BSV
Vanguard Short-Term Bond ETFBSV Fund Description
BSV tracks a market-weighted index of US-government bonds, investment-grade corporate and investment-grade international dollar-denominated bonds with maturities of 1-5 years.
BSV Factset Analytics Insight
BSV is a large, liquid ETF that holds a mix of investment-grade, dollar-denominated debt issued in the US with 1-5 years remaining in maturity. Treasurys dominate the basket, which also includes corporates, agency issues, and a small amount of foreign debt issued in USD. “Short-term” is in the eye of beholder: The inclusion of bonds maturing in 3 to 5 years gives BSV a longer-dated portfolio than our benchmark, which tracks bonds in the 1- to 3-year bucket exclusively. The hefty chunk of longer-dated bonds increases BSV’s weighted average maturity, interest-rate risk and yield compared with our benchmark.The exposure comes cheap—a low fee, solid tracking and strong trading volume keep all-in costs low. We estimate underlying liquidity to be middling, which is par for the course. The lone, small drawback for BSV is the issuer’s lack of transparency, as holdings are only posted monthly with a two-week lag. Note: Former rival ISTB changed indexes in 2014 to include high-yield bonds, which BSV avoids.
BSV MSCI ESG Analytics Insight
Vanguard Short-Term Bond ETF has an MSCI ESG Fund Rating of A based on a score of 6.17 out of 10. The MSCI ESG Fund Rating measures the resiliency of portfolios to long-term risks and opportunities arising from environmental, social, and governance factors. ESG Fund Ratings range from best (AAA) to worst (CCC). Highly rated funds consist of companies that tend to show strong and/or improving management of financially relevant environmental, social and governance issues. These companies may be more resilient to disruptions arising from ESG events.
The fund’s Peer Rank reflects the ranking of a fund’s MSCI ESG Fund Quality Score against the scores of other funds within the same peer group, as defined by the Thomson Reuters Lipper Global Classification. Vanguard Short-Term Bond ETF ranks in the 69th percentile within its peer group and in the 80th percentile within the global universe of all funds covered by MSCI ESG Fund Ratings.