CLOA vs EVLN

CLOAAiShares AAA CLO Active ETF

EVLNDEaton Vance Floating-Rate ETF

In short

CLOA BlackRock's play in AAA CLOs: active credit picking measured against J.P. Morgan's CLOIE AAA index, 0.20% a year, spread over roughly 400 positions. A billion-dollar-plus book built since its 2023 launch.

EVLN Most funds in this aisle buy AAA-rated CLO tranches. EVLN goes a layer down and picks the underlying corporate loans itself: an actively run floating-rate credit book from Eaton Vance's long-tenured loan desk.

Stated mandate

CLOA The fund seeks exposure to U.S. dollar-denominated AAA-rated collateralized loan obligations, using active credit selection to pursue income and capital preservation with potentially low volatility.

EVLN The Fund seeks a high level of current income.

Why people hold it

• CLOA Charges 0.20% a year, below the 0.25% typical for CLO funds and level with what most of the category's biggest names (JAAA, FAAA, ACLO) charge.
• Roughly 400 separate CLO positions, one of the deepest books in its peer group, so no single deal carries the fund.
• Actively run: the team selects deals and CLO managers instead of buying whatever a benchmark holds. The CLOIE AAA index is the yardstick, not the rulebook.
• Income arrives monthly, and it sits among the easier funds in its cohort to get in and out of.

• EVLN Holds at least 80% of assets in floating-rate credit, led by senior secured corporate loans chosen one at a time rather than a passive slice of CLO paper.aaii.com
• Coupons reset with short-term rates, so the portfolio carries little interest-rate duration by design. This is an income mandate, not a rate call.
• Distributions land monthly, and the fund has grown into the multi-billion-dollar range since its 2024 launch.
• The mandate is global, covering loans to domestic and foreign borrowers rather than a US-only book.aaii.com

Worth knowing

• CLOA Active means manager-dependent. There is no index to fall back on, so outcomes hinge on which deals the desk picks.
• The mandate pursues income and capital preservation with potentially low volatility. That is the aim, not a floor; CLO prices still move.
• Trading since January 2023, so its record is short next to long-running bond funds and covers a narrow slice of credit history.

• EVLN Costs 0.60% a year against a 0.25% peer median, and the AAA CLO funds it sits beside (JAAA, CLOA, PAAA) run near 0.20%. Active loan picking is what the extra buys.
• The mandate reaches past senior loans into CLO debt tranches, second lien and mezzanine credit, further down the capital stack than a AAA-only fund.aaii.com
• Launched in 2024, so the record inside the ETF wrapper is still short.

Full CLOA profile⁠

Full EVLN profile⁠