Janus Henderson AAA CLO ETF [JAAA]
By: Ted Black, CFP®
Spring 2026 (Vol. 44, No. 1)
Most investors look to keep some portion of their investment assets in safe, low or no volatility holdings. Certificates of Deposit (CDs) and/or Money Markets are popular choices that provide stable performance with known levels of return.
In an effort to earn higher returns while assuming very little risk, in addition to CDs and Money Markets one can look to an investment such as the Janus Henderson AAA CLO ETF (JAAA).
JAAA seeks capital preservation and current income by seeking exposure to high quality AAA rated collateralized loan obligations (CLOs). A CLO is a securitization product created to acquire and manage a pool of leveraged loans. CLOs are actively managed, allowing managers to buy and sell loans within the pool, which aims to optimize returns and minimize losses, offering diversity and potential for higher-than-average yields to investors.
John Kerschner, Global Head of Securitized Products and portfolio manager at Janus Henderson Investors and Nick Childs, Head of Structured and Quantitative Fixed Income and portfolio manager have been the lead managers of this fund since its inception in 2020.
Industry standard bond rating agencies evaluate the risk of a bond and assign it a safety rating. There are various levels of Investment Grade and Below Investment Grade bonds, ranging from the safest to the riskiest. AAA is the highest ranking within the Investment Grade sector. As its name implies, this fund only invests in AAA rated, floating rate corporate bonds. Floating rate indicates that these bonds are subject to periodic resetting of interest paid dictated by the current level and direction of interest rates.
In short, if interest rates are in an uptrend the yield on this fund may increase, and if interest rates are in a downtrend, the yield on this fund may decrease.
Diversification plays an important role in an investor's overall performance. Not only do we look to diversify among different asset classes such as Stocks, Bonds and Cash equivalents, but also diversify within each of those categories. For those looking for alternatives within the safe money portion of their portfolio, JAAA is worth considering.
This fund is a monthly payer and has a current yield of 5.14%.
Performance annualized and updated through 03/28/2026:
1-Year: +5.11%; 3-Year: +6.85%; 5-Year: +4.64%.
The gross annual expense ratio is 0.20%.
If you're interested in this fund, or would like a portfolio review to determine if this fund might be an appropriate addition to your portfolio, please call Ted Black, CFP® at 888-878-0001, extension 3.
Statistics and information provided by Momingstar and Janus-Henderson. Please visit the Janus-Henderson website at https://www.janushenderson.com/en-us/advisor/product/jaaa-aaa-clo-etf/ for the most recent performance information. The principal value and investment return will fluctuate so that an investor's shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost. Returns shown, unless otherwise indicated, are total retums, including any capital gains or losses and all dividend and capital gains distributions. The performance data quoted represents past performance and in no way guarantees future results. Mutual funds and ETFs are not FDIC insured.
Mutual funds and ETFs are sold by prospectus. An investor should consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses of the investment company carefully before investing. The prospectus contains this and other information about the investment company. Please contact our office at 888-878-0001 to obtain a prospectus. Please read the prospectus carefully before you invest or send money.
Advisory services offered through Royal Palm Investment Advisors, Inc., a Registered Investment Advisor.