# How Bank of America Corp 6.45 % Notes 2018-15.12.66 Income Capital Obligations (MER-PK) compares with the whole market and its popular alternatives

> Source: EasyCompare research, https://easycompare.io/research/mer-pk
> Data as of October 20, 2026. Total returns include reinvested dividends. Past performance does not predict future results; nothing here is investment advice.

Built by QuantCommons' quantitative engine, this page is about relative opportunity, not data on MER-PK alone. It places MER-PK (Bank of America Corp 6.45 % Notes 2018-15.12.66 Income Capital Obligations) against its popular alternatives, its neighboring categories and the entire market of over 10,000 U.S.-listed stocks and ETFs, and surfaces what has done better on consistent outperformance, return for the risk taken and diversification. The result is a clearer view of where MER-PK stands in the market, and of the alternatives worth a closer look.

Period covered: MER-PK's full trading record, from May 2023 through September 2026. All returns include reinvested dividends. Data as of October 20, 2026.

## Key findings

- **Right now:** MER-PK has gone against the market, falling 9.8% over the past 6 months while the S&P 500 rose 9.1%.
- **Stock or market?:** MER-PK fell 9.3% over the past 3 months, 5.9 points behind the preferred securities ETF PFF (iShares Preferred and Income Securities ETF), which fell 3.3%. The S&P 500 rose 3.9%.
- **Past 1 to 3 years:** Over the past year, MER-PK fell 11.3% while the S&P 500 rose 15.8%. The same gap shows up over 3 years (6.6% against 89.3%). The last two calendar years both went the same way: MER-PK fell 0.6% in 2025, while the S&P 500 rose 15.8%.
- **Long term:** MER-PK turned $10,000 into $9,340 over the past 3 years, against $18,900 in the S&P 500. MER-PK's 3-year loss of 6.6% puts it behind 80% of the stocks worth at least $300 million with that much history. The S&P 500 returned 89.3%.
- **Diversification:** Over 3 years, MER-PK's beta versus the S&P 500 was 0.12: 3% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 45% of its losses in falling ones. On the flip side, against the S&P 500, MER-PK has a correlation of 0.24 over 3 years, less closely than 66% of stocks worth at least $300 million. Next to an index fund it is a real diversifier.
- **Better options**
  - **Nearby categories and themes:** RZC (Reinsurance Group of America, corporate bonds) and VCSH (Vanguard Short-Term Corporate Bond ETF, investment grade bonds) earned more than MER-PK with less volatility over the past 3 years. RZC returned 6.6% a year at 5.9% volatility, against a loss of 2.2% a year at 6.2%.
  - **Whole market:** 270 of the 3,928 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than MER-PK with less volatility over the past 3 years, among them BND (Vanguard Total Bond Market ETF), AGG (iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF) and BNDX (Vanguard Total International Bond ETF).

## How much would $10,000 in MER-PK have grown?

This chart tracks a hypothetical $10,000 investment in MER-PK over the past 3 years, with dividends reinvested, alongside the same amount in the S&P 500, investments that ended ahead of MER-PK over the same span and MER-PK's popular alternatives, among those that traded for the entire period.

- $10,000 invested in MER-PK at the end of September 2023 would have grown to $9,168 by September 2026, less than the $18,498 it would have become in SPY, an S&P 500 fund.
- All five other investments on the chart ended ahead of MER-PK, and BAC finished highest, at $21,362.

## MER-PK at a glance

This section summarizes the key facts about the stock, its returns over periods from one to ten years and the risk it has carried, with dividends reinvested throughout.

- MER-PK's deepest decline since it began trading in 2023 was 14.0%, from September 2024 to October 2026. It has not yet climbed back to that peak.
- MER-PK is 13.5% below its all-time high.

- Type: Stock, Financials (Banks - Diversified)
- Trading since: May 23, 2023
- Market value: $174B
- Volatility (3 years): 6.3%; Sharpe ratio: -0.33
- Worst decline ever: −14.0%, from September 12, 2024 to October 12, 2026; not yet back at its high

| Period | MER-PK total return |
| --- | --- |
| 1 month | −4.0% |
| 3 months | −9.3% |
| 6 months | −9.8% |
| year to date | −10.2% |
| 1 year | −11.3% |
| 3 years | −6.6% |

## MER-PK against the whole market

Where MER-PK ranks among every stock and fund, and what across the market has done better.

