NEA vs TLT: Correlation
How closely do Nuveen AMT-Free Quality Municipal Income Fund (NEA) and iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT) trade together? Their weekly returns over three years give a correlation of 0.68, which is strong.
Data as of 2026-08-27 · refreshed every trading day · weekly returns · methodology
How correlated are NEA and TLT?
Across a 3-year window, the weekly returns of NEA and TLT correlate at 0.68, strong. The past 12 months show a weaker link (0.50) than the 3-year average (0.68). Stretching to 5 years gives 0.51, with an annualized covariance of 99.1 %².
Among the 36 assets we track against NEA, TLT ranks #23 by 3-year correlation. On 12-month performance NEA holds a 10.1-point edge, +10.4% against +0.3%.
How is this computed?
Pearson correlation on weekly returns: ρ(A,B) = cov(rA, rB) / (σA · σB), over windows of 52, 156 and 260 weeks. Covariance is annualized (×52) and expressed in %². Full definitions on the methodology page.
NEA vs TLT: side by side
| NEA (Nuveen AMT-Free Quality Municipal Income Fund) | TLT (iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1-year return | +10.4% | +0.3% |
| 5-year return | -4.4% | -34.0% |
| Volatility (ann.) | 10.9% | 13.5% |
| Beta vs S&P 500 | 0.28 | 0.11 |
| Max drawdown (3Y) | -11.3% | -14.8% |
| Market cap | $3.4B | – |
| P/E (trailing) | 14.5 | – |
| Dividend yield | 7.70% | 4.75% |
| Expense ratio | – | 0.15% |
| Assets under management | – | $41.5B |
| Sector / category | US Listed | ETF · Bonds |
On the fund side, TLT sits in the Long Government category at iShares, with $41.5B under management, a 0.15% expense ratio, a 4.75% trailing dividend yield.
Year-by-year returns
| Year | NEA | TLT |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | -23.3% | -31.2% |
| 2023 | +0.8% | +2.8% |
| 2024 | +9.5% | -8.1% |
| 2025 | +11.3% | +4.2% |
| 2026 | +1.7% | -2.1% |
Calendar-year price returns; the current year is year-to-date as of the data date above.
Are NEA and TLT good diversifiers for each other?
Only partially. A correlation of 0.68 means NEA and TLT share most of their swings. Pairing them dampens volatility somewhat, but it will not protect against a common drawdown.
FAQ
What is the correlation between NEA and TLT?
The NEA/TLT correlation stands at 0.68 on a 3-year window (1 year: 0.50, 5 years: 0.51), computed from weekly returns as of 2026-08-27.
Is TLT a good diversifier for NEA?
Only partially. A correlation of 0.68 means NEA and TLT share most of their swings. Pairing them dampens volatility somewhat, but it will not protect against a common drawdown.
What does a correlation of 0.68 mean?
A reading of 0.68 sits on a scale from −1 (opposite moves) through 0 (unrelated) to +1 (identical moves). Correlation captures direction, not magnitude or performance.
Use this data
$ curl https://www.pairbook.io/api/v1/pairs/nea-vs-tlt.json
Markdown for the live badge, attribution link included:
[](https://www.pairbook.io/pair/nea-vs-tlt/)
The core API is free. Terms and every endpoint in the API documentation.
Related comparisons
Hubs: NEA correlations · TLT correlations
