HYG vs JNK Stock Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside
HYG and JNK are the two dominant high-yield corporate bond ETFs, providing similar credit market exposure with minor differences. HYG has deeper liquidity and broader diversification, making it the preferred institutional vehicle; JNK has a slightly lower expense ratio and slightly higher yield from lower average credit quality. Both are highly correlated in practice, and the choice primarily comes down to whether an investor prioritizes liquidity (HYG) or cost (JNK).
HYG vs JNK is a liquidity-versus-cost choice for nearly identical high-yield bond exposure — HYG is the professional-grade, deeply liquid credit tool while JNK offers marginal cost savings for investors who do not need maximum liquidity or options market access.
JNK holds the edge across 4 of 5 key metrics in this comparison. JNK has delivered stronger 1-year price return (+1.00% vs +0.91% for HYG).
- prefer the most liquid high-yield bond ETF with the deepest options market for credit hedging strategies
- value broader diversification and slightly higher average credit quality within the high-yield universe
- want the default institutional high-yield credit vehicle for portfolio management and risk hedging
- are comfortable paying 0.48% for superior execution quality and liquidity over JNK's marginally lower cost
- prefer a slightly lower 0.40% expense ratio for long-term buy-and-hold high-yield bond exposure
- value the marginally higher yield from JNK's slightly lower average credit quality composition
- want high-yield corporate bond income without the need for HYG's depth of options market access
- are comfortable with slightly lower average credit quality and slightly less liquidity than HYG
| Metric | HYG | JNK |
|---|---|---|
| ETF scorei | 24.5 | 24.5 |
| Latest closei | $76.98 | $92.36 |
| 1M returni | +0.09% | -0.03% |
| 3M returni | -2.70% | -3.00% |
| 6M returni | -1.73% | -1.87% |
| 1Y returni | +0.91% | +1.00% |
The ETF score weights long-term returns and risk-adjusted performance most heavily, but still rewards low expense ratios, larger fund size, and broader diversification — so it can favor low-cost, broad, mega-cap funds over smaller thematic or actively-managed funds even when the latter have delivered stronger returns.
How much would $10,000 be worth today if invested at the start of each period, with all dividends reinvested?
| Period | HYG | JNK |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y ago | $10.67K (+6.7%) started 2025-11-03 | $10.74K (+7.4%) started 2025-11-03 |
| 5Y ago | $15.93K (+59.3%) started 2021-11-04 | $16.51K (+65.1%) started 2021-11-04 |
| 10Y ago | $30.18K (+201.8%) started 2016-11-04 | $32.91K (+229.1%) started 2016-11-04 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
| Metric | HYG | JNK |
|---|---|---|
| Expense ratioi | 0.49% | 0.40% |
| Total assets (AUM)i | $16.78B | $6.5B |
| Dividend yieldi | 6.14% | 6.83% |
| Trailing P/Ei | N/A | N/A |
| Betai | 0.42 | 0.44 |
| 52-week change | 0.91% | 1.00% |
| Metric | HYG | JNK |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y returni | +0.91% | +1.00% |
| 6M returni | -1.73% | -1.87% |
| 3M returni | -2.70% | -3.00% |
| 1M returni | +0.09% | -0.03% |
| 1Y Sharpe ratio | -0.90 | -0.87 |
| Betai | 0.42 | 0.44 |
| Dividend yieldi | 6.14% | 6.83% |
| 5Y CAGR | +3.06% | +2.91% |
Over the past year, HYG and JNK have moved strongly in the same direction (correlation of 0.99), based on daily returns.
Lower drawdown and smaller single-period drops generally indicate a smoother ride, though they do not guarantee lower future risk.
| Period | Metric | HYG | JNK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Y | Growthi | +0.91% | +1.00% |
| CAGRi | +0.91% | +1.00% | |
| Volatilityi | 3.91% | 3.95% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | -0.90 | -0.87 | |
| Sortino ratioi | -1.20 | -1.16 | |
| Max drawdowni | 3.36% | 3.58% | |
| Current drawdowni | 3.15% | 3.46% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 0.65% | 0.68% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 1.13% | 1.20% | |
| Max daily dropi | 0.93% | 0.88% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 1.67% | 1.91% | |
| 5Y | Growthi | +16.23% | +15.39% |
| CAGRi | +3.06% | +2.91% | |
| Volatilityi | 7.55% | 7.58% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | -0.16 | -0.18 | |
| Sortino ratioi | -0.22 | -0.25 | |
| Max drawdowni | 15.79% | 16.67% | |
| Current drawdowni | 3.15% | 3.46% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 3.63% | 3.95% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 5.62% | 6.09% | |
| Max daily dropi | 3.35% | 3.43% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 6.34% | 6.64% | |
| 10Y | Growthi | +52.58% | +52.38% |
| CAGRi | +4.32% | +4.30% | |
| Volatilityi | 8.19% | 8.20% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.01 | 0.01 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 0.01 | 0.01 | |
| Max drawdowni | 22.03% | 22.89% | |
| Current drawdowni | 3.15% | 3.46% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 2.44% | 2.66% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 4.42% | 4.79% | |
| Max daily dropi | 5.50% | 5.76% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 12.87% | 13.15% |
| Category | HYG | JNK |
|---|---|---|
| Fund name | iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond ETF | State Street SPDR Bloomberg High Yield Bond ETF |
| Type | ETF | ETF |
| Expense ratioi | 0.49% | 0.40% |
| Total assets (AUM)i | $16.78B | $6.5B |
| Dividend yieldi | 6.14% | 6.83% |
- Deepest liquidity of any high-yield bond ETF, with tight bid-ask spreads and active options market for hedging
- Broad diversification across 1,000+ high-yield issuers reduces single-issuer default concentration
- Default institutional vehicle for high-yield credit exposure, used by hedge funds and portfolio managers for credit hedging
- 0.40% expense ratio is 8 basis points lower than HYG, offering modest cost advantage for long-term holders
- Slightly higher yield than HYG due to lower average credit quality mix
- State Street's ETF infrastructure provides institutional-grade high-yield bond exposure alongside HYG as the primary alternative
- 0.48% expense ratio is relatively high for a bond ETF
- High-yield bonds are correlated to equities during risk-off events, reducing their portfolio diversification benefit
- Credit quality within HYG spans BB and B rated bonds — more vulnerable in recessions than investment-grade corporate bonds
- Lower average credit quality than HYG means more exposure to CCC-rated bonds that are most vulnerable in recessions
- Less liquid than HYG — bid-ask spreads can widen more than HYG's during market stress events
- Smaller AUM and options market than HYG limits its usefulness for institutional hedging strategies
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