Fund Evaluator:
Nuveen Short Term Bond Index Retire (TESHX)
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Fund Details
Nuveen Short Term Bond Index Retire Overview
Nuveen Short Term Bond Index Retire (TESHX) is a passively managed Taxable Bond Short-Term Bond fund. Nuveen launched the fund in 2015.
The investment seeks total return that corresponds with the total return of the Bloomberg U.S. 1-3 Year Government/Credit Bond Index. The fund invests at least 80% of its assets in bonds within its benchmark and portfolio tracking index, the Bloomberg U.S. 1-3 Year Government/Credit Bond Index. It uses a sampling technique to create a portfolio that closely matches the overall investment characteristics of the index (for example, duration, sector diversification and credit quality) without investing in all of the securities in the index.
About Nuveen Short Term Bond Index Retire (TESHX)
There are 2 members of the management team with an average tenure of 5.76 years: James Tsang (2015), Joseph Spinelli (2026). 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 Bloomberg US Govt/Credit 1-3 Yr TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. Nuveen Short Term Bond Index Retire has 961 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 33.6% 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.
Nuveen Short Term Bond Index Retire is part of the Fixed Income global asset class and is within the Taxable Bond fund group. Nuveen Short Term Bond Index Retire has 9.6% 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 99.9% (90.3% domestic bond, 9.6% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). Nuveen Short Term Bond Index Retire has 0.2% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $859 million in total assets, which is below the $904 million average for the Short-Term 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.
TESHX 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 Nuveen Short Term Bond Index Retire expense ratio is below average compared to funds in the Short-Term Bond category. Nuveen Short Term Bond Index Retire has an expense ratio of 0.32%, which is 52% 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. Nuveen Short Term Bond Index Retire has a portfolio turnover rate of 63%, indicating that holds its assets around 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 135% for the Short-Term Bond category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, Nuveen Short Term Bond Index Retire returned 0.1%, which earned it a grade of B, as the Short-Term Bond category had an average return of -0.0%. 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.
Nuveen Short Term Bond Index Retire has a trailing yield of 3.80%, which is below the 4.16% 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.
Nuveen Short Term Bond Index Retire Grades
Year to date, the fund has returned 0.7%, 0.2 percentage points worse than the category, which translates into a grade of D. The fund has returned 3.0% over the past year (grade of D), 4.2% over the past three years (grade of F) and 1.8% per year over the past five years (grade of D) and 1.7% per year over the past 10 years (grade of F).
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TESHX 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 |
|
| TESHX Return (NAV) | 0.1% | 0.3% | 3.0% | 4.2% | 1.8% | 1.7% |
| TESHX Grade | B | D | D | F | D | F |
| +/- Category | 0.1% | -0.0% | -0.4% | -0.7% | -0.4% | -0.6% |
| Short-Term Bond Avg | -0.0% | 0.3% | 3.4% | 5.0% | 2.2% | 2.3% |
| TESHX Tax Cost Ratio | na | na | 1.5% | 1.6% | 1.2% | 0.9% |
TESHX Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| TESHX Return (NAV) | 0.7% | 5.0% | 4.1% | 4.4% | -4.0% | -0.8% | 3.0% | 3.6% | 1.2% | 0.4% | 0.7% |
| TESHX Grade | D | F | F | F | B | D | F | F | B | F | F |
| +/- Category | -0.2% | -0.8% | -0.8% | -1.2% | 1.0% | -0.8% | -1.2% | -1.1% | 0.5% | -1.4% | -1.8% |
| Short-Term Bond Avg | 0.9% | 5.9% | 4.9% | 5.6% | -5.0% | -0.0% | 4.2% | 4.8% | 0.7% | 1.9% | 2.5% |
| Risk Measures | |
| Standard Deviation: | 1.6% |
| Total Risk Index: | 0.13 - Low |
| Category Risk Index: | 0.79 - Low |
| Category Risk Grade: | A (20% Rank) |
| Beta: | 0.24 |
| R-Squared: | 75% |
| Leveraged Fund: | No |
| Inverse Fund: | No |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Equity Investment Style: | na |
| Bond Investment Style: | High Quality Limited Sensitivity |
| Yield: | 3.8% |
| Dividend Distribution: | Monthly |
| Cap Gains Distribution: | Annually |
| Total Assets: | $2587 Mil |
| Fund Total Assets: | $ 859 Mil |
| Share Class Type: | Retirement |
| Portfolio Turnover: | 63% |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 2 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 11.0 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 5.8 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Tsang James (2015), Spinelli Joseph (2026) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 5/31/26)
| # of Holdings: | 961 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 33.6% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | No |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 9.6% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 0.0% |
| Foreign Stock: | 0.0% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.0% |
| Domestic Bond: | 90.3% |
| Foreign Bond: | 9.6% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 0.0% |
| Cash: | 0.2% |
Purchase Information
| Fund Family: | Nuveen |
| Phone Number: | 800-257-8787 |
| Website: | www.tiaa.org |
| Status: | Open |
| Inception Date: | August 7, 2015 |
| Min. Initial Purchase: | $ 0 |
| 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: | na |
Expenses and Fees | |
| Expense Ratio (%): | 0.32% ( Rating : Below Avg ) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 0.66% |
| Share Class: | Nuveen Short Term Bond Index R6 |
| Min. Subsequent Purchase: | $ 0 |
| Min. Subsequent IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
