Understanding the VIRTUS Stone Harbor Emerging Markets High Yield Bond ETF (VEMY)

What this ETF is trying to do

The VEMY ETF is an exchange-traded fund that focuses on high-yield bonds from emerging markets. High-yield bonds are often called "junk bonds" because they offer higher interest rates to compensate for higher risk.

What the numbers show

When looking at an ETF, it is important to separate "price return" from "total return."

• Price Return: This measures only how much the share price has changed. For VEMY, the one-year price return was approximately 1.16%. The three-year price return was approximately 13.48%.

• Total Return: This includes both the price changes and the cash distributions (dividends) paid out to investors. The one-year total return was approximately 9.74%, and the three-year total return was approximately 47.15%.

As of September 18, 2026, the current price is $28.24. An estimated price from roughly one year ago was approximately $27.92.

Income and distribution explanation

This ETF is designed to provide regular cash payments. The distribution yield is approximately 8.13%. This means the amount of cash paid out is high relative to the ETF's price. These distributions usually happen monthly, with 12 payments made over the last year.

It is important to remember that a high distribution yield does not mean you have earned that same amount in total return. Total return is the most accurate way to see how much value an investment has actually gained or lost over time.

NAV erosion explanation

"NAV erosion" refers to a situation where the value of the underlying assets in the fund decreases over time. StockValueFinder uses an "erosion-risk score" to measure this risk. VEMY has an erosion score of 94, which is labeled as "Stable / sideways." This indicates a "good" level of erosion severity, and there is no severe erosion-risk flag present for this ETF.

Pros

• The ETF has a history of positive total returns over one and three years.

• It provides a relatively high distribution yield for investors seeking regular cash.

• The erosion-risk score suggests the price trend has been stable or sideways rather than rapidly declining.

Cons

• The share-price growth (price return) is much lower than the total return, meaning most of the gains come from distributions rather than the price going up.

• The fund invests in emerging market high-yield bonds, which generally carry higher risk than standard government bonds.

Beginner takeaway

VEMY is an ETF that focuses on providing regular income through monthly distributions. While the share price itself does not move up very quickly, the total return—which includes those cash payments—has been higher. Always remember that high yields can be misleading if the share price is falling, so it is helpful to look at both price return and total return together.