or too quickly.
ABXB Performance and Fees
The expense ratio measures how much of a fund’s assets are used for administrative expenses and operating expenses, including adviser fees and fees for the transfer agent and custodial services. The Abacus Flexible Bond Leaders ETF expense ratio is above average compared to funds in the Nontraditional Bond category. Abacus Flexible Bond Leaders ETF has an expense ratio of 0.62%, which is 54% lower than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a B. While it is difficult to predict returns, it is known that high annual expense ratios reduce your rate of return, and excessive fees are difficult to overcome. Active management normally comes with higher expense ratios than passive index management. Certain investment categories such as small company and foreign also normally have higher expense ratios. It is best to compare fund expense ratios against the category averages for meaningful assessments.
High portfolio turnover can translate to higher expenses and lower aftertax returns. Abacus Flexible Bond Leaders ETF has a portfolio turnover rate of 459%, which indicates that it holds its assets around / 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 190% for the Nontraditional Bond category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, Abacus Flexible Bond Leaders ETF returned -1.4%, which earned it a grade of F, as the Nontraditional Bond category had an average return of -0.4%. The letter grades of A, B, C, D and F are based upon relative rankings within the investment category. A grade of A, for example, would indicate that the return is in the highest 20% for that time period compared to all ETFs in that category.
Abacus Flexible Bond Leaders ETF has a trailing yield of 5.14%, which is below the 6.67% category average.
The fund normally distributes its income quarterly.
It’s natural to seek the best-performing investments, but you must consider the relationship between risk and return and the impact of costs and taxes on your realized returns.
Abacus Flexible Bond Leaders ETF Grades
Year to date, the ETF has returned -0.8%, 0.8 percentage points worse than the category, which translates into a grade of F. The fund has returned 2.8% over the past year (grade of D), 5.4% over the past three years (grade of C) and 0.7% per year over the past five years (grade of F).
For more ETF grades, analysis and screening tools to help your investment discovery, join AAII for a $2, full-access trial. Learn more here: https://invest.aaii.com/membership.
Otherwise, for more information about Abacus Flexible Bond Leaders ETF, including its riskiness, submit your email to unlock the rest of the article.
Gain access to exclusive AAII member-only content.
ABXB Trailing NAV Total Returns Data as of 7/31/26
| Last Month |
Last Quarter |
Ann'l. 1Yr |
Ann'l. 3Yr |
Ann'l. 5Yr |
Ann'l. 10Yr |
|
| ABXB Return (NAV) | -1.4% | -0.9% | 2.8% | 5.4% | 0.7% | na |
| ABXB Return (Price) | -2.8% | -1.0% | 2.5% | 5.4% | 0.7% | na |
| NAV +/- Price Return | 1.406% | 0.091% | 0.361% | -0.063% | -0.033% | na |
| Nontraditional Bond Avg | -0.4% | -0.6% | 2.7% | 5.4% | 3.4% | 4.3% |
| ABXB Grade (NAV) | F | D | D | C | F | na |
| +/- Category (NAV) | -1.0% | -0.3% | 0.2% | -0.0% | -2.7% | na |
| ABXB Tax-Cost Ratio | na | na | 2.0% | 3.3% | 2.5% | na |
ABXB Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| ABXB Return (NAV) | -0.8% | 8.1% | 5.3% | 7.7% | -14.4% | 1.3% | na | na | na | na | na |
| ABXB Return (Price) | -0.7% | 8.9% | 4.6% | 7.8% | -14.5% | 1.3% | na | na | na | na | na |
| NAV +/- Price Ret | -0.040% | 0.100% | -0.127% | 0.011% | 0.004% | 0.015% | na | na | na | na | na |
| Nontraditional Bond Avg | 0.1% | 4.6% | 8.2% | 9.5% | -3.9% | 6.2% | 0.9% | 7.2% | -0.7% | 4.0% | 7.7% |
| ABXB Grade (NAV) | F | A | D | C | F | C | na | na | na | na | na |
| +/- Category | -0.8% | 3.5% | -2.9% | -1.8% | -10.5% | -5.0% | na | na | na | na | na |
| Risk Measures | |
| Beta: | 0.71 |
| R-Squared: | 79% |
| Standard Deviation: | 4.5% |
| Category Risk Index: | 0.84 |
| Category Risk Rating: | Above Average |
| Total Risk Index: | 0.37 |
| Total Risk Rating: | Low |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Yield: | 5.1% |
| Total Assets: | $ 2 Mil |
| Share Class Assets: | $ 2 Mil |
| Turnover: | 459.0% |
| Expense Ratio: | 0.62% |
| Index Fund: | Yes |
| Index Tracked: | Bloomberg US Agg Bond TR USD |
| Index Weighting: | 100% |
| Leveraged: | No |
| Socially Responsible Fund: | No |
| Capital Gains Distribution Frequency: | |
| Income Distribution Frequency: | Quarterly |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 3 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 1.6 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 1.6 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Chen Vince (Qijun) (2024), Xue Fei (2024), MacDonald Tom (2024) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 7/31/26)
| # of Holdings: | 9 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 99.4% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | No |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 23.7% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 0.0% |
| Foreign Stock: | 0.0% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.0% |
| Domestic Bond: | 74.8% |
| Foreign Bond: | 23.7% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | -0.0% |
| Cash: | 1.5% |
Purchase Information
| Legal Structure: | Open Ended Investment Company |
| Fund Family: | FCF Funds |
| Phone Number: | 800-617-0004 |
| Website: | www.trimtabsfunds.com |
| Inception Date: | December 7, 2020 |
Expenses and Fees
| Expense Ratio (%): | 0.62% (Rating: Above Avg) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 1.34% |
