American