ETF Evaluator:
iShares AAA CLO Active ETF ()
Follow This ETF
(as of Aug 26)
Best Performing in Securitized Bond - Focused Over the Last Year
| 6.0% | iShares BBB-B CLO Active ETF (BCLO) |
| 5.6% | Nuveen AA-BBB CLO ETF (NCLO) |
| 5.4% | Reckoner Yield Enhanced AAA CLO ETF (RAAA) |
| 5.4% | Eldridge BBB-B CLO ETF (CLOZ) |
| 5.3% | BondBloxx Private Credit CLO ETF (PCMM) |
Risk
Index
Risk
Index
ETF Details
iShares AAA CLO Active ETF Overview
iShares AAA CLO Active ETF (CLOA) is an actively managed Taxable Bond Securitized Bond - Focused exchange-traded fund (ETF). iShares launched the ETF in 2023.
The investment seeks to provide capital preservation and current income by investing principally in a portfolio composed of U.S. dollar-denominated AAA‑rated collateralized loan obligations (“CLOs”).
The fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its assets in U.S. dollar-denominated CLOs that are, at the time of purchase, rated AAA (or equivalent) by at least one of the major rating agencies or, if unrated, determined by the fund management team to be of similar quality. The fund may invest in CLOs of any maturity.
About iShares AAA CLO Active ETF (CLOA)
There are 4 members of the management team with an average tenure of 2.98 years: Saffet Ozbalci (2023), Peter Hirsh (2023), Nidhi Patel (2023) and Tyler Debussey (2024). 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 JP Morgan CLOIE AAA TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. iShares AAA CLO Active ETF has 416 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 9.2% 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.
iShares AAA CLO Active ETF is part of the Fixed Income global asset class and is within the Taxable Bond ETF group. iShares AAA CLO Active ETF has 58.1% 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 100.7% (42.6% domestic bond, 58.1% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). iShares AAA CLO Active ETF has -0.7% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $2 billion in total assets, which is above the $1 billion average for the Securitized Bond - Focused 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.
CLOA 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 AAA CLO Active ETF expense ratio is below average compared to funds in the Securitized Bond - Focused category. iShares AAA CLO Active ETF has an expense ratio of 0.20%, which is 36% 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 AAA CLO Active ETF has a portfolio turnover rate of 89%, which indicates that it holds its assets around / 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 51% for the Securitized Bond - Focused category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, iShares AAA CLO Active ETF returned 0.4%, which earned it a grade of D, as the Securitized Bond - Focused category had an average return of 0.3%. 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 AAA CLO Active ETF has a trailing yield of 4.89%, which is below the 5.32% 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 AAA CLO Active ETF Grades
Year to date, the ETF has returned 2.7%, 0.2 percentage points better than the category, which translates into a grade of C. The fund has returned 5.0% over the past year (grade of C) and 6.5% over the past three years (grade of B).
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 AAA CLO Active ETF, including its riskiness, submit your email to unlock the rest of the article.
Gain access to exclusive AAII member-only content.
CLOA 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 |
|
| CLOA Return (NAV) | 0.4% | 1.1% | 5.0% | 6.5% | na | na |
| CLOA Return (Price) | 0.5% | 1.2% | 5.2% | 6.3% | na | na |
| NAV +/- Price Return | -0.151% | -0.053% | -0.154% | 0.122% | na | na |
| Securitized Bond - Focused Avg | 0.3% | 1.2% | 4.9% | 6.6% | 3.4% | 1.9% |
| CLOA Grade (NAV) | D | D | C | B | na | na |
| +/- Category (NAV) | 0.1% | -0.0% | 0.1% | -0.1% | na | na |
| CLOA Tax-Cost Ratio | na | na | 2.0% | 2.3% | na | na |
CLOA Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| CLOA Return (NAV) | 2.7% | 5.6% | 7.3% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| CLOA Return (Price) | 2.8% | 5.4% | 7.2% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| NAV +/- Price Ret | 0.037% | -0.026% | -0.009% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| Securitized Bond - Focused Avg | 2.5% | 5.9% | 7.6% | 9.0% | -3.7% | 0.3% | 5.8% | 7.5% | 0.6% | 3.1% | 3.0% |
| CLOA Grade (NAV) | C | C | C | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| +/- Category | 0.2% | -0.3% | -0.3% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| Risk Measures | |
| Beta: | 0.02 |
| R-Squared: | 3% |
| Standard Deviation: | 0.7% |
| Category Risk Index: | 0.48 |
| Category Risk Rating: | Average |
| Total Risk Index: | 0.05 |
| Total Risk Rating: | Low |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Yield: | 4.9% |
| Total Assets: | $ 2,208 Mil |
| Share Class Assets: | $ 2,208 Mil |
| Turnover: | 89.0% |
| Expense Ratio: | 0.20% |
| 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: 4 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 3.6 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 3.0 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Hirsh Peter (2023), Patel Nidhi (2023), Ozbalci Saffet (2023), Debussey Tyler (2024) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 7/31/26)
| # of Holdings: | 416 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 9.2% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | No |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 58.1% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 0.0% |
| Foreign Stock: | 0.0% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.0% |
| Domestic Bond: | 42.6% |
| Foreign Bond: | 58.1% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 0.0% |
| Cash: | -0.7% |
Purchase Information
| Legal Structure: | Open Ended Investment Company |
| Fund Family: | iShares |
| Phone Number: | 800-474-2737 |
| Website: | |
| Inception Date: | January 10, 2023 |
Expenses and Fees
| Expense Ratio (%): | 0.20% (Rating: Below Avg) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 0.31% |