Fund Evaluator:

ALPS/Smith Total Return Bond I Overview

ALPS/Smith Total Return Bond I (SMTHX) is an actively managed Taxable Bond Intermediate Core-Plus Bond fund. ALPS launched the fund in 2018.

The investment seeks to obtain maximum total return, consistent with preservation of capital. The fund pursues its investment objective by primarily investing, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets (plus any borrowings for investment purposes) in bonds. Bonds include, but are not limited to, government notes and bonds, corporate bonds, convertible bonds, commercial and residential mortgage-backed securities, and zero-coupon bonds. It may also invest in asset-backed securities, money market instruments, commercial loans, and foreign debt securities (including investments in emerging markets).

About ALPS/Smith Total Return Bond I (SMTHX)

There are 2 members of the management team with an average tenure of 7.70 years: Eric Bernum (2019), Gibson Smith (2018). Management tenure is more important for actively managed funds than passive index funds.

The fund has 1 primary benchmark: Bloomberg US Agg Bond TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. ALPS/Smith Total Return Bond I has 1681 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 27.3% 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.

ALPS/Smith Total Return Bond I is part of the Fixed Income global asset class and is within the Taxable Bond fund group. ALPS/Smith Total Return Bond I has 3.4% 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 2.1% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 96.3% (92.9% domestic bond, 3.4% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). ALPS/Smith Total Return Bond I has 1.6% of the portfolio in cash.

Assets Under Management

The fund has $3 billion in total assets, which is above the $1 billion average for the Intermediate Core-Plus 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.

SMTHX 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 ALPS/Smith Total Return Bond I expense ratio is average compared to funds in the Intermediate Core-Plus Bond category. ALPS/Smith Total Return Bond I has an expense ratio of 0.59%, which is 24% lower than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a C. 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. ALPS/Smith Total Return Bond I has a portfolio turnover rate of 135%, indicating that holds its assets around 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 181% for the Intermediate Core-Plus Bond category.

Recently, in the month of July 2026, ALPS/Smith Total Return Bond I returned -1.4%, which earned it a grade of D, as the Intermediate Core-Plus Bond category had an average return of -1.3%. 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.

ALPS/Smith Total Return Bond I has a trailing yield of 4.55%, which is above the 4.36% 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.

ALPS/Smith Total Return Bond I Grades

Year to date, the fund has returned -0.6%, 0.1 percentage points better than the category, which translates into a grade of C. The fund has returned 2.5% over the past year (grade of D), 4.1% over the past three years (grade of C) and 0.2% per year over the past five years (grade of B).

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