Fixed Income

MEPYX

Pennsylvania Municipal Bond Fund

  • NAV as of Apr 25, 2025 $9.50
    52 WK: 9.24 - 10.13
  • 1 Day NAV Change as of Apr 25, 2025 0.01 (0.11%)
  • NAV Total Return as of Apr 25, 2025 YTD: -2.55%

Overview

About this Fund

  • High-Quality Pennsylvania Municipal Holding
  • Commitment To Credit Research
  • Seeking Attractive Risk-Adjusted Returns Through Diverse Markets

Investment Approach

Invests primarily in a portfolio of long-term investment grade Pennsylvania municipal bonds to seek income exempt from federal income tax and Pennsylvania income taxes.

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Performance

Performance

  1y 3y 5y 10y
Total Return (%) 2.21 0.62 0.90 1.63
Return w/ Sales Charge (%) -2.13 -0.83 0.03 1.19
Benchmark (%) 1.22 1.53 1.07 2.13
BBG Muni 90% IG Pennsylvania + 10% HY Pennsylvania Custom 2.48 1.51 1.34 -
Morningstar Category Avg. (%) 1.55 0.91 0.85 1.80
Morningstar Ranking 11/49 33/49 23/48 26/40
Morningstar Quartile 1 3 2 3
Lipper Category Avg. (%) 1.63 0.83 0.86 1.80
Lipper Ranking 11/47 31/47 22/46 25/38
Lipper Quartile 1 3 2 3
  YTD 1m 3m 1y 3y 5y 10y
Total Return (%) -0.37 -1.82 -0.37 2.21 1.86 4.60 17.57
Return w/ Sales Charge (%) -4.60 -5.99 -4.60 -2.13 -2.46 0.15 12.57
Benchmark (%) -0.22 -1.69 -0.22 1.22 4.65 5.48 23.41
Morningstar Category Avg. (%) -0.46 -1.75 -0.46 1.55 2.76 4.34 19.55
Lipper Category Avg. (%) -0.53 -1.81 -0.53 1.63 2.51 4.40 19.76
BBG Muni 90% IG Pennsylvania + 10% HY Pennsylvania Custom 0.16 -1.46 0.16 2.48 4.59 6.88 -
  2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
Total Return (%) 4.02 2.92 -11.96 5.85 2.68
Annual w/ Sales Charge (%) -0.40 -1.46 -15.69 1.35 -1.69
Benchmark (%) 4.95 1.52 -8.53 6.40 1.05
Morningstar Category Avg. (%) 4.41 2.29 -9.99 5.74 2.11
BBG Muni 90% IG Pennsylvania + 10% HY Pennsylvania Custom 5.08 2.50 -9.48 6.05 2.26

Performance is shown after deduction of ongoing charges. Any entry and exit charges are excluded from the calculation.

The performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. Investment return and principal value of an investment will fluctuate so that an investor's shares, when sold or redeemed, may be worth more or less than the original cost. Current performance may be lower or higher than the performance quoted.
Click here for Distribution data

Key Facts

Key Facts

Size of Fund (Millions)
as of Apr 25, 2025
$316.9 M
Share Class launch date
Oct 02, 2006
Benchmark Index
BBG Municipal Bond Index Unadjusted (Risk Basis: MUNI) (USD)
Morningstar Category
Muni Pennsylvania
CUSIP
09253A755
Open to New Investors
Yes
Size of Class (Millions)
as of Apr 25, 2025
$93.9 M
Asset Class
Fixed Income
Distribution Frequency
Monthly
Lipper Classification
PA Muni Debt Funds
Max Offer Price
as of Apr 25, 2025
$9.92
Turnover Percent in the Annual Report
as of May 31, 2024
18%

