Are AHLT and TLT in the same category?

AHLT is an alternatives ETF and TLT is a bond ETF, so they do different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and holdings.

Which returned more over the last year, AHLT or TLT?

In the year to Nov 4, 2026, with distributions reinvested, AHLT returned +19.3% and TLT −4.8%.

Which is cheaper, AHLT or TLT?

TLT is cheaper, by 0.81 percentage points a year. That is about $81 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Across categories

AHLT vs TLT: Differences, Returns & Fees

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Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, AHLT returned +19.3% to TLT's −4.8%, and TLT charges 0.15% to AHLT's 0.96%.

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Net assets: $131m on Jul 31, 2026 for AHL Trend ETF, and $48.3bn on Nov 3, 2026 for iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF.

AHLT on its own →TLT on its own →

At a glance

+19.3%

AHLT total return, 1 year

−4.8%

TLT total return, 1 year

0.96%

AHLT expense ratio

0.15%

TLT expense ratio

Pair scorecard

TLT costs 0.81 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 24.1 points.

AHLT vs TLT: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	AHLT	TLT
Return
Measure	AHLT	TLT
Total return, 1 year	+19.3%	−4.8%
Total return, 52 weeks	+18.3%
Drawdown
Measure	AHLT	TLT
Below its high		41.8%, high on Aug 4, 2020
Against its benchmark
Measure	AHLT	TLT
What it tracks	not published	ICE U.S. Treasury 20+ Year Bond Index
Treasury bills, 52 weeks	+3.7%
Against cash	14.7 points ahead
Cost and size
Measure	AHLT	TLT
Expense ratio	0.96%	0.15%
Net assets, AHLT as of Jul 31, 2026 and TLT as of Nov 3, 2026	$131m	$48.3bn
Holdings
Measure	AHLT	TLT
Holdings in common	not published
Risk
Measure	AHLT	TLT
Correlation with the S&P 500’s weekly returns	+0.47
Beta to the S&P 500	+0.58: about 0.58% for each 1%
Its average week when the S&P 500 fell	fell 0.88%
Down-week capture	81.7%
Weeks the S&P 500 fell	26 of 52, by 1.07% on average

Method

Side by side

AHLT AHL Trend ETF TLT iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF

Where it sits Alternatives ETF Bond ETF

Issuer American Beacon iShares

What it is Managed futures Tracks an index of 20+ year Treasuries

Total return, 1 year +19.3% −4.8%

Its benchmark over the same days not measured −4.7% (BBLB)

Gap to its benchmark not measured −0.1 pts vs BBLB

Expense ratio 0.96% 0.15%

Holdings not read by ETFIQ 47

Net assets, AHLT as of Jul 31, 2026 and TLT as of Nov 3, 2026 $131m $48.3bn

AHLT and TLT on the fields both publish, as of Nov 4, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

Alert

About each fund

AHLT

AHLT is a managed futures fund. ETFIQ measures what every alternatives fund is sold on: whether it moves differently from the stock market. Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, its weekly returns had a correlation of +0.47 with the S&P 500’s and a beta of +0.58, so for each 1% the index moved it moved about 0.58% the same way. The S&P 500 fell in 26 of those 52 weeks, by 1.07% on average. In the same weeks AHLT fell 0.88% on average, a down-week capture of 81.7%. Over the same 52 weeks AHLT returned +18.3% and a Treasury bill fund +3.7%, so it finished 14.7 percentage points ahead of cash.

TLT

TLT tracks an index of 20+ year Treasuries. Over the year to Nov 4, 2026 it returned −4.8% with distributions reinvested, against −4.7% for its benchmark, the ICE U.S. Treasury 20+ Year Bond Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.15% a year. It sat 41.8% below its high of Aug 4, 2020 on Nov 4, 2026.

Questions people ask

Are AHLT and TLT in the same category?: AHLT is an alternatives ETF and TLT is a bond ETF, so they do different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and holdings.
Which returned more over the last year, AHLT or TLT?: In the year to Nov 4, 2026, with distributions reinvested, AHLT returned +19.3% and TLT −4.8%.
Which is cheaper, AHLT or TLT?: TLT is cheaper, by 0.81 percentage points a year. That is about $81 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

AHLT vs BND AGG vs AHLT AHLT vs GLD AHLT vs IVV RSBT vs TLT TFPN vs TLT TLT vs WTMF FMF vs TLT

Where to next

BIL, the T-bill fund these are measured against →SPY, the S&P 500 fund these are measured against →AHLT on its own →TLT on its own →Hold both: look the portfolio through →Rankings →AHLT dividend history →TLT dividend history →TLT holdings →Standards and sources →

Sources and dates

AHLT filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

AHLT prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

American Beacon website ↗

TLT filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

TLT prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

iShares page for TLT ↗

Links are sources, not endorsements. A comparison is not a recommendation.

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ETFIQ, AHLT against TLT, data as of Nov 4, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ahlt-vs-tlt

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