### How does MER-PK rank among all stocks?

This section ranks MER-PK on return, volatility, risk-adjusted return and worst decline against every stock worth at least $300 million with enough history.

- MER-PK is among the steadier stocks: its price swings rank in the top 1% of the 3,017 stocks worth at least $300 million, where the top is the calmest.
- On return for the risk taken (the Sharpe ratio), MER-PK ranks in the bottom 3% of the 3,017 stocks worth at least $300 million.

| Measure | MER-PK | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1-year return | −11.3% | 2,379 of 3,287 (top 73%) |
| 3-year return | −6.6% | 2,427 of 3,017 (top 81%) |
| Volatility, 3 years | 6.3% | 2 of 3,017 (top 1%) |
| Sharpe ratio, 3 years | -0.33 | 2,924 of 3,017 (top 97%) |

### What has beaten MER-PK on both return and risk?

Each dot is an investment, placed by how much it earned a year over the past 3 years (higher is better) and how much its price swung, its volatility (further left is calmer).

- One stock and 269 ETFs worth at least $500 million sit in the green region: each earned more than MER-PK over the past 3 years with smaller price swings. That is 7% of the 3,928 screened.
- Among those with at least half MER-PK's swings, PREF has the best return for its risk: 9.1% a year at 3.4% volatility, 45% less than MER-PK's 6.2%, and a Sharpe ratio (return above cash per unit of volatility) of 2.60 against -0.33 for MER-PK. XEMD earned the most, 10.7% a year, while still swinging less than MER-PK (5.5% against 6.2%).
- None of MER-PK's popular alternatives made it, but SPSB (investment grade bonds) did: 5.2% a year at 1.6% volatility, 74% less than MER-PK's 6.2%.

### Is there a better investment than MER-PK?

The table below lists investments that beat MER-PK over the past 3 years on at least one of these measures: a higher annual return with lower volatility, a higher annual return at similar volatility, a similar return with lower volatility, a higher Sharpe ratio with a smaller worst decline, a higher total return in most periods from 3 months to 10 years, or smaller losses in recent market crashes.

- Looking beyond its popular alternatives, RZC (corporate bonds) and VCSH (investment grade bonds) earned more than MER-PK with less volatility over the past 3 years. RZC returned 6.6% a year at 5.9% volatility, against a loss of 2.2% a year at 6.2%.
- Across the whole market, 270 of the 3,928 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than MER-PK with less volatility over the past 3 years, among them BND, AGG and BNDX.

The 15 strongest of 270 investments that beat MER-PK over the past 3 years, out of 3,928 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million.

| Investment | Group | Annual return (3 years) | Volatility | Sharpe | Worst decline (10 years) | 3Y return | Correlation with MER-PK | Better on |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| MER-PK: Bank of America Corp 6.45 % Notes 2018-15.12.66 Income Capital Obligations (this page) |  | −2.2% | 6.3% | -0.33 | −14.0% | −6.6% |  |  |
| [BIL](https://easycompare.io/research/bil): State Street SPDR Bloomberg 1-3 Month T-Bill ETF | Treasury Bonds | +4.4% | 0.2% | 18.66 | −0.2% | +13.9% | 0.27 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| [VTIP](https://easycompare.io/research/vtip): Vanguard Short-Term Inflation-Protected Securities ETF | Treasury Bonds | +4.4% | 2.1% | 2.10 | −6.3% | +13.9% | 0.46 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| [BSV](https://easycompare.io/research/bsv): Vanguard Short-Term Bond ETF | Short-Term Bonds | +4.5% | 2.2% | 1.99 | −8.5% | +14.1% | 0.40 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| JAAA: Janus Henderson AAA CLO ETF | CLO Bonds | +6.1% | 1.2% | 4.93 | −2.6% | +19.5% | 0.24 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| SHY: iShares 1-3 Year Treasury Bond ETF | Treasury Bonds | +3.9% | 1.6% | 2.36 | −5.7% | +12.1% | 0.41 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| BINC: iShares Flexible Income Active ETF | Multisector Bonds | +6.6% | 2.9% | 2.24 | −2.7% | +21.2% | 0.50 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| DFSD: Dimensional - Short Duration Fixed Income ETF | Short-Term Bonds | +4.8% | 2.1% | 2.23 | −8.5% | +15.2% | 0.56 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| LMBS: First Trust Low Duration Opportunities ETF | Mortgage-Backed Securities | +5.8% | 2.5% | 2.26 | −6.5% | +18.4% | 0.50 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| CGMS: Capital Group U.S. Multi-Sector Income ETF | Multisector Bonds | +8.0% | 4.5% | 1.74 | −4.1% | +25.9% | 0.48 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| JBND: JPMorgan Active Bond ETF | Total Bond Market | +6.0% | 4.7% | 1.27 | −5.1% | +19.2% |  | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| CGMU: Capital Group Municipal Income ETF | Municipal Bonds | +4.6% | 3.4% | 1.34 | −5.6% | +14.4% | 0.56 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| JPLD: JPMorgan Limited Duration Bond ETF | Short-Term Bonds | +5.7% | 1.8% | 3.10 | −1.2% | +18.0% | 0.50 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| VTES: Vanguard Short-Term Tax-Exempt Bond ETF | Bonds | +3.3% | 1.7% | 1.87 | −2.9% | +10.1% | 0.57 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| BALT: Innovator Defined Wealth Shield ETF | Crypto | +8.0% | 3.4% | 2.28 | −4.9% | +26.1% | 0.19 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| CGSD: Capital Group Short Duration Income ETF | Bonds | +5.0% | 1.9% | 2.57 | −1.8% | +15.9% | 0.50 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |

