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LEMB

GradeANew York Stock Exchange Arca

iShares J.P. Morgan EM Local Currency Bond ETF

Specialty Bonds · IShares · Inception 2011-10-17 · SEC filings

$42.52−0.36 (−0.85%)

As of Sep 23, 2026, 2:20 PM EDT

Intraday session: down, 51 prints from 42.88 to 42.52. Range 42.42 to 42.73. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$42.40$42.60$42.7010 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM
Expense ratio
0.30%
Fund size
$744M
1Y return
+6.1%
Yield · Last 12 months
2.37%
Holdings
449
Volume · 30D
0.1M sh
NAV per share
$42.77
52W range
low $40.35high $43.46

The ETF.net LEMB Grade

A

76/ 100

Rank 2 of 7 in Emerging Markets Bonds (Local Currency)⁠

Confidence Medium

Six-pillar profile for LEMB. Scores out of 100: Cost 80, Risk 56, Mission 96, Tradability 60, Holdings 71, Durability 76. Strongest: Mission (96). Weakest: Risk (56). Leans toward Mission.
F< 25
D≥ 25
C≥ 40
B≥ 55
A≥ 70

Score 76 of 100 sits in the A band. Bands: A ≥ 70, B ≥ 55, C ≥ 40, D ≥ 25, F < 25; the scale skips E.

  • Cost

    What you pay to own it — the expense ratio plus trading frictions, ranked within its category.
    AScore 80
    Category rank2/7 · top 29%

  • Mission

    How faithfully it does the job it claims — tracking its mandate or index with minimal slippage.
    AScore 96
    Category rank2/7 · top 29%

  • Risk

    How violently it can move — volatility, drawdown depth, and downside capture versus its category.
    BScore 56
    Category rank4/7 · mid-pack

  • Tradability

    How cheaply and easily you can get in and out — liquidity, spread, and premium/discount stability.
    BScore 60
    Category rank2/7 · top 29%

  • Holdings

    What it actually owns — the quality, breadth, and concentration of the underlying portfolio.
    AScore 71
    Category rank2/7 · top 29%

  • Durability

    Whether it will still be here — the fund’s assets, age, flows, and issuer staying power.
    AScore 76
    Category rank1/7 · top 14%

Graded as of Sep 22, 2026

Our read on LEMB

ETF.net Research

AMost emerging-markets funds buy stocks. LEMB buys government bonds priced in pesos, rand and rupiah, so the ride comes from local interest rates and the currency, not the dollar. iShares has run this unhedged EM debt sleeve since 2011.

Stated mandate

The fund seeks to track an index of sovereign bonds issued by emerging-market countries in their local currencies.

Why people hold it

  1. 01Sovereign debt in local currency, not dollars: you hold the borrowing rates and the currencies of emerging economies directly.ishares.com
  2. 020.30% expense ratio, below the median for the emerging-markets funds we track.
  3. 03The J.P. Morgan index it follows caps any one country at 15% and floors smaller ones at 4%, spreading roughly 400 bonds across many issuers instead of two or three giants.ishares.com
  4. 04Trading since 2011, one of the longest-running US listings in this corner of the bond market, and it scores in the upper half of its peer group overall.

Worth knowing

  1. 01No currency hedge. Local yields can be healthy and still be swamped by a strong dollar, so day-to-day moves often look more like FX than bonds.ishares.com
  2. 02Government issuers only. This is a rates-and-currency vehicle, not a play on emerging-market companies or credit spreads.
  3. 03Income arrives on an annual or semiannual schedule, and the fund is moderately traded rather than a headline-volume name.

LEMB Holdings

As of Sep 22, 2026, 3:19 AM
Asset class
Bonds
Holdings
449
Top-10 weight
13%
Largest holding
PARAGUAY REPUBLIC OF (GOVERNMENT) RegS 8.50% 04/04/20381.8%

Geography

  • China15.47%
  • India8.90%
  • Mexico5.53%
  • Indonesia4.85%
  • Malaysia4.83%
  • Poland4.48%
  • Thailand4.25%
  • Brazil4.15%
  • Other countries (12)47.53%

