ETF Evaluator:
iShares Floating Rate Loan Active ETF ()
Follow This ETF
(as of Aug 26)
Best Performing in Bank Loan Over the Last Year
| 5.3% | PIMCO Sr Ln Actv ETF (LONZ) |
| 5.3% | PGIM Floating Rate Income ETF (PFRL) |
| 5.3% | Virtus Seix Senior Loan ETF (SEIX) |
| 5.0% | Pacer Aristotle Pac Ast Fl Rt Hi Inc ETF (FLRT) |
| 4.7% | T. Rowe Price Floating Rate ETF (TFLR) |
Risk
Index
Risk
Index
ETF Details
iShares Floating Rate Loan Active ETF Overview
iShares Floating Rate Loan Active ETF (BRLN) is an actively managed Taxable Bond Bank Loan exchange-traded fund (ETF). iShares launched the ETF in 2022.
The investment seeks to provide high current income and secondarily seeks to provide long-term capital appreciation.
The fund normally invests at least 80% of its assets in floating rate loans and investments that are the economic equivalent of floating rate loans, which effectively enables the fund to achieve a floating rate of income. The fund may also invest in other floating rate debt instruments and investments that are the economic equivalent of floating rate debt instruments. It is non-diversified.
About iShares Floating Rate Loan Active ETF (BRLN)
There are 2 members of the management team with an average tenure of 3.82 years: Mitchell Garfin (2022) and Carly Wilson (2022). Management tenure is more important for actively managed ETFs than passive index ETFs.
The ETF has 2 primary benchmarks: Bloomberg US Universal TR USD index with a weighting of 100% and Morningstar LSTA US LL TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. iShares Floating Rate Loan Active ETF has 464 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 22.2% of the ETF’s assets. The ETF meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a nondiversified fund. The ETF is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.
iShares Floating Rate Loan Active ETF is part of the Fixed Income global asset class and is within the Taxable Bond ETF group. iShares Floating Rate Loan Active ETF has 7.9% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 0.1% 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 90.3% (82.5% domestic bond, 7.8% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). iShares Floating Rate Loan Active ETF has 9.5% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $53 million in total assets, which is below the $1 billion average for the Bank Loan 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.
BRLN 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 iShares Floating Rate Loan Active ETF expense ratio is average compared to funds in the Bank Loan category. iShares Floating Rate Loan Active ETF has an expense ratio of 0.55%, which is 5% 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. iShares Floating Rate Loan Active ETF has a portfolio turnover rate of 38%, which indicates that it holds its assets around / 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 92% for the Bank Loan category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, iShares Floating Rate Loan Active ETF returned 0.7%, which earned it a grade of B, as the Bank Loan category had an average return of 0.6%. 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.
iShares Floating Rate Loan Active ETF has a trailing yield of 6.27%, which is below the 7.35% category average.
The fund normally distributes its income monthly and its capital gains annually.
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.
iShares Floating Rate Loan Active ETF Grades
Year to date, the ETF has returned 1.7%, 0.2 percentage points worse than the category, which translates into a grade of C. The fund has returned 4.2% over the past year (grade of C) and 7.0% over the past three years (grade of D).
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 iShares Floating Rate Loan Active ETF, including its riskiness, submit your email to unlock the rest of the article.
Gain access to exclusive AAII member-only content.
BRLN 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 |
|
| BRLN Return (NAV) | 0.7% | 1.0% | 4.2% | 7.0% | na | na |
| BRLN Return (Price) | -0.1% | 0.6% | 3.2% | 6.3% | na | na |
| NAV +/- Price Return | 0.810% | 0.370% | 0.997% | 0.699% | na | na |
| Bank Loan Avg | 0.6% | 1.1% | 4.0% | 7.1% | 5.4% | 4.5% |
| BRLN Grade (NAV) | B | D | C | D | na | na |
| +/- Category (NAV) | 0.1% | -0.1% | 0.2% | -0.1% | na | na |
| BRLN Tax-Cost Ratio | na | na | 2.5% | 2.9% | na | na |
BRLN Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| BRLN Return (NAV) | 1.7% | 6.2% | 8.3% | 12.5% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| BRLN Return (Price) | 1.0% | 5.4% | 7.5% | 13.4% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| NAV +/- Price Ret | -0.383% | -0.136% | -0.100% | 0.075% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| Bank Loan Avg | 1.9% | 5.7% | 8.7% | 12.7% | -2.3% | 4.0% | 2.6% | 8.7% | -0.4% | 2.8% | 7.6% |
| BRLN Grade (NAV) | C | C | D | C | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| +/- Category | -0.2% | 0.5% | -0.4% | -0.3% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| Risk Measures | |
| Beta: | 0.06 |
| R-Squared: | 4% |
| Standard Deviation: | 1.8% |
| Category Risk Index: | 0.86 |
| Category Risk Rating: | Below Average |
| Total Risk Index: | 0.14 |
| Total Risk Rating: | Low |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Yield: | 6.3% |
| Total Assets: | $ 54 Mil |
| Share Class Assets: | $ 54 Mil |
| Turnover: | 38.0% |
| Expense Ratio: | 0.55% |
| Index Fund: | No |
| Index Tracked: | Bloomberg US Universal TR USD |
| Index Weighting: | 100% |
| Leveraged: | No |
| Socially Responsible Fund: | No |
| Capital Gains Distribution Frequency: | Annually |
| Income Distribution Frequency: | Monthly |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 2 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 3.8 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 3.8 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Garfin Mitchell (2022), Wilson Carly (2022) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 7/31/26)
| # of Holdings: | 464 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 22.2% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | Yes |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 7.9% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 0.1% |
| Foreign Stock: | 0.0% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.0% |
| Domestic Bond: | 82.5% |
| Foreign Bond: | 7.8% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 0.1% |
| Cash: | 9.5% |
Purchase Information
| Legal Structure: | Open Ended Investment Company |
| Fund Family: | iShares |
| Phone Number: | 800-474-2737 |
| Website: | |
| Inception Date: | October 4, 2022 |
Expenses and Fees
| Expense Ratio (%): | 0.55% (Rating: Avg) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 0.58% |
