ACLO vs RCLY

ACLOATCW AAA CLO ETF

RCLYFReckoner BBB-B CLO Annual ETF

In short

ACLO A 2024 arrival in the crowded AAA CLO aisle. TCW runs it actively, holding roughly 300 of the highest-rated slices of leveraged-loan pools, paying income monthly, at a fee matching the category's cheapest tier.

RCLY Most bond ETFs pay you monthly. RCLY is built the other way: exposure to BBB through B rated collateralized loan obligations with a stated mandate to make just one distribution a year.

Stated mandate

ACLO The fund seeks capital preservation and current income through principal investment in U.S. dollar-denominated AAA-rated collateralized loan obligations.

RCLY The Fund seeks total return while targeting only one dividend or distribution payment each year.

Why people hold it

• ACLO At 0.20% it undercuts the AAA CLO cohort median of 0.25% and matches the cheapest names in the group, including JAAA and CLOA.
• The mandate is stated narrowly: capital preservation and current income from US dollar AAA-rated CLOs, the top-rated tranches of the structure.tcw.com
• Roughly 300 positions, chosen deal by deal rather than tracked, so no single CLO carries the portfolio.
• Pays monthly, and the portfolio itself grades out as one of the stronger books among AAA CLO funds.

• RCLY The mandate is unusual and explicit: seek total return while targeting a single dividend or distribution each year, so income lands as one annual event rather than twelve monthly ones.
• It goes down the CLO stack. The category's largest funds (JAAA, CLOA, PAAA, FAAA) concentrate on AAA tranches; this one targets BBB through B rated slices instead.
• Structurally simple: it is a wrapper on Reckoner's own BBB-B CLO ETF (RCLO), so one portfolio runs the credit exposure while this fund handles the annual payout schedule.

Worth knowing

• ACLO It trades lightly next to the giants of the category, so spreads can run wider. Limit orders earn their keep here.
• Launched in late 2024, so the record is short and has not spanned a full credit cycle.
• Active with no declared index, so there is no tracking figure to hold it to. Results ride on TCW's deal selection.

• RCLY Costs 0.55% a year, above the CLO ETF norm: the big AAA funds in the category charge about 0.20%, and the cohort median sits near a quarter point.
• Launched in February 2026, so the track record is short, and it has been a small, lightly traded fund, which can mean wider bid-ask spreads.
• BBB-B rated tranches sit below the AAA paper most CLO ETFs hold, so moves in credit stress can be larger. And by design, cash arrives once a year, not monthly.

Full ACLO profile⁠

Full RCLY profile⁠