NPFI vs PFF: Grades, Fees and Holdings Compared

Nuveen Preferred and Income

NPFICNasdaq

iShares Preferred and Income Securities ETF

PFFANasdaq

Overlap

0.0%by weight

Expense ratio

PFF −0.11pt a year

NPFI0.56%PFF0.45%

Avg volume · 30D

PFF 125.7×the volume

NPFI25.2KPFF3.17M

NPFI vs PFF Performance

Nov 7, 2025 – Nov 9, 2026

+3.2%NPFI−2.7%PFF

Expense ratio: NPFI 0.56%; PFF 0.45%, better
Fund size: NPFI $164M; PFF $11.5B
1Y total return: NPFI +3.2%, better; PFF −2.7%
Yield (12M): NPFI 6.72%, better; PFF 5.73%
Holdings: NPFI 159; PFF 452
Avg volume (30D): NPFI 25.2K sh; PFF 3.17M sh, better
NAV per share: NPFI $25.20; PFF $28.29
52W range

ETF.net Grade

Pillar letters and Scores for NPFI, PFF, with each pillar’s weight
Pillar	NPFI	PFF
Cost30% weight	C40	A73Higher
Mission25% weight	B66	A81Higher
Risk15% weight	A72Higher	D30
Tradability15% weight	C46	A89Higher
Holdings10% weight	B69Higher	B61
Durability5% weight	D37	A97Higher

Rank among Preferred Securities funds

How we build Categories ›

Same Category. NPFI and PFF are both graded against the same 31 Preferred Securities funds, so their Grades compare head to head.

Preferred Securities⁠

Category · 31 funds

See all 31 ›

PFF ranks 2nd and NPFI 14th of 31 funds in the Preferred Securities Category.

Rank 1APFFDGlobal X U.S. Preferred ETFScore 74
Rank 2APFFiShares Preferred and Income Securities ETFScore 70
Rank 3BPFFVGlobal X Variable Rate Preferred ETFScore 69
Rank 13BHBRDInvesco U.S. Hybrid Bond ETFScore 56
Rank 14CNPFINuveen Preferred and IncomeScore 55
Rank 14BPFLDAAM Low Duration Preferred and Income Securities ETFScore 55

Our read on each fund

ETF.net Research

NPFICNuveen Preferred and Income

PFFAiShares Preferred and Income Securities ETF

In short

NPFI A preferred-securities income fund wearing a financials jersey. Nuveen's ETF seeks high current income plus total return from roughly 160 preferreds and other income payers, and pays monthly.

PFF Preferred stock is a clumsy market to shop one issue at a time. PFF, running since 2007, bundles roughly 500 US dollar preferreds and hybrids into a single heavily traded ticker and pays out monthly.

Stated mandate

NPFI The Fund seeks a high level of current income together with total return.

PFF The fund seeks to track an index of U.S. dollar-denominated preferred and hybrid securities, providing exposure to preferred stock and subordinated debt with an income-oriented mandate.

Why people hold it

NPFI Income-first mandate: a high level of current income together with total return, paid out monthly rather than quarterly.
Owns preferred securities, not bank common stock like XLF or VFH, so it acts as an income sleeve rather than a sector-earnings bet.
Spread across roughly 160 income-producing positions, so no single issuer's coupon runs the show.

PFF One ticker buys roughly 500 US dollar preferreds and hybrids tracking the ICE Exchange-Listed Preferred & Hybrid Securities Index, a corner most investors can't assemble issue by issue.
Distributions land monthly rather than quarterly, a steadier rhythm for anyone spending the income.
A multi-billion-dollar fund that trades actively, so getting in and out is rarely the hard part.
Live since 2007, through the financial crisis and several rate cycles, with the same income-oriented mandate from a large index shop.

Worth knowing

NPFI At 0.56% a year it costs more than the typical fund in its financials cohort, and many times index peers like XLF (0.08%) or VFH (0.09%).
A small fund that trades lightly, so bid-ask spreads can run wider than on the cohort's giants.
Launched in 2024, so the track record is short, and it sits in the lower tier of its financials cohort on cost and trading friction.

PFF 0.45% a year is the going rate in this niche (the peer median), but it's many times what broad stock index trackers like VT charge.
Preferreds and subordinated debt are hybrids: they rank below an issuer's senior bonds, so this trades on credit and rate conditions more than on earnings growth.
The mandate is US dollar issuers only, so there's no international preferred exposure here.