Developed 0% · Emerging 100% of the foreign sleeve

The fund’s holdings, weight-ordered — page 1 of 32.
#TickerCompanyWeight %SharesMarket valueIn ETFs
001—PARAGUAY REPUBLIC OF (GOVERNMENT) RegS 8.50% 04/04/20381.80%666,153,396$13M4
002—URUGUAY (ORIENTAL REPUBLIC OF) 8.00% 10/29/20351.54%4,520,434$11M6
003—SERBIA (REPUBLIC OF) 7.00% 10/26/20311.39%9,926,245$10M4
004—URUGUAY (ORIENTAL REPUBLIC OF) 9.75% 07/20/20331.37%3,699,897$10M5
005—DOMINICAN REPUBLIC (GOVERNMENT) RegS 10.50% 03/15/20371.32%5,293,460$10M6
006—PARAGUAY REPUBLIC OF (GOVERNMENT) RegS 8.50% 03/04/20351.30%480,226,878$10M4
007—TURKEY (REPUBLIC OF) 30.00% 09/12/20291.16%4,723,772$9M7
008—DOMINICAN REPUBLIC (GOVERNMENT) RegS 10.75% 06/01/20361.16%4,606,089$9M7
009—PARAGUAY REPUBLIC OF (GOVERNMENT) RegS 7.90% 02/09/20310.94%347,413,993$7M4
010—SERBIA (REPUBLIC OF) 4.50% 08/20/20320.89%7,092,940$7M4
011—URUGUAY (ORIENTAL REPUBLIC OF) 8.25% 05/21/20310.86%2,447,502$6M4
012—TURKEY (REPUBLIC OF) 26.20% 10/05/20330.85%3,675,090$6M9
013—SERBIA (REPUBLIC OF) 5.25% 07/27/20350.84%6,555,962$6M4
014—SERBIA (REPUBLIC OF) 5.88% 02/08/20280.78%5,932,112$6M4
015—DOMINICAN REPUBLIC (GOVERNMENT) RegS 11.25% 09/15/20350.77%2,981,061$6M4

Showing 1–15 of 476 holdings

LEMB Performance

Shows how $10,000 changes over the selected period, with cash distributions reinvested at the closing price on each ex-dividend date.

LEMB$10,612
SPY tracks large US stocks. It provides market context, rather than representing this fund’s strategy, asset class or investment benchmark.$11,723
Sep 22, 2025 to Sep 22, 2026. LEMB $10,612. SPY $11,723. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$9,353$10,646$11,940Sep 2025Mar 2026Sep 2026

Sep 22, 2025 – Sep 22, 2026

Returns run to the Sep 22, 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.

Trailing total return for LEMB. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.
PeriodLEMB
Year to date+3.2%
1 month−1.1%
3 months+1.1%
1 year+6.1%
3 years+7.9%per year
5 years+1.7%per year
10 years+0.9%per year

As of the close, with distributions reinvested.

Calendar-year total return with cash distributions hypothetically reinvested at the ex-dividend date’s closing price. The current year shows year to date.

Annual total returns for LEMB
YearReturn barLEMB
2026 YTD+3.2%
2025+18.0%
2024−1.7%
2023+7.2%
2022−10.7%
2021−9.9%
2020+3.1%

LEMB in the news

ETF.net Research hasn’t filed on LEMB yet — coverage lands here as it’s written.

LEMB Dividends

Adds up every distribution paid per share over the last 12 months, divided by the last completed close. Distributions are counted by ex-date. Data through Sep 22, 2026.
2.37%Last 12 months
Payout per share
$1.02Last 12 months
Last payment
$1.02 per share
Paid on
Shares bought on or after this date do not qualify for this distribution.
Frequency
Irregular

Distribution history

2017–2026

One bar per payment. 6 payments from 2017 to 2026 YTD. Dec 3, 2018 $1.49; Dec 19, 2019 $1.93; Dec 16, 2021 $1.53; Dec 15, 2022 $0.30; Dec 14, 2023 $0.49; Dec 19, 2025 $1.02. Use the arrow keys to read each point.2017201820192020202120222023202420252026YTD
Ex-datePay dateAmount per share
Dec 19, 2025Dec 24, 2025$1.02
Dec 14, 2023Dec 20, 2023$0.49
Dec 15, 2022Dec 21, 2022$0.30
Dec 16, 2021Dec 22, 2021$1.53
Dec 19, 2019Dec 26, 2019$1.93
Dec 3, 2018Data unavailable$1.49
Jul 1, 2015Jul 8, 2015$0.02
Jun 1, 2015Jun 5, 2015$0.02
May 1, 2015May 7, 2015$0.03
Apr 1, 2015Apr 8, 2015$0.03
Mar 2, 2015Mar 6, 2015$0.07
Feb 2, 2015Feb 6, 2015$0.09

LEMB Risk

How much the fund’s monthly returns vary, scaled to a year.
7.6%
Annualised · 36 months to Aug 2026
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.

Return above 3-month US Treasury bills per unit of volatility.
0.35
vs 3-month T-bills · to Aug 2026
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.

The largest fall from a peak to the low that followed.
−22.5%
Trough Oct 2022
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.

How strongly the fund’s returns move with its asset-class index.
1.00
vs its asset-class index
How it’s calculated: beta

The beta figure is supplied by FMP. The comparison index depends on the fund’s broad asset class.

LEMB Cost

Expense ratio0.30%
  • The middle half of Emerging Markets Bonds (Local Currency) funds
  • Median 0.55%

No Emerging Markets Bonds (Local Currency) fund charges less.

LEMB costs $30.00 a year on $10,000. The median Emerging Markets Bonds (Local Currency) fund costs $55.00.