We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience.
This includes personalizing content and advertising.
By pressing "Accept All" or closing out of this banner, you consent to the use of all cookies and similar technologies and the sharing of information they collect with third parties.
You can reject marketing cookies by pressing "Deny Optional," but we still use essential, performance, and functional cookies.
In addition, whether you "Accept All," Deny Optional," click the X or otherwise continue to use the site, you accept our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service, revised from time to time.
You are being directed to ZacksTrade, a division of LBMZ Securities and licensed broker-dealer. ZacksTrade and Zacks.com are separate companies. The web link between the two companies is not a solicitation or offer to invest in a particular security or type of security. ZacksTrade does not endorse or adopt any particular investment strategy, any analyst opinion/rating/report or any approach to evaluating individual securities.
If you wish to go to ZacksTrade, click OK. If you do not, click Cancel.
Is WisdomTree U.S. High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (QHY) a Strong ETF Right Now?
Read MoreHide Full Article
Launched on 04/27/2016, the WisdomTree U.S. High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (QHY - Free Report) is a smart beta exchange traded fund offering 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.
Because market cap weighted indexes provide a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, they work well for investors who believe in market efficiency.
However, some investors believe in the possibility of beating the market through exceptional stock selection, and choose a different type of fund that tracks non-cap weighted strategies: smart beta.
This kind of index follows this same mindset, as it attempts to pick stocks that have better chances of risk-return performance; non-cap weighted strategies base selection on certain fundamental characteristics, or a mix of such characteristics.
Methodologies like equal-weighting, one of the simplest options out there, fundamental weighting, and volatility/momentum based weighting are all choices offered to investors in this space, but not all of them can deliver superior returns.
Fund Sponsor & Index
Managed by Wisdomtree, QHY has amassed assets over $243.62 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs in the High-Yield/Junk Bond ETFs. Before fees and expenses, this particular fund 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
Since cheaper funds tend to produce better results than more expensive funds, assuming all other factors remain equal, it is important for investors to pay attention to an ETF's expense ratio.
Annual operating expenses for QHY are 0.38%, which makes it on par with most peer products in the space.
The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 6.44%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
ETFs offer diversified exposure and thus minimize single stock risk, but it is still important to delve into a fund's holdings before investing. Most ETFs are very transparent products and many disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
Looking at individual holdings, Cash-dreyfus Trsy Cash accounts for about 55.19% of total assets, followed by Cash-us Dollar and Snap Inc 6.875% 3/1/2033.
QHY's top 10 holdings account for about 103.89% of its total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has lost about -0.04% and was up about 1.2% so far this year and in the past one year (as of 10/06/2026), respectively. QHY has traded between $44.23 and $46.89 during this last 52-week period.
The fund has a beta of 0.43 and standard deviation of 4.68% for the trailing three-year period. With about 490 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 $17.24 billion in assets, iShares Broad USD High Yield Corporate Bond ETF has $25.81 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.
View the Zacks #1 Rank List
Image: Bigstock
Is WisdomTree U.S. High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (QHY) a Strong ETF Right Now?
Launched on 04/27/2016, the WisdomTree U.S. High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (QHY - Free Report) is a smart beta exchange traded fund offering 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.
Because market cap weighted indexes provide a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns, they work well for investors who believe in market efficiency.
However, some investors believe in the possibility of beating the market through exceptional stock selection, and choose a different type of fund that tracks non-cap weighted strategies: smart beta.
This kind of index follows this same mindset, as it attempts to pick stocks that have better chances of risk-return performance; non-cap weighted strategies base selection on certain fundamental characteristics, or a mix of such characteristics.
Methodologies like equal-weighting, one of the simplest options out there, fundamental weighting, and volatility/momentum based weighting are all choices offered to investors in this space, but not all of them can deliver superior returns.
Fund Sponsor & Index
Managed by Wisdomtree, QHY has amassed assets over $243.62 million, making it one of the average sized ETFs in the High-Yield/Junk Bond ETFs. Before fees and expenses, this particular fund 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
Since cheaper funds tend to produce better results than more expensive funds, assuming all other factors remain equal, it is important for investors to pay attention to an ETF's expense ratio.
Annual operating expenses for QHY are 0.38%, which makes it on par with most peer products in the space.
The fund has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 6.44%.
Sector Exposure and Top Holdings
ETFs offer diversified exposure and thus minimize single stock risk, but it is still important to delve into a fund's holdings before investing. Most ETFs are very transparent products and many disclose their holdings on a daily basis.
Looking at individual holdings, Cash-dreyfus Trsy Cash accounts for about 55.19% of total assets, followed by Cash-us Dollar and Snap Inc 6.875% 3/1/2033.
QHY's top 10 holdings account for about 103.89% of its total assets under management.
Performance and Risk
The ETF has lost about -0.04% and was up about 1.2% so far this year and in the past one year (as of 10/06/2026), respectively. QHY has traded between $44.23 and $46.89 during this last 52-week period.
The fund has a beta of 0.43 and standard deviation of 4.68% for the trailing three-year period. With about 490 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 $17.24 billion in assets, iShares Broad USD High Yield Corporate Bond ETF has $25.81 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.