Full NPFI profile⁠

Full PFF profile⁠

NPFI vs PFF Holdings

How NPFI and PFF differ

Overlap by weight

0.0%

Level by level

Asset classBonds, Stocks0.0%
Holdings0 in both0.0%
Countryby domicile45.3%

Sector

No Sector split for NPFI.

Country, concentration and asset class

Country by domicile

Country weights in NPFI and PFF, widest gap first
Country	Gap	NPFI	PFF
United States	PFF +54.7 points	45.3%	100.0%
Canada	NPFI +13.6 points	13.6%	0.0%
United Kingdom	NPFI +13.3 points	13.3%	0.0%
France	NPFI +9.1 points	9.1%	0.0%
Spain	NPFI +5.4 points	5.4%	0.0%
Switzerland	NPFI +4.5 points	4.5%	0.0%
Bermuda	NPFI +2.3 points	2.3%	0.0%
Netherlands	NPFI +1.9 points	1.9%	0.0%
Other countries (4)	NPFI +4.6 points	4.6%	0.0%

Outside the US: NPFI 96% developed, 4% emerging.

Concentration

Weight in the 10 largest Holdings

NPFI14.2%
PFF21.3%

Securities held

NPFI120
PFF447

Asset class

NPFI: Bonds
PFF: Stocks

Holdings

Only in NPFI120
In both0
Only in PFF447

Only in NPFI

120 securities, 98.9% of NPFI by weight

Bnp Parib Vrn 12/31/993.80%
Wells Far Vrn 12/31/993.11%
Banco San Vrn 12/31/993.03%
Natwest G Vrn 12/31/992.93%
Barclays Vrn 12/31/992.68%
JPMorgan Vrn 12/31/992.65%
Citigroup Vrn 12/31/992.63%
Ubs Group Vrn 12/31/992.51%
Hsbc Hold Vrn 12/31/21992.09%
Lloyds Ba Vrn 12/31/21991.85%
Sbl Holdi Vrn 12/31/991.70%
Goldman’s Vrn 12/31/21991.58%
Nordea Ba Vrn 12/31/21991.38%
Goldman’s Vrn 12/31/991.28%
Royal Ban Vrn 05/24/861.27%
Societe G Vrn 12/31/991.25%
Bank Vrn 11/26/20841.24%
Phoenix G Vrn 12/31/21991.21%
Truist Fi Vrn 12/31/991.21%
Hsbc Hold Vrn 12/31/991.15%
Societe G Vrn 12/31/21991.13%
Banco Bil Vrn 12/31/21991.13%
Bank of A Vrn 12/31/21991.13%
Bank of A Vrn 12/31/991.11%
Huntingto Vrn 12/31/991.10%
Citigroup Vrn 12/31/21991.10%
Credit AG Vrn 12/31/991.08%
Pnc Finan Vrn 12/31/991.08%
Credit AG Vrn 12/31/21991.07%
Enbridge Vrn 01/15/841.06%
Aercap Ir Vrn 03/10/551.01%
Ubs Group Vrn 12/31/21991.01%
Farm Cred Vrn 12/31/990.99%
Julius Ba Vrn 12/31/990.99%
Royal Ban Vrn 08/24/850.98%
Enstar Gr Vrn 07/15/370.98%
Canadian Vrn 10/28/850.97%
Assurant Vrn 03/27/480.97%
Enbridge Vrn 01/15/830.93%
Cobank Ac Vrn 12/31/990.93%
Ing Groep Vrn 12/31/990.93%
Ing Groep Vrn 12/31/21990.91%
General M Vrn 12/31/990.90%
Deutsche Vrn 12/31/21990.88%
Enstar Gr Vrn 04/01/450.81%
Energy Tr Vrn 02/15/560.81%
Bank of Vrn 12/31/990.79%
Canadian Vrn 01/28/850.74%
Land O' L 7.25% 12/31/990.73%
Land O' L 8.% 12/31/990.73%

