Fund Evaluator:
Payden Absolute Return Bond Adv (PYABX)
Follow This Fund
Best Performing in Nontraditional Bond Over the Last Year
| 11.2% | Artisan Global Unconstrained Investor (APFPX) |
| 6.3% | Goldman Sachs Dynamic Bond Inv (GZIRX) |
| 5.2% | PGIM Absolute Return Bond Z (PADZX) |
| 4.9% | Spectrum Low Volatility Investor (SVARX) |
| 4.8% | Spectrum Unconstrained Investor (SUNBX) |
Fund Details
Payden Absolute Return Bond Adv Overview
Payden Absolute Return Bond Adv (PYABX) is an actively managed Taxable Bond Nontraditional Bond fund. Paydenfunds launched the fund in 2023.
The investment seeks a high level of total return that is consistent with preservation of capital. Under normal market conditions, the fund will invest at least 80% of its investable assets (net assets plus borrowing for investment purposes, if any) in bonds or investments that provide exposure to bonds. The fund's absolute return strategy seeks to have positive absolute returns over the long term, regardless of different market environments. To achieve this goal, the fund seeks to provide total return, whether through price appreciation, or income, or a combination of both.
About Payden Absolute Return Bond Adv (PYABX)
There are 5 members of the management team with an average tenure of 5.48 years: Kristin Ceva (2023), Eric Souders (2020), Alec Small (2025), Nigel Jenkins (2022), Brian Matthews (2014). Management tenure is more important for actively managed funds than passive index funds.
The fund has 2 primary benchmarks: Bloomberg US Agg Bond TR USD index with a weighting of 100% and ICE BofA US 1 Month Treasury Bill TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. Payden Absolute Return Bond Adv has 407 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 130.8% of the fund’s assets. The fund meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a diversified fund. The fund is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.
Payden Absolute Return Bond Adv is part of the Fixed Income global asset class and is within the Taxable Bond fund group. Payden Absolute Return Bond Adv has 20.2% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is -0.3%. There is 0.2% allocated to foreign stock, and 1.2% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 128.1% (108.1% domestic bond, 20.0% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). Payden Absolute Return Bond Adv has -29.2% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $31 million in total assets, which is below the $663 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.
PYABX 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 Payden Absolute Return Bond Adv expense ratio is high compared to funds in the Nontraditional Bond category. Payden Absolute Return Bond Adv has an expense ratio of 0.96%, which is 32% 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. Payden Absolute Return Bond Adv has a portfolio turnover rate of 176%, indicating that holds its assets around 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 304% for the Nontraditional Bond category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, Payden Absolute Return Bond Adv returned 0.5%, which earned it a grade of A, as the Nontraditional Bond category had an average return of -0.2%. 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 funds in that category.
Payden Absolute Return Bond Adv has a trailing yield of 6.08%, which is above the 4.94% 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.
Payden Absolute Return Bond Adv Grades
Year to date, the fund has returned 1.2%, 0.0 percentage points better than the category, which translates into a grade of C. The fund has returned 4.0% over the past year (grade of C), 5.5% over the past three years (grade of C) and 3.4% per year over the past five years (grade of B) and 3.2% per year over the past 10 years (grade of C).
For more mutual fund 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 Payden Absolute Return Bond Adv, including its riskiness, submit your email to unlock the rest of the article.
Gain access to exclusive AAII member-only content.
PYABX 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 |
|
| PYABX Return (NAV) | 0.5% | 0.9% | 4.0% | 5.5% | 3.4% | 3.2% |
| PYABX Grade | A | B | C | C | B | C |
| +/- Category | 0.7% | 0.5% | -0.3% | -0.1% | 0.9% | 0.0% |
| Nontraditional Bond Avg | -0.2% | 0.4% | 4.4% | 5.6% | 2.5% | 3.1% |
| PYABX Tax Cost Ratio | na | na | 2.4% | na | na | na |
PYABX Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| PYABX Return (NAV) | 1.2% | 5.6% | 7.4% | 6.2% | -2.8% | 1.1% | 2.8% | 5.5% | 0.9% | 3.4% | 3.7% |
| PYABX Grade | C | D | B | D | B | C | D | D | B | D | D |
| +/- Category | 0.0% | -1.3% | 1.9% | -0.3% | 3.3% | -0.2% | -2.7% | -1.0% | 1.7% | -0.7% | -2.8% |
| Nontraditional Bond Avg | 1.2% | 6.8% | 5.4% | 6.5% | -6.1% | 1.3% | 5.4% | 6.5% | -0.8% | 4.1% | 6.4% |
| Risk Measures | |
| Standard Deviation: | 1.6% |
| Total Risk Index: | 0.13 - Low |
| Category Risk Index: | 0.45 - Low |
| Category Risk Grade: | A (12% Rank) |
| Beta: | 0.12 |
| R-Squared: | 20% |
| Leveraged Fund: | No |
| Inverse Fund: | No |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Equity Investment Style: | Mid-Cap Growth |
| Bond Investment Style: | Medium Quality Limited Sensitivity |
| Yield: | 6.1% |
| Dividend Distribution: | Monthly |
| Cap Gains Distribution: | Annually |
| Total Assets: | $572 Mil |
| Fund Total Assets: | $ 0 Mil |
| Share Class Type: | Adv |
| Portfolio Turnover: | 176% |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 5 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 11.7 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 5.5 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Matthews Brian (2014), Souders Eric (2020), Jenkins Nigel (2022), Ceva Kristin (2023), Small Alec (2025) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 5/31/26)
| # of Holdings: | 407 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 130.8% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | No |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 20.2% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | -0.3% |
| Foreign Stock: | 0.2% |
| Preferred Stock: | 1.2% |
| Domestic Bond: | 108.1% |
| Foreign Bond: | 20.0% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 0.0% |
| Cash: | -29.2% |
Purchase Information
| Fund Family: | Paydenfunds |
| Phone Number: | 800-572-9336 |
| Website: | www.payden.com |
| Status: | Open |
| Inception Date: | November 30, 2023 |
| Min. Initial Purchase: | $5,000 |
| Min. Initial IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
| True No-Load: | Yes |
| Front Load Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Deferred Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Redemption Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| 12b-1 Fee: | 0.25% |
Expenses and Fees | |
| Expense Ratio (%): | 0.96% ( Rating : High ) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 1.42% |
| Share Class: | Payden Absolute Return Bond SI |
| Min. Subsequent Purchase: | $ 250 |
| Min. Subsequent IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
