Fund Evaluator:
Payden High Income (PYHRX)
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Best Performing in High Yield Bond Over the Last Year
| 11.4% | Fidelity Capital & Income (FAGIX) |
| 10.5% | Fidelity Advisor Capital & Income Z (FIQTX) |
| 7.4% | American Beacon SiM High Yld Opps Inv (SHYPX) |
| 7.4% | Fidelity Advisor High Income Z (FGUMX) |
| 7.2% | Fidelity High Income (SPHIX) |
Fund Details
Payden High Income Overview
Payden High Income (PYHRX) is an actively managed Taxable Bond High Yield Bond fund. Paydenfunds launched the fund in 1997.
The investment seeks high current income while providing for capital appreciation by investing primarily in a diversified portfolio of below investment grade bonds. The fund invests in a wide variety of debt instruments and income-producing securities. It normally invests at least 80% of its total assets in corporate debt securities rated below investment grade. Below investment grade debt securities are rated below the four highest grades by at least one Nationally Recognized Statistical Rating Organization, or are securities that the fund's adviser, Payden & Rygel ("Payden"), determines to be of comparable quality.
About Payden High Income (PYHRX)
There are 5 members of the management team with an average tenure of 5.93 years: Jordan Lopez (2012), Natalie Trevithick (2023), Timothy Crawmer (2020), Nicholas Burns (2022), Daniel Dupont (2025). 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 BB-B US CP HY Constnd TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. Payden High Income has 457 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 12.9% 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 High Income is part of the Fixed Income global asset class and is within the Taxable Bond fund group. Payden High Income has 18.1% 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 1.8% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 94.8% (76.8% domestic bond, 18.1% foreign bond and 0.2% convertible bond). Payden High Income has 3.1% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $377 million in total assets, which is below the $545 million average for the High Yield 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.
PYHRX 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 High Income expense ratio is above average compared to funds in the High Yield Bond category. Payden High Income has an expense ratio of 0.61%, which is 34% lower than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a A. 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 High Income has a portfolio turnover rate of 78%, indicating that holds its assets around 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 72% for the High Yield Bond category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, Payden High Income returned -0.2%, which earned it a grade of B, as the High Yield Bond 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 funds in that category.
Payden High Income has a trailing yield of 6.42%, which is above the 6.28% 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 High Income Grades
Year to date, the fund has returned 2.3%, 0.7 percentage points better than the category, which translates into a grade of A. The fund has returned 6.4% over the past year (grade of A), 8.7% over the past three years (grade of A) and 4.8% per year over the past five years (grade of A) and 5.9% per year over the past 10 years (grade of A).
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PYHRX 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 |
|
| PYHRX Return (NAV) | -0.2% | 0.7% | 6.4% | 8.7% | 4.8% | 5.9% |
| PYHRX Grade | B | B | A | A | A | A |
| +/- Category | 0.1% | 0.3% | 1.5% | 1.1% | 1.0% | 1.1% |
| High Yield Bond Avg | -0.3% | 0.4% | 4.9% | 7.5% | 3.7% | 4.8% |
| PYHRX Tax Cost Ratio | na | na | 2.6% | 2.8% | 2.6% | 2.4% |
PYHRX Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| PYHRX Return (NAV) | 2.3% | 8.7% | 8.1% | 14.7% | -9.8% | 6.6% | 7.4% | 16.8% | -2.8% | 6.5% | 10.6% |
| PYHRX Grade | A | B | B | A | B | A | A | A | C | C | F |
| +/- Category | 0.7% | 0.9% | 0.5% | 2.8% | 0.3% | 1.5% | 2.1% | 3.7% | -0.2% | -0.2% | -2.8% |
| High Yield Bond Avg | 1.6% | 7.9% | 7.6% | 11.9% | -10.0% | 5.1% | 5.2% | 13.0% | -2.7% | 6.7% | 13.4% |
| Risk Measures | |
| Standard Deviation: | 4.2% |
| Total Risk Index: | 0.34 - Low |
| Category Risk Index: | 1.05 - Average |
| Category Risk Grade: | C (58% Rank) |
| Beta: | 0.62 |
| R-Squared: | 69% |
| Leveraged Fund: | No |
| Inverse Fund: | No |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Equity Investment Style: | na |
| Bond Investment Style: | High Quality Limited Sensitivity |
| Yield: | 6.4% |
| Dividend Distribution: | Monthly |
| Cap Gains Distribution: | Annually |
| Total Assets: | $1264 Mil |
| Fund Total Assets: | $ 377 Mil |
| Share Class Type: | Inv |
| Portfolio Turnover: | 78% |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 5 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 14.0 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 5.9 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Lopez Jordan (2012), Crawmer Timothy (2020), Burns Nicholas (2022), Trevithick Natalie (2023), Dupont Daniel (2025) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 5/31/26)
| # of Holdings: | 457 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 12.9% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | No |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 18.1% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 0.0% |
| Foreign Stock: | 0.0% |
| Preferred Stock: | 1.8% |
| Domestic Bond: | 76.8% |
| Foreign Bond: | 18.1% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.2% |
| Other: | 0.0% |
| Cash: | 3.1% |
Purchase Information
| Fund Family: | Paydenfunds |
| Phone Number: | 800-572-9336 |
| Website: | www.payden.com |
| Status: | Open |
| Inception Date: | December 30, 1997 |
| Min. Initial Purchase: | $100,000 |
| Min. Initial IRA Purchase: | $100,000 |
| True No-Load: | Yes |
| Front Load Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Deferred Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Redemption Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| 12b-1 Fee: | na |
Expenses and Fees | |
| Expense Ratio (%): | 0.61% ( Rating : Above Avg ) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 0.92% |
| Share Class: | Payden High Income |
| Min. Subsequent Purchase: | $ 250 |
| Min. Subsequent IRA Purchase: | $ 250 |
