Skip to content

Northern Trust Disciplined Duration MBS ETF

MBSDNYSE ArcaFlexSharesB

$20.18−0.05 (−0.25%)

At close: Nov 2, 2026, 4:00 PM ET

Intraday session: down, 79 prints from 20.23 to 20.18. Range 20.15 to 20.21. Use the arrow keys to read each point.20.1620.2020.2210 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM
Expense ratio
0.20%*
Fund size
$89M
1Y total return
+0.7%
Yield · Last 12 months
4.46%
Holdings
467
Avg volume · 30D
10.3K sh
52W range
low $19.70high $21.06
Launched
Filings
SEC EDGAR

*After a fee waiver that ends Mar 1, 2027. Without it: 0.21%.

The ETF.net MBSD Grade

B

Score 61 out of 100

Rank
6 of 25
Six-pillar profile for MBSD. Scores out of 100: Cost 79, Risk 46, Mission 60, Tradability 48, Holdings 62, Durability 55. Strongest: Cost (79). Weakest: Risk (46). Leans toward Cost.

Score 61 of 100 falls in the B 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.
    A79 out of 100
    Rank 6 of 25
  • Mission

    Whether the fund did what it promised, tested against its stated mandate.
    B60 out of 100
    Rank 6 of 21
  • Risk

    How the fund held up when markets fell: downside volatility, drawdowns and tail loss.
    C46 out of 100
    Rank 12 of 25
  • Tradability

    How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.
    C48 out of 100
    Rank 13 of 25
  • Holdings

    How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.
    B62 out of 100
    Rank 9 of 25
  • Durability

    Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.
    B55 out of 100
    Rank 13 of 25

Our read on MBSD

ETF.net Research

In short

BAgency mortgage bonds let their duration wander as homeowners refinance or sit tight. MBSD tracks an index built to keep that drift on a leash, offering mortgage-bond exposure with rate sensitivity set by rules instead of by the market's mood.

Stated mandate

The fund is designed to provide market-like exposure to mortgage-backed securities while limiting duration drift through a rules-based index methodology.

Why people hold it

  • The whole point is duration discipline: a rules-based index designed to give market-like mortgage-bond exposure while limiting duration drift, so rate sensitivity is governed by methodology.flexshares.com
  • Charges 0.21% a year, less than the typical fee in the MBS ETF group, and it has been running since 2014 rather than arriving as a recent idea.
  • Spreads across roughly 500 mortgage bonds and pays monthly, so income lands on a mortgage-payment rhythm instead of twice a year.

Worth knowing

  • Thinly traded. Spreads and limit orders matter more here than with the category's household names.
  • Duration control carries a price tag: VMBS, MBB and SPMB track the broad agency mortgage market for single-digit basis points.
  • Constraining duration means it is not built to move like the full mortgage-backed market. That is the design, but it is a different exposure, not a copy.flexshares.com

MBSD Performance

Launched Sep 3, 2014

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

MBSD$10,072
SPY tracks large US stocks. It provides market context, rather than representing this fund’s strategy, asset class or investment benchmark.$11,146
Oct 31, 2025 to Nov 2, 2026. MBSD $10,072. SPY $11,146. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$10,000$11,000Oct 2025May 2026Nov 2026

Oct 31, 2025 – Nov 2, 2026

Returns run to the Nov 2, 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 MBSD. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.
PeriodMBSD
Year to date0.0%
1 month+2.4%
3 months+0.2%
1 year+0.7%
3 yearsper year+4.7%
5 yearsper year+0.5%
10 yearsper year+1.2%

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 MBSD
YearReturn barMBSD
2026 YTD0.0%
2025+7.1%
2024+2.3%
2023+4.5%
2022−9.5%
2021−1.4%
2020+5.4%

MBSD in the news

MBSD 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 Nov 2, 2026.
4.46%Last 12 months
Payout per share
$0.90Last 12 months
Upcoming payment
$0.06 per share
Pays on
Shares bought on or after this date do not qualify for this distribution.
Frequency
Monthly