Only in PFF

447 securities, 99.6% of PFF by weight

Strategy Inc3.50%
Boeing Co3.22%
Wells Fargo & Company Series L2.14%
Alphabet Inc2.12%
Alphabet Inc2.09%
Oracle Corporation1.94%
Super Micro Computer Inc1.91%
Nextera Energy Units1.83%
Nextera Energy Inc1.77%
Hewlett Packard Enterprise Conv Pr1.76%
Bank of America Corp1.42%
Citigroup Capital Xiii1.21%
Kkr & Co Inc1.10%
Albemarle Corp1.03%
Duke Energy Corp1.02%
Southern Company (The)0.98%
Brightspring Health Services Units0.90%
JPMorgan Chase & Co0.87%
Microchip Technology Incorporated0.79%
JPMorgan Chase & Co0.74%
Wells Fargo & Company0.69%
Ares Management Corp0.66%
JPMorgan Chase and Co Ds Repstg T0.65%
JPMorgan Chase Non-Cumulative Pref0.64%
Bruker Corporation0.63%
AT&T Inc0.56%
Strive Inc0.55%
PG&E Corporation0.54%
Ppl Corporation0.54%
Capital One Financial Corporation0.51%
JPMorgan Chase Drc0.51%
AT&T Inc0.49%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc0.49%
Strategy Inc0.49%
Morgan Stanley0.49%
Bank of America Corp0.47%
M&T Bank Corporation0.47%
Morgan Stanley0.47%
Duke Energy Corp0.46%
Morgan Stanley Ds Representing F0.46%
Morgan Stanley0.44%
Bank Amer Ds Representing Non Cu0.43%
Allstate Corporation (The)0.43%
Morgan Stanley0.42%
Morgan Stanley Ds0.42%
Morgan Stanley0.41%
Morgan Stanley0.41%
Capital One Financial Corporation0.40%
AT&T Inc0.40%
Wells Fargo & Company0.40%

Weight gaps

NPFI and PFF share no securities.

All 160 NPFI holdings⁠All 454 PFF holdings⁠

How we measure overlap

Each holding counts at its smaller weight in the two funds, summed over the full Holdings. Sector, country and asset class use the same rule on each fund’s split. Cash, FX and derivative lines stay out of the counts. Two bond funds get no overlap figure.

NPFI vs PFF Cost

Overpaying NPFI vs PFF

$2,047

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

NPFI 0.56%
$11,088
PFF 0.45%
$9,041

Amount$10,000

Years30 years

Cost over time

NPFI 0.56%
PFF 0.45%
Overpaying

Year by year

Year	NPFI	PFF	Overpaying
10	$1,006	$812	$194
20	$3,855	$3,128	$727
30	$11,088	$9,041	$2,047

Expense ratio

0.56%NPFI
0.45%PFF, cheaper

PFF0.45%NPFI0.56%

0.23%2.11%

Middle half of Preferred Securities funds
Median 0.50%

PFF 6th cheapest of 31 funds

NPFI 19th cheapest of 31 funds

NPFI vs PFF Dividends

Last 12 months to Nov 9, 2026

Yield (12M): NPFI 6.72%, better; PFF 5.73%
Payout (12M): NPFI $1.70; PFF $1.64
Last payment: NPFI $0.15; PFF $0.18
Ex-dividend: NPFI Nov 2, 2026; PFF Nov 2, 2026
Paid on: NPFI Nov 3, 2026; PFF Nov 5, 2026
Frequency: NPFI Monthly; PFF Monthly

Distribution history

Per share, 2023 to 2026, same scale for both

NPFIMonthly · 32 paymentsAll NPFI payments⁠

PFFMonthly · 46 paymentsAll PFF payments⁠

NPFI vs PFF Risk

Fall from peak · 5 years

This chart needs five years of history for both funds.

Risk facts

VolatilityStd dev, 3 years: NPFI 3.7%since Apr 2024PFF 8.5%
Return per unit of riskSharpe ratio, 3 years: NPFI 0.39since Apr 2024PFF 0.22
Worst fallMax drawdown, 5 years: NPFI −3.2%since Mar 2024PFF −21.1%
Market sensitivityBeta, 5 years: NPFI 0.24PFF 0.97; Market = 1

NPFI and PFF in the news

All news⁠

ETF Filings
BondBloxx registers a 0.22% core-plus bond ETF, and two funds still not for sale
Oct 21, 2026PFF
Deep Dive
Financials drop 2.4% after the Fed's first hike since 2023 and a Bank of America fee warning
Sep 19, 2026PFF

Popular comparisons

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Category

NPFI vs PFF

In short

Stated mandate

Why people hold it

Worth knowing

How NPFI and PFF differ

Level by level

Sector

Country, concentration and asset class

Country by domicile

Concentration

Asset class

Holdings

Only in NPFI

Only in PFF

Weight gaps

Cost over time

Year by year

Distribution history

Fall from peak · 5 years

Risk facts

BondBloxx registers a 0.22% core-plus bond ETF, and two funds still not for sale

Financials drop 2.4% after the Fed's first hike since 2023 and a Bank of America fee warning

How NPFI and PFF differ

Level by level

Sector

Country, concentration and asset class

Country by domicile

Concentration

Asset class

Holdings

Only in NPFI

Only in PFF

Weight gaps