Are AGG and MKTN the same kind of fund?

AGG is an index ETF and MKTN is an alternatives ETF, so they are built for different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and what each holds.

Which returned more over the last year, AGG or MKTN?

In the year to Oct 1, 2026, with distributions reinvested, AGG returned −1.9% and MKTN +12.5%.

Which is cheaper, AGG or MKTN?

AGG is cheaper, by 1.91 percentage points a year. On $10,000 held for a year that difference is about $191. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

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AGG vs MKTN: how they differ

Over the year AGG returned −1.9% to MKTN's +12.5%, and AGG charges 0.03% to MKTN's 1.94%. iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF and Federated Hermes MDT Market Neutral ETF.

−1.9%

AGG total return, 1 year

+12.5%

MKTN total return, 1 year

0.03%

AGG expense ratio

1.94%

MKTN expense ratio

On the same fields

AGG

iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF

MKTN

Federated Hermes MDT Market Neutral ETF

Where it sits Core fund Alternatives ETF

Issuer iShares Federated Hermes

What it is Tracks an index of US aggregate bonds Market neutral

Total return, 1 year −1.9% +12.5%

S&P 500 over the same days +15.7% +15.7%

Gap to the S&P 500 −17.6 pts −3.2 pts

Expense ratio 0.03% 1.94%

Holdings 13460 not filed

Net assets $135.7bn $107m

AGG and MKTN on the fields both publish, as of Oct 1, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

AGG in plain words

AGG tracks an index of US aggregate bonds. Over the year to Sep 30, 2026 it returned −1.9% with distributions reinvested, against +15.7% for the S&P 500 and +23.8% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.03% a year. It sat 5.1% below its high of Aug 4, 2020 on Sep 30, 2026.

MKTN in plain words

MKTN is a market neutral fund. ETFIQ measures what every alternatives fund is sold on: whether it moves differently from the stock market. Over the year to Sep 30, 2026, its weekly returns had a correlation of −0.01 with the S&P 500’s and a beta of 0.00, so on average it did not move with the index at all. The S&P 500 fell in 25 of those 52 weeks, by 1.15% on average. In the same weeks MKTN rose 0.40% on average, a down-week capture of −35.0%. Over the same 52 weeks MKTN returned +13.9% and a Treasury bill fund +3.6%, so it finished 10.2 percentage points ahead of cash.

Questions people ask

Are AGG and MKTN the same kind of fund?: AGG is an index ETF and MKTN is an alternatives ETF, so they are built for different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and what each holds.
Which returned more over the last year, AGG or MKTN?: In the year to Oct 1, 2026, with distributions reinvested, AGG returned −1.9% and MKTN +12.5%.
Which is cheaper, AGG or MKTN?: AGG is cheaper, by 1.91 percentage points a year. On $10,000 held for a year that difference is about $191. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

AGG vs VGSH AGG vs VGT AGG vs VHT AGG vs VIG BND vs MKTN GLD vs MKTN IVV vs MKTN MKTN vs QQQ

BIL, the T-bill fund these are measured against →AGG on its own →MKTN on its own →Hold both: look the portfolio through →Rankings →Standards and sources →

Where these figures came from

AGG filings on SEC EDGAR ↗AGG prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗iShares page for AGG ↗MKTN filings on SEC EDGAR ↗MKTN prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗Federated Hermes website ↗

ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure. It is not affiliated with any issuer, and a link is not an endorsement. A comparison is not a recommendation.

Cite this page

ETFIQ, AGG against MKTN, data as of Oct 1, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/agg-vs-mktn

Open data

Free to use with attribution. Every figure is calculated from a named public source; the method is at etfiq.com/methodology.