FCOR vs GIGB

FCORCFidelity Corporate Bond ETF

GIGBAGoldman Sachs Access Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF

In short

FCOR Fidelity's in-house take on corporate credit: roughly 400 investment-grade corporate bonds picked without a declared index to follow, with income paid out monthly. The trade-off is price, in a category where the index giants charge pennies.

GIGB Most investment-grade corporate bond funds just buy the biggest borrowers. Goldman's index screens the market on liquidity and fundamentals first, then spreads the money across roughly 1,600 bonds for 0.08% a year.

Stated mandate

FCOR The fund seeks a high level of current income and normally invests at least 80% of its assets in investment-grade corporate bonds and related corporate debt securities.

GIGB The Fund seeks to track the FTSE Goldman Sachs Investment Grade Corporate Bond Index, which measures U.S.-dollar-denominated investment-grade corporate bonds meeting liquidity and fundamental screening criteria.

Why people hold it

• FCOR Does exactly what the label says: at least 80% of assets in investment-grade corporate bonds and related corporate debt, with current income as the stated goal.fidelity.com
• Roughly 400 bonds under the hood and a monthly distribution schedule, so income lands on a regular cadence instead of quarterly.
• No declared index behind it. The portfolio reflects Fidelity's own credit calls rather than a benchmark's rulebook, and it has stayed tight to its stated corporate mandate.
• Launched in 2014, so this is a seasoned fund with a full credit cycle behind it, not a recent product-shelf addition.

• GIGB Costs 0.08% a year, well under the typical investment-grade corporate bond ETF's 0.19%.
• The index screens US dollar investment-grade corporates for liquidity and fundamentals rather than simply following who borrowed the most.gsam.com
• Tracks that index about as tightly as passive bond funds get, and holds roughly 1,600 bonds so no single issuer carries the load.
• Pays monthly, matching how corporate bond coupons tend to land in a portfolio.

Worth knowing

• FCOR The 0.36% expense ratio is the headline trade-off: the biggest indexed rivals in this space, VCIT and USIG, charge 0.03% and 0.04%.
• Trades lightly next to the category's heavyweights, which can mean wider bid-ask spreads, especially on larger orders.
• Add up cost and trading friction and it sits in the lower half of the investment-grade corporate bond field on our read.

• GIGB Cheap, but not the cheapest shelf: VCIT, USIG and SPIB run at 0.03% to 0.04%. You are paying a few basis points for the screening.
• Broad-maturity corporate credit moves on two levers, interest rates and credit spreads, so it swings more than short-dated bond funds.
• A mid-sized, moderately traded fund rather than a giant, so trading spreads can run wider than the largest names in the category.

Full FCOR profile⁠

Full GIGB profile⁠