## MER-PK against its popular alternatives

The investments people most often weigh against MER-PK, compared period by period and year by year.

### How do MER-PK's risk and return compare with its alternatives?

This map plots each investment's annual return over the past 3 years against its volatility, the size of its typical price swings.

- None of the four popular alternatives earned more than MER-PK over the past 3 years with smaller price swings, so every higher return on the map came with a bumpier ride.
- Over the past 3 years, MER-PK returned -2.2% a year, less than the S&P 500's 23.7%, with lower volatility (6.2% against 15.2%).

### How did MER-PK do year by year?

This table shows each investment's total return in every full calendar year since 2024, along with where MER-PK ranked among its popular alternatives each year.

- Among its popular alternatives, KBE came out ahead of MER-PK most often, in all two years both traded.

| Year | MER-PK | SPY |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2025 | −0.6% | +17.7% |
| 2024 | +1.5% | +24.9% |

## Risk and diversification

How MER-PK has fallen, how it held up in crashes beside the S&P 500 and its popular alternatives, and what moves independently of it.

### What were MER-PK's worst declines?

A drawdown is the decline from a peak to the lowest point before a new high.

| Decline | Peak | Low | Back at the high | SPY over the same dates | Market event |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| −14.0% | September 12, 2024 | October 12, 2026 | not yet | +42.8% |  |

### How closely does MER-PK move with the S&P 500?

Upside capture measures how much of the S&P 500's gains an investment kept in the months the market rose, and downside capture how much of its losses it took in the months the market fell.

- Over the past 3 years, MER-PK captured 3% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 45% of its losses in falling months, with a beta of 0.12. Its share of the market's losses was larger than its share of the gains.
- Four of the four popular alternatives had a higher capture ratio (upside capture divided by downside capture) than MER-PK's 0.06, led by BAC, KBE and LQD.

Measured over the past 3 years of monthly returns against SPY.

| Investment | Upside capture | Downside capture | Beta |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| MER-PK: Bank of America Corp 6.45 % Notes 2018-15.12.66 Income Capital Obligations (this page) | 3.0% | 45.0% | 0.12 |
| KBE: State Street SPDR S&P Bank ETF | 114% | 146% | 1.04 |
| LQD: iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF | 32.0% | 57.0% | 0.37 |
| PFF: iShares Preferred and Income Securities ETF | 48.0% | 103% | 0.56 |
| [BAC](https://easycompare.io/research/bac): Bank of America Corporation | 126% | 131% | 1.20 |

### What diversifies MER-PK?

Correlation measures how closely two investments move together, on a scale from 1 (in lockstep) through 0 (unrelated) to -1 (in opposite directions).