Portfolio Characteristics

Portfolio Characteristics

Number of Holdings
as of Mar 31, 2025
157
Alpha (3y)
as of Mar 31, 2025
-0.09
R-Squared (3y)
as of Mar 31, 2025
97.61
Beta (3y)
as of Mar 31, 2025
1.13
Unsubsidized 30-Day SEC Yield
as of Mar 31, 2025
3.39%
Effective Duration
as of Mar 31, 2025
8.67 yrs
Best 3-Month Return Over the Last 3 Years
3 months ending Jan 31, 2024
9.84%
30 Day SEC Yield
as of Mar 31, 2025
3.49%
Yield to Maturity
as of Mar 31, 2025
4.66%
Fund Standard Deviation (3y)
as of Mar 31, 2025
8.40
Average Coupon
as of Mar 31, 2025
4.39%
Yield to Worst
as of Mar 31, 2025
4.44%
Nominal WAL
as of Mar 31, 2025
11.71 yrs
Worst 3-Month Return Over the Last 3 Years
3 months ending Oct 31, 2022
-7.85%

For the latest month-end Distribution Yield, click here.


This information must be preceded or accompanied by a current prospectus. For standardized performance, please see the Performance section above.

Fees

Fees

as of current prospectus
Gross Expense Ratio 0.92%
Net Expense Ratio 0.80%

Net Expense Ratio excluding Investment Related Expenses is 0.79%

  • Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses 0.01%
  • Interest expense 0.00%

Ratings

Ratings

Lipper Leader

 
 
Overall Lipper Leaders ratings based on an equal-weighted average of percentile ranks for each measure over 3-, 5-, and 10-year periods (if applicable) and do not take into account the effects of sales charges for these categories (Consistent Return, Preservation, Total Return, Expense, and Tax Efficiency) as of Mar 31, 2025 out of 47, 6,077, 47, 186 and 47 Funds, respectively in Lipper's PA Muni Debt Funds classification.

Holdings

Holdings

as of Mar 31, 2025
Name Weight (%)
PHILADELPHIA PA AUTH FOR INDL DEV 4 12/01/2048 2.33
COMMONWEALTH FING AUTH PA TOB 4 06/01/2039 2.04
TOB 5.25 71783MDF9 PHIUTL 144A 2.01
GEISINGER AUTH PA HEALTH SYS R 5 02/15/2045 1.88
PENNSYLVANIA ECONOMIC DEV FING 5.25 06/30/2053 1.73
Name Weight (%)
PENNSYLVANIA ECONOMIC DEV FING 5 03/15/2032 1.69
POTTSVILLE PA HOSP AUTH HOSP R 5 07/01/2041 1.64
STATE PUBLIC SCH BLDG AUTH PALEASE 5 06/01/2033 1.63
PENNSYLVANIA ST TPK COMMN OIL 4 12/01/2051 1.63
MONTGOMERY CNTY PA INDL DEV AU 5.25 01/01/2040 1.56
Name Market Value Weight (%) Shares Maturity Coupon (%)
Detailed Holdings and Analytics
Holdings are subject to change. Fund holdings and allocations shown are unaudited, and may not be representative of current or future investments. The Fund is actively managed and its details, holdings and characteristics will vary. Holdings shown should not be deemed as a recommendation to buy or sell securities. The user relies on this data at its own risk and neither BlackRock nor any other party makes any representations or express or implied warranties (which are expressly disclaimed) nor shall they incur any liability for any errors or omissions in the data.

Exposure Breakdowns

Exposure Breakdowns

as of Mar 31, 2025

% Notional Value

Type Fund Benchmark Net
as of Mar 31, 2025

% Notional Value

Type Fund Benchmark Net
as of Mar 31, 2025

% Notional Value

Type Fund Benchmark Net
as of Mar 31, 2025

% Notional Value

Type Fund Benchmark Net
The fund itself has not been rated by an independent rating agency. Credit quality ratings on underlying securities of the fund are received from S&P, Moody’s and Fitch and converted to the equivalent S&P major rating category. This breakdown is provided by BlackRock and takes the median rating of the three agencies when all three agencies rate a security the lower of the two ratings if only two agencies rate a security and one rating if that is all that is provided. Unrated securities do not necessarily indicate low quality. Below investment-grade is represented by a rating of BB and below. Ratings and portfolio credit quality may change over time.

