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Is WisdomTree U.S. High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (QHY) a Strong ETF Right Now?
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Making its debut on 04/27/2016, smart beta exchange traded fund WisdomTree U.S. High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (QHY - Free Report) provides investors broad exposure to the High-Yield/Junk Bond ETFs category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
The ETF industry has long been dominated by products based on market cap weighted indexes, a strategy created to reflect the market or a particular market segment.
Market cap weighted indexes offer a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, and are a good option for investors who believe in market efficiency.
But, there are some investors who would rather invest in smart beta funds; these funds track non-cap weighted strategies, and are a strong option for those who prefer choosing great stocks in order to beat the market.
Non-cap weighted indexes try to choose stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, which is based on specific fundamental characteristics, or a mix of other such characteristics.
The smart beta space gives investors many different choices, from equal-weighting, one of the simplest strategies, to more complicated ones like fundamental and volatility/momentum based weighting. However, not all of these methodologies have been able to deliver remarkable returns.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is managed by Wisdomtree. QHY has been able to amass assets over $210.13 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs in the High-Yield/Junk Bond ETFs. QHY, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the WISDOMTREE US HIGH YIELD CORP BOND INDEX.
The WisdomTree U.S. High Yield Corporate Bond Index is a rule-based alternatively weighted Index designed to capture the performance of selected issuers in the U.S. high yield corporate bond market that are deemed to have attractive fundamental and income characteristics.
Cost & Other Expenses
For ETF investors, expense ratios are an important factor when considering a fund's return; in the long-term, cheaper funds actually have the ability to outperform their more expensive cousins if all other things remain the same.
Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.38% for QHY, making it on par with most peer products in the space.
QHY's 12-month trailing dividend yield is 6.33%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
It is important to delve into an ETF's holdings before investing despite the many upsides to these kinds of funds like diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
When you look at individual holdings, Dreyfus Trsy Oblig Cash Mgmt Cl Insaccounts for about 61.48% of the fund's total assets, followed by Us Dollar and Level 3 Financing Inc 6.875% 6/30/2033.
QHY's top 10 holdings account for about 104.17% of its total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, QHY has lost about -0.67%, and is up about 7.04% in the last one year (as of 03/19/2026). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $43.48 and $46.89.
The fund has a beta of 0.45 and standard deviation of 4.87% for the trailing three-year period. With about 475 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .
Alternatives
WisdomTree U.S. High Yield Corporate Bond ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the High-Yield/Junk Bond ETFs segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (HYG) tracks Markit iBoxx USD Liquid High Yield Index and the iShares Broad USD High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (USHY) tracks BofA Merrill Lynch U.S. High Yield Constrained Index. iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond ETF has $15.39 billion in assets, iShares Broad USD High Yield Corporate Bond ETF has $25.96 billion. HYG has an expense ratio of 0.49% and USHY changes 0.08%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the High-Yield/Junk Bond ETFs
Bottom Line
To learn more about this product and other ETFs, screen for products that match your investment objectives and read articles on latest developments in the ETF investing universe, please visit Zacks ETF Center.
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Is WisdomTree U.S. High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (QHY) a Strong ETF Right Now?
Making its debut on 04/27/2016, smart beta exchange traded fund WisdomTree U.S. High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (QHY - Free Report) provides investors broad exposure to the High-Yield/Junk Bond ETFs category of the market.
What Are Smart Beta ETFs?
The ETF industry has long been dominated by products based on market cap weighted indexes, a strategy created to reflect the market or a particular market segment.
Market cap weighted indexes offer a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, and are a good option for investors who believe in market efficiency.
But, there are some investors who would rather invest in smart beta funds; these funds track non-cap weighted strategies, and are a strong option for those who prefer choosing great stocks in order to beat the market.
Non-cap weighted indexes try to choose stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, which is based on specific fundamental characteristics, or a mix of other such characteristics.
The smart beta space gives investors many different choices, from equal-weighting, one of the simplest strategies, to more complicated ones like fundamental and volatility/momentum based weighting. However, not all of these methodologies have been able to deliver remarkable returns.
Fund Sponsor & Index
The fund is managed by Wisdomtree. QHY has been able to amass assets over $210.13 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs in the High-Yield/Junk Bond ETFs. QHY, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the WISDOMTREE US HIGH YIELD CORP BOND INDEX.
The WisdomTree U.S. High Yield Corporate Bond Index is a rule-based alternatively weighted Index designed to capture the performance of selected issuers in the U.S. high yield corporate bond market that are deemed to have attractive fundamental and income characteristics.
Cost & Other Expenses
For ETF investors, expense ratios are an important factor when considering a fund's return; in the long-term, cheaper funds actually have the ability to outperform their more expensive cousins if all other things remain the same.
Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.38% for QHY, making it on par with most peer products in the space.
QHY's 12-month trailing dividend yield is 6.33%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
It is important to delve into an ETF's holdings before investing despite the many upsides to these kinds of funds like diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk. And, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
When you look at individual holdings, Dreyfus Trsy Oblig Cash Mgmt Cl Insaccounts for about 61.48% of the fund's total assets, followed by Us Dollar and Level 3 Financing Inc 6.875% 6/30/2033.
QHY's top 10 holdings account for about 104.17% of its total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
So far this year, QHY has lost about -0.67%, and is up about 7.04% in the last one year (as of 03/19/2026). During this past 52-week period, the fund has traded between $43.48 and $46.89.
The fund has a beta of 0.45 and standard deviation of 4.87% for the trailing three-year period. With about 475 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk .
Alternatives
WisdomTree U.S. High Yield Corporate Bond ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the High-Yield/Junk Bond ETFs segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider.
iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (HYG) tracks Markit iBoxx USD Liquid High Yield Index and the iShares Broad USD High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (USHY) tracks BofA Merrill Lynch U.S. High Yield Constrained Index. iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond ETF has $15.39 billion in assets, iShares Broad USD High Yield Corporate Bond ETF has $25.96 billion. HYG has an expense ratio of 0.49% and USHY changes 0.08%.
Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the High-Yield/Junk Bond ETFs
Bottom Line
To learn more about this product and other ETFs, screen for products that match your investment objectives and read articles on latest developments in the ETF investing universe, please visit Zacks ETF Center.