Category Review
Municipal bond funds are down for the year after a third-quarter selloff erased the first-half gain
Vanguard Core-Plus Bond Index ETF
$71.09+0.08 (+0.11%)
- 0.05%
- $132M
- 0M sh
- $70.97
- low $70.46high $76.09
The ETF.net BNDP Grade
A
Score 75 out of 100
- 17 of 117
Score 75 of 100 falls in the A band. A is 70 or higher, B 55 to under 70, C 40 to under 55, D 25 to under 40, F under 25.
Cost
The fund’s net expense ratio, ranked against its category.A91 out of 100Rank 11 of 117Mission
Whether the fund did what it promised, tested against its stated mandate.A100 out of 100Rank 1 of 101Risk
How the fund held up when markets fell: downside volatility, drawdowns and tail loss.C50 out of 100Rank 39 of 116Tradability
How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.D36 out of 100Rank 88 of 117Holdings
How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.A81 out of 100Rank 10 of 116Durability
Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.C50 out of 100Rank 70 of 117
Our read on BNDP
AThe Agg with the leftovers added back. BNDP indexes a broad sweep of US dollar taxable bonds spanning investment-grade and high-yield, in a passive Vanguard wrapper priced at 0.05%.
The fund seeks to track the Bloomberg U.S. Universal Float Adjusted Index, which consists of U.S. dollar-denominated taxable bonds rated as either investment-grade or high-yield.
Why people hold it
- 0.05% a year, a fraction of what the typical fund in its bond category charges. In bonds, fee drag is the piece you actually control.
- The index reaches past the plain Agg: US dollar taxable bonds across both investment-grade and high-yield, so credit corners a core-only tracker skips come along.investor.vanguard.com
- Rules-based, not manager discretion: it follows the Bloomberg U.S. Universal Float Adjusted Index, so the credit mix is disclosed by the index, not a quarterly judgment call.
- Cheaper than IUSB, the long-standing universal-index fund, at 0.05% versus 0.06%.
Worth knowing
- It listed in December 2025 and is still a small fund that trades lightly, so spreads can run wider than in the category's household names.
- The high-yield slice brings credit risk a pure investment-grade Agg tracker does not carry, and it tends to show up when credit markets wobble.
- Bare-bones Agg trackers like BND, SPAB and SCHZ charge 0.03%. The wider bond universe here costs a couple of basis points more.
BNDP Holdings
- Bonds
- 6,309
- 4%
- EMB
BNDP Performance
Shows how $10,000 changes over the selected period, with cash distributions reinvested at the closing price on each ex-dividend date.
Not enough history yet.Not enough history yet.Not enough history yet.Not enough history yet.
BNDP$9,782
Returns run to the Oct 12, 2026 close, with cash distributions reinvested. Each period starts on the same date that many months or years earlier. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.
| Period | BNDP |
|---|---|
| Year to date | −2.2% |
| 1 month | −1.0% |
| 3 months | −2.5% |
| 1 year | — |
| 3 years | — |
| 5 years | — |
| 10 years | — |
Calendar-year total return with cash distributions hypothetically reinvested at the ex-dividend date’s closing price. The current year shows year to date.
| Year | Return bar | BNDP |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 YTD | −2.2% | |
| 2025 | +0.1% |
BNDP in the news
BNDP Dividends
- $0.28 per share
- Monthly
Distribution data unavailable.
Distribution history
BNDP Risk
- —
How it’s calculated: standard deviation
The sample standard deviation of monthly total returns, multiplied by the square root of 12.
Uses up to 36 complete months, with at least 12 required. Total returns include reinvested distributions.
- —
How it’s calculated: Sharpe ratio
Subtract each month’s Treasury-bill return from the fund’s monthly total return.
Divide the average of those excess returns by their sample standard deviation, then multiply by the square root of 12.
Uses up to 36 complete months, with at least 12 required. Each month uses the Treasury yield quoted at the end of the previous month.
- —
How it’s calculated: maximum drawdown
The largest percentage decline from an earlier peak, using total returns with reinvested distributions.
Uses up to five years through the last close, with at least 12 months required.
- 0.09
How it’s calculated: beta
The beta figure is supplied by FMP. The comparison index depends on the fund’s broad asset class.
BNDP Cost
0.05%
BNDP0.05%
- The middle half of US Aggregate Bond funds
- Median 0.34%
8 of the 113 US Aggregate Bond funds charge less.
Other funds in US Aggregate Bond
- AGVIiShares Intermediate Government/Credit Bond ETFExpense ratio 0.20%1 year return −0.4%
- AAVIGAvantis Core Fixed Income ETFExpense ratio 0.15%1 year return −2.1%
- AFLCBFranklin U.S. Core Bond ETFExpense ratio 0.15%1 year return −2.0%
- ASCCRSchwab Core Bond ETFExpense ratio 0.16%1 year return −1.9%
- ATAGGT. Rowe Price QM U.S. Bond ETFExpense ratio 0.08%1 year return −1.7%