5 Great Fixed-Income Funds to Buy for 2023
Better windfalls for fixed-income holdings may arrive in the new year. The advice of the experts is given below.
One of the worst years to invest in fixed-income securities was 2022. Bond rates skyrocketed as a result of aggressive interest rate increases, driving down the value of fixed-income assets overall and longer-duration securities in particular. Investors with a conventionally balanced 60/40 stock and bond portfolio experienced their worst declines in decades.
The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield increased gradually throughout 2022, rising from a low of 1.6% at the start of the year to 3.9% by December 30. By year's conclusion, the well-known Bloomberg Aggregate U.S. Bond Index, a gauge of the performance of all US fixed-income securities, had lost 14% of its value, posting its worst annual performance since its creation in 1977.
However, bonds continue to be a crucial component of a diversified investment strategy. According to Ted Stephenson, a finance and accounting professor at George Brown College, "Despite any correlation, bonds have outperformed equities in six of the past seven recessions. Ultimately, relative performance is more significant than the correlation between equities and bonds."
The forecast for 2023 is much different from where we were a year ago, according to Paul Malloy, head of municipals at Vanguard. In fact, fixed-income investors began 2022 with a federal funds rate that was almost zero but is now starting 2023 with a rate of 4% or higher. Malloy claims that the Federal Reserve "front-loaded" a large portion of its tightening of policy this cycle and is probably nearing the finish.
Malloy is generally upbeat about future fixed-income returns. "Interest rates have risen to a point where they offer enticing rewards. You are now compensated to wait for economic turbulence. If the dangers of a recession materialise, fixed income will fulfil its customary countercyclical function as a "flight to quality," benefiting from a greater price increase."
In light of this, the following are the opinions of various experts as to the top five fixed-income funds to invest in 2023:
- WisdomTree Floating Rate Treasury Fund (ticker: USFR)
- Vanguard Emerging Markets Government Bond ETF (VWOB)
- Vanguard Federal Money Market Fund (VMFXX)
- iShares 1-3 Year Treasury Bond ETF (SHY)
- Vanguard Intermediate-Term Investment-Grade Fund Admiral Shares (VFIDX)
WisdomTree Floating Rate Treasury Fund (USFR)
The Bloomberg U.S. Treasury Floating Rate Bond Index, which consists of a portfolio of short-term floating-rate Treasury notes, is tracked by USFR. The size of the coupon payments on floating-rate Treasury bonds can change depending on a reference rate that is based on the high yield identified at the weekly auction of 13-week Treasury bills. This makes floating-rate Treasury bonds special.
As a result, investors in floating-rate Treasury will benefit from higher Treasury rates. "In our perspective, USFR helps bridge an important gap between short-maturity Treasury bills and longer-maturity, fixed-rate Treasury bonds, providing a core alternative with lower interest rate and credit risk," says Darin Tuttle, a chief investment officer of Tuttle Ventures LLC. The cost ratio for the ETF is 0.15%.
Vanguard Emerging Markets Government Bond ETF (VWOB)
The bond market in the United States is not the only place where investors might find lucrative possibilities. According to the historical returns and standard deviation of both asset classes, emerging market bonds provide investors with 70% of long-term stock market returns for only about 55% of stock market risk. This is according to Taylor Sohns, co-founder of LifeGoal Investments.
Sohns suggests VWOB, which holds 754 bonds from governments in Turkey, China, Mexico, the United Arab Emirates, and 7 other nations. The ETF's current yield-to-maturity is 7.4%, which is significantly higher than the yield on comparable-duration US government Treasurys. In contrast to US bonds, the overall credit quality is weaker. The expenditure ratio charged by VWOB is 0.2%.
Vanguard Federal Money Market Fund (VMFXX)
Consider VMFXX if you're a low-risk investor looking for capital preservation and good liquidity. It aims to keep its net asset value, or NAV, at $1. As cautious as they come are money market funds like VMFXX. VMFXX now has a seven-day SEC yield of 4.2% due to rising interest rates. The fund has a $3,000 minimum investment requirement and carries an expense ratio of 0.11%.
VMFXX is a favourite of Running Point Capital Advisors partner and chief investment officer Michael Ashley Schulman. We would be (and have been) significant buyers of short-term government bonds in the three- to nine-month range, according to Schulman, based on the yield curve's distinctive form, which is currently inverted with six-month T-bill yields close to 4.7% and 10-year yields nearly 1% lower at 3.8%.
iShares 1-3 Year Treasury Bond ETF (SHY)
While it appears that recessionary dangers are approaching, other experts think that more Fed rate hikes are still imminent. According to David James, managing director at Coastal Bridge Advisors, "inflation will likely be somewhat sticky, so you may be better positioned by remaining with restricted maturities." "The yield on a two-year Treasury is currently 4.3%. That, in our opinion, will appeal to the majority of investors."
James advises investing in one- to three-year Treasury bonds using a low-cost index fund. A potential contender is SHY, which has an effective length of 1.8 years, tracks the ICE US Treasury 1-3 Year Index, and has a low-interest rate sensitivity. SHY now has a 4.5% average yield to maturity. The ETF presently has $27 billion in assets under management (AUM) with a 0.15% cost ratio.
Vanguard Intermediate-Term Investment-Grade Fund Admiral Shares (VFIDX)
Target investment-grade corporate bonds, which are those rated BBB or higher by Standard & Poor's, if you're an income-oriented investor willing to take on more credit risk in exchange for higher returns. For the first time since the Great Financial Crisis of 2008, investors can now obtain yields of 5% to 6% on a portfolio of investment-grade corporate bonds, according to Andy Kapyrin, director of research at RegentAtlantic Capital.
A portfolio of corporate bonds pooled consumer loans, and government bonds with an average tenure of five to ten years, an intermediate length of 6.3 years, and a yield to maturity of 5.2% is held by VFIDX, which Kapyrin advises. Bonds may once again be able to produce significant investment returns thanks to the rate increase in 2022, according to Kapyrin.