Notional value represents a fund’s use of derivatives, including but not limited to futures, options, and swaps. This value captures the fund exposures as if the derivative was replaced with the underlying asset and the corresponding financing or lending, such that all exposures sum to the net asset value. For non-derivatives, the market value and the notional value are identical.

Allocations are subject to change.

Portfolio Managers

Portfolio Managers

Phillip Soccio, CFA
Phillip Soccio, CFA
Director, Portfolio Manager, Municipal Mutual Funds

  

Read More

Phillip Soccio, CFA, Director, is a Portfolio Manager for the Municipal Fixed Income business in BlackRock's Portfolio Management Group. Prior to assuming his current role in 2007, Mr. Soccio was a member of BlackRock's Cash Management Group, where he was responsible for managing various tax-exempt money market funds. From 1998 to 2000, he was a member of BlackRock's Account Management Group responsible for institutional client service and marketing support. Mr. Soccio began his career at BlackRock in 1998.

Mr. Soccio earned a BS degree in finance from Wilmington University.

Walter O'Connor, CFA
Walter O'Connor, CFA
Managing Director, Co-Head and Portfolio Manager, Municipal Mutual Funds

  

Read More

Walter O'Connor, CFA, Managing Director and Co-Head of the Municipal Funds team within the Municipal Fixed Income business in BlackRock's Portfolio Management Group. He is also a member of the Municipal Management Committee, which oversees all municipal bond portfolio management, research and trading activities.

 

Mr. O'Connor's service with the firm dates back to 1991, including his years with Merrill Lynch Investment Managers (MLIM), which merged with BlackRock in 2006. At MLIM, he was a portfolio manager for municipal bond retail mutual funds. Prior to joining MLIM, Mr. O'Connor was with Prudential Securities, where he was involved in trading, underwriting, and arbitrage for municipal securities and financial futures.

 

Mr. O'Connor earned a BA degree in finance and philosophy from the University of Notre Dame in 1984.

Kristi Manidis
Kristi Manidis
Director, Portfolio Manager, Municipal Mutual Funds

  

Read More

Kristi Manidis, Director, is a Portfolio Manager for the Municipal Fixed Income business in BlackRock's Portfolio Management Group.

 

Prior to moving to her current role in 2009, Ms. Manidis was a trader and portfolio manager on various high net worth equity and balanced separately managed accounts. Previously, she was responsible for institutional client service and marketing for BlackRock's Cash Management Group. Ms. Manidis began her career at BlackRock in 2003.

 

Ms. Manidis earned a BS degree in Business Administration, with concentrations in Finance and Management Information Systems, from Drexel University in 2003.

Christian Romaglino, CFA
Christian Romaglino, CFA
Director, Portfolio Manager, Municipal Mutual Funds

   

Read More

Christian Romaglino, CFA, Director, is a Portfolio Manager for the Municipal Fixed Income business within BlackRock's Portfolio Management Group.
Prior to joining BlackRock in 2017, Mr. Romaglino was a Portfolio Manager at Brown Brothers Harriman focusing on a diverse set of institutional mandates and high net worth SMAs. Mr. Romaglino also held various trading and portfolio construction positions at Brown Brothers Harriman across several taxable fixed income sectors prior to 2010 when he transitioned to Municipals.
Mr. Romaglino earned a BS degree in Industrial Engineering from Lehigh University.

Portfolio Manager

Literature

Literature

 

Funds related to MEPYX

Funds related to MEPYX

MAMTX
Strategic Municipal Opportunities Fund
Learn more about MAMTX
MANLX
National Municipal Fund
Learn more about MANLX
MUB
iShares National Muni Bond ETF
Learn more about MUB

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