iShares Preferred and Income Securities ETF

PFF

Market cap $13.8B

Rates are stuck, and most high-yield investors are positioned all wrong. I provide a detailed sector-by-sector breakdown of exactly where smart money is moving right now, including specific blue-chip picks trading at deep discounts. I also detail my disciplined capital recycling approach to accelerate my income and total return compounding in the current environment.

Two fundamentally strong investments now yield over 10%. Both of these 10%+ yielders have track records of outperformance and sustainable dividends. ARCC is trading at its deepest discount in years, and PFFA has managed to grow its payout for years despite being stuffed with fixed-income securities.

Most investors chase yield and quietly destroy their retirement income in the process. A surprisingly simple portfolio structure can produce 7%+ income without excessive risk. The strategy combines three powerful income engines most investors rarely use correctly.

Retirement income planning used to be simple: buy bonds, collect coupons, live on the interest.

PFFA is rated 'Buy' for 2026, leveraging active management and 20–30% leverage to deliver superior income and capital preservation. PFFA's 5-year total return of 53.31% far outpaces PFF at 13.31%. PFFA's portfolio is concentrated in REITs, energy, and infrastructure, positioning it to benefit from anticipated Fed rate cuts.

One 7% yielding monthly-paying investment is trading at one of its widest discounts in years. The other quietly yields over 9% and has been growing its payout for five years in a row. While I like both, they also come with risks to keep in mind.

Many retirees invest in high-yielding funds where the income looks irresistible, but the risk is hiding in plain sight. One overlooked factor can quietly destroy long-term retirement income. There is a far more reliable way most retirees completely ignore.

A sudden market downturn can deliver a serious blow to your portfolio. It could be devastating to see your assets diminish.

Most investors think they must choose between dividend growth and mega-cap tech, but this setup breaks that rule. One overlooked ETF combination quietly solves a major retirement problem. The balance hiding here could change how you think about income investing.

It seems that the tide has finally turned in a direction that favors income investors. The reliance on asset prices, earnings growth and valuation multiples going up has become questionable, to say the least. So, the question now is how to avoid the spillover of these risks (e.g., return unpredictability) into the income investing strategy.