SPLB And TLT Both Offer Strong Dividend Yield

Core Viewpoint - The iShares 20 Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT) and State Street SPDR Portfolio Long Term Corporate Bond ETF (SPLB) target the long end of the U.S. bond market but differ in their approaches and risk profiles [1] Cost & Size - TLT has an expense ratio of 0.15% and SPLB has a lower expense ratio of 0.04% [2] - As of February 7, 2026, TLT has a 1-year return of -2.61% while SPLB has a positive return of 0.22% [2] - TLT offers a dividend yield of 4.43% compared to SPLB's higher yield of 5.25% [2] - TLT has an Assets Under Management (AUM) of $44.81 billion, significantly larger than SPLB's $1.22 billion [2] Performance & Risk Comparison - Over the past five years, TLT experienced a maximum drawdown of -43.71%, while SPLB had a lower drawdown of -34.45% [4] - An investment of $1,000 would have grown to $585 in TLT and $710 in SPLB over five years, indicating better performance for SPLB [4] Portfolio Composition - SPLB invests in a diversified basket of 2,961 long-term, investment-grade U.S. corporate bonds, including major companies like Meta, CVS Health, and Verizon [5] - TLT holds only 47 U.S. Treasury bonds, all with maturities beyond 20 years, which minimizes default risk as all holdings are AA-rated [6] Dividend Insights - SPLB has a higher dividend yield percentage than TLT, but TLT has a higher total dividend payout due to its higher price [7] - Long-term bonds, like those in TLT and SPLB, are more sensitive to interest rate fluctuations compared to short-term bonds, which can affect their returns [8][9]