Janus Henderson launches high income bond ETF

Nov 15th, 2024 | By | Category: Fixed Income

Janus Henderson has unveiled the Janus Henderson Income ETF (JIII US), an actively managed fixed income ETF designed to offer a higher yield than typical core-plus bond portfolios while maintaining diversification across global bond sectors.

John Kerschner, Head of US Securitized Products

John Kerschner, Head of US Securitized Products at Janus Henderson.

The fund has been listed on NYSE Arca with an expense ratio of 0.52%.

The ETF is managed by seasoned portfolio managers John Kerschner, Head of US Securitized Products, and John Lloyd, Head of Multi-Sector Credit Strategies. Together, they bring six decades of investment expertise, including over 30 years at Janus Henderson.

Commenting on the launch, Kerschner highlighted the growth potential in active income solutions, stating: “We believe the income solution space will be one of the fastest growing active ETF opportunities over the next five years. The launch of JIII demonstrates the expansion of our robust active fixed income ETF product offerings designed to meet client needs.”

Investment Strategy

The ETF targets high current income, with a secondary goal of capital appreciation. Leveraging the full resources of Janus Henderson’s fixed income team, the fund employs a research-driven strategy encompassing credit analysis, securitized and quantitative research, trading, and risk management.

The fund adopts an unconstrained investment approach, spanning multiple fixed income sectors and maturities, including US and non-US government bonds, corporate bonds and high-yield securities, commercial loans, agency and non-agency mortgage-backed securities, asset-backed securities, collateralized loan obligations (CLOs), and emerging market debt.

While the fund has no maturity restrictions for individual securities, the average portfolio duration will generally range from zero to eight years. It may invest significantly in below-investment-grade securities and allocate up to 50% of its assets to commercial loans. Typical exposure to this sector is expected to be approximately 15%.

Security selection prioritizes income potential and diversification across low-correlation sectors to reduce portfolio volatility. The investment process integrates both “top-down” macroeconomic and “bottom-up” security-specific factors, assessing risk-adjusted returns through a combination of fundamental analysis, valuation metrics, and quantitative data models.

Portfolio manager John Lloyd emphasized the ETF’s unique positioning, stating: “Our goal is to create a portfolio of best ideas across fixed income sectors, aiming for higher yields than standard core-plus portfolios and greater diversification than single-sector, high-yield strategies.”

Janus Henderson’s Fixed Income ETF Expertise

Janus Henderson is a leading global provider of active fixed income ETFs, ranking as the fourth-largest firm in this space by assets under management.

Its product line-up includes several standout funds, such as the Janus Henderson Mortgage Backed Securities ETF (JMBS US), the largest mortgage-backed securities ETF with $4.7 billion in assets, and the Janus Henderson AAA CLO ETF (JAAA US), which is the largest ETF targeting AAA-rated CLOs with $14.6 billion under management. Additionally, the Janus Henderson B-BBB CLO ETF (JBBB US) focuses on lower-rated CLOs, managing $1.2 billion.

Beyond these flagship offerings, the firm’s active fixed income suite also includes funds that invest across US securitized markets, short-duration securities, corporate bonds, and emerging market debt, showcasing its breadth and expertise in the fixed income sector.

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