- Moving a fifth of the money in MER-PK into FMAR would have cut the portfolio's volatility by 12% over the past 3 years and raised its annual return (-2.9% for MER-PK alone, +0.6% for the mix).
- Among large ETFs, LVHI, CLSE and SEIV have moved largely independently of MER-PK over the past 3 years, with correlations of 0.41 or lower, and each still earned a positive 3-year return.
- In 2025, the one year MER-PK lost money (-0.6%), NTRA returned +44.7%.

| Investment | Correlation with MER-PK | 3Y return | Volatility | Sharpe | Rose in MER-PK's 1 down years |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| LVHI: Franklin International Low Volatility High Dividend Index ETF | 0.41 | +92.3% | 10.6% | 2.12 | 1 of 1 |
| CLSE: Convergence Long/Short Equity ETF | 0.17 | +115% | 13.8% | 1.93 | 1 of 1 |
| SEIV: SEI QiM U.S. Large Cap Value Active ETF | 0.33 | +114% | 14.7% | 1.81 | 1 of 1 |
| [CGDV](https://easycompare.io/research/cgdv): Capital Group Dividend Value ETF | 0.36 | +97.2% | 13.7% | 1.73 | 1 of 1 |
| FMAR: FT Vest U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - March | 0.24 | +54.4% | 8.7% | 1.72 | 1 of 1 |
| VLUE: iShares MSCI USA Value Factor ETF | 0.26 | +136% | 17.8% | 1.71 | 1 of 1 |
| AVDV: Avantis International Small Cap Value ETF | 0.22 | +118% | 16.2% | 1.70 | 1 of 1 |
| EUFN: iShares MSCI Europe Financials ETF | 0.34 | +141% | 19.0% | 1.65 | 1 of 1 |

## Common questions

### What was MER-PK's worst drawdown?

MER-PK's deepest decline since it began trading in 2023 was 14.0%, from September 2024 to October 2026. It has not yet climbed back to that peak. Because MER-PK launched in May 2023, that record does not include the dot-com bust, the 2008 financial crisis or eight other sell-offs.

### What were MER-PK's best and worst years?

Over two full calendar years, MER-PK's best year was 2024, when it returned 1.5%. Its worst was 2025, with a return of -0.6%.

### Is there a better investment than MER-PK?

Looking beyond its popular alternatives, RZC (corporate bonds) and VCSH (investment grade bonds) earned more than MER-PK with less volatility over the past 3 years. RZC returned 6.6% a year at 5.9% volatility, against a loss of 2.2% a year at 6.2%. Across the whole market, 270 of the 3,928 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than MER-PK with less volatility over the past 3 years, among them BND, AGG and BNDX.

### Is MER-PK more volatile than the S&P 500?

No. MER-PK's volatility over the past 3 years was 6.2%, 41% of the S&P 500's 15.2%. Volatility measures how widely returns swing around their average: in roughly two years out of three, MER-PK's return lands within 6.2% of its average, either way. The higher it is, the rougher the ride and the harder it is to hold through a slump.

### What is MER-PK's Sharpe ratio?

MER-PK's Sharpe ratio over the past 3 years was -0.33, against 1.48 for the S&P 500, so MER-PK earned less for each unit of risk than an index fund did. The Sharpe ratio is the return earned above cash for each unit of volatility: two investments with the same return are not equal if one got there with far bigger swings.

### How correlated is MER-PK with the S&P 500?

Over the past 3 years, MER-PK's monthly returns had a correlation of 0.24 with the S&P 500. Correlation runs from 1 (moving in lockstep) through 0 (unrelated) to −1 (moving in opposite directions). They are only loosely linked, which makes it a real diversifier next to an index fund. In the table, the correlation column measures each option against MER-PK instead: the lower it is, the more that option would diversify a MER-PK holding.

### What diversifies MER-PK?

These had a low correlation with MER-PK over the past 3 years and still earned a positive 3-year return: among large ETFs, LVHI (correlation 0.41), CLSE (correlation 0.17) and SEIV (correlation 0.33); among large stocks, CM (correlation 0.29), RY (correlation 0.30) and TIGO (correlation 0.31). A correlation near zero means the two have moved largely independently.

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## Explore further

- Full page with charts: https://easycompare.io/research/mer-pk
- All research pages: https://easycompare.io/llms.txt
- Compare the entire market against MER-PK live: https://betterthanspy.com/?b=MER-PK&utm_source=easycompare&utm_medium=research