Distribution history

2023–2026

One bar per payment. 46 payments from 2023 to 2026 YTD. Feb 1, 2023 $0.05; Mar 1, 2023 $0.05; Apr 3, 2023 $0.06; May 1, 2023 $0.06; Jun 1, 2023 $0.06; Jul 3, 2023 $0.05; Aug 1, 2023 $0.06; Sep 1, 2023 $0.06; Oct 2, 2023 $0.06; Nov 1, 2023 $0.05; Dec 1, 2023 $0.09; Dec 15, 2023 $0.06; Feb 1, 2024 $0.06; Mar 1, 2024 $0.06; Apr 1, 2024 $0.06; May 1, 2024 $0.06; Jun 3, 2024 $0.06; Jul 1, 2024 $0.06; Aug 1, 2024 $0.06; Sep 3, 2024 $0.06; Oct 1, 2024 $0.06; Nov 1, 2024 $0.06; Dec 2, 2024 $0.13; Dec 20, 2024 $0.06; Feb 3, 2025 $0.06; Mar 3, 2025 $0.06; Apr 1, 2025 $0.06; May 1, 2025 $0.07; Jun 2, 2025 $0.06; Jul 1, 2025 $0.06; Aug 1, 2025 $0.07; Sep 2, 2025 $0.07; Oct 1, 2025 $0.07; Nov 3, 2025 $0.07; Dec 1, 2025 $0.17; Dec 19, 2025 $0.07; Feb 2, 2026 $0.06; Mar 2, 2026 $0.06; Apr 1, 2026 $0.06; May 1, 2026 $0.06; Jun 1, 2026 $0.06; Jul 1, 2026 $0.06; Aug 3, 2026 $0.06; Sep 1, 2026 $0.06; Oct 1, 2026 $0.06; Nov 2, 2026 $0.06. Use the arrow keys to read each point.2023202420252026YTD
Ex-datePay dateAmount per share
Nov 2, 2026Pays Nov 6, 2026$0.06
Oct 1, 2026Oct 7, 2026$0.06
Sep 1, 2026Sep 8, 2026$0.06
Aug 3, 2026Aug 7, 2026$0.06
Jul 1, 2026Jul 8, 2026$0.06
Jun 1, 2026Jun 5, 2026$0.06
May 1, 2026May 7, 2026$0.06
Apr 1, 2026Apr 7, 2026$0.06
Mar 2, 2026Mar 6, 2026$0.06
Feb 2, 2026Feb 6, 2026$0.06
Dec 19, 2025Dec 26, 2025$0.07
Dec 1, 2025Dec 5, 2025$0.17

See all 140 payments⁠

$10,000 in MBSD 10 years ago paid $2,929 in dividends.⁠

MBSD Risk

How much the fund’s monthly returns vary, scaled to a year.
4.4%
Annualised · 36 months to Oct 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.
0.15
vs 3-month T-bills · to Oct 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.
−13.8%
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.
0.74
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.

FMP measures it over up to five years of monthly returns.

MBSD Cost

Overpaying vs VMBS, tied cheapest in Mortgage-Backed Securities

$3,517

On $10,000 over 30 years. 7% growth a year before fees, expense ratio only.

  • MBSD 0.20%

    $4,155

  • VMBS 0.03% Tied cheapest

    $638

$10,000
30 years

Cost over time

  • MBSD 0.20%
  • VMBS 0.03%
  • Overpaying
One line per fund, from year 0 to year 30. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$0$1K$2K$3K$4K$5K051015202530MBSD $4,155VMBS $638

Year by year

YearMBSDVMBSOverpaying
10$365$55$310
20$1,421$216$1,205
30$4,155$638$3,517
How the 0.20% is worked out

Full fee 0.21%− waiver 0.01%= you pay 0.20%

The waiver ends Mar 1, 2027. After that the fee is 0.21% unless FlexShares renews it. Source: prospectus, Aug 2026.

Other funds in Mortgage-Backed Securities