iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT) Covered Calls

iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF covered calls The iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF seeks to track the investment results of an index composed of U.S. Treasury bonds with remaining maturities greater than twenty years. It provides investors with targeted exposure to long-term government debt, offering a liquid vehicle for managing interest rate risk or seeking a safe-haven asset. Due to its long duration, the fund is highly sensitive to changes in U.S. interest rates and is a key tool for institutional and retail hedging.

You can sell covered calls on iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF to lower risk and earn monthly income. Born To Sell's covered call screener gives you customized search capabilities across all possible covered calls but here are a couple of examples for TLT (prices last updated Fri 4:16 PM ET):

iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT) Stock Quote
Last Change Bid Ask Volume P/E Market Cap
89.41 -0.21 89.34 89.36 48.9M - 11
Covered Calls For iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT)
Expiration Strike Call Bid Net Debit Return
If Flat
Annualized
Return If Flat
Mar 20 89 1.12 88.24 0.9% 11.3%
Apr 17 89 1.60 87.76 1.4% 9.0%
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iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF is a prominent exchange-traded fund designed to track the ICE U.S. Treasury 20+ Year Bond Index. Managed by BlackRock, the fund provides investors with a straightforward way to gain exposure to the long end of the U.S. yield curve. By holding a portfolio of U.S. Treasury bonds with at least two decades remaining until maturity, TLT serves as a benchmark for long-term interest rate expectations and a cornerstone for fixed-income portfolios.

Core Investment Strategy and Features

  1. Long-Duration Exposure: The fund focuses exclusively on the longest-dated U.S. government debt. This high duration makes the ETF particularly responsive to fluctuations in the federal funds rate and long-term inflation outlooks.
  2. Credit Quality and Safety: As the underlying assets are backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government, the fund carries minimal credit risk, making it a primary "risk-off" asset during periods of equity market volatility.
  3. Monthly Income: The trust distributes interest income collected from its underlying bond holdings on a monthly basis, providing a predictable yield for income-focused investors.

Competitive Landscape

TLT is one of the most liquid fixed-income ETFs in the world, competing with other treasury-focused vehicles across different segments of the yield curve. Direct competitors in the long-term treasury space include the Vanguard Long-Term Treasury ETF and the SPDR Portfolio Long Term Treasury ETF. For investors seeking shorter duration, the fund is often compared to the iShares 7-10 Year Treasury Bond ETF and the iShares 1-3 Year Treasury Bond ETF. In the broader bond market, it competes for capital with investment-grade corporate funds like the iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF. Tactical traders also utilize leveraged versions of this exposure, such as the Direxion Daily 20+ Year Treasury Bull 3X Shares.

Strategic Outlook and Innovation

The fund’s performance is fundamentally tied to the trajectory of Federal Reserve monetary policy and global macroeconomic stability. A primary strategic focus for the fund is its role as a liquidity provider in the options and futures markets, where it is used extensively for sophisticated hedging and duration management. As fiscal deficits and Treasury issuance remain high, the fund is positioned at the center of the debate regarding term premiums and the structural demand for long-dated debt. Innovation in this space is characterized by the emergence of yield-enhancing strategies, such as "buy-write" versions of the fund that use options to generate additional income during periods of sideways interest rate movement. By maintaining high trading volumes and tight bid-ask spreads, TLT seeks to remain the premier instrument for investors looking to capitalize on falling yields or to protect portfolios against a significant economic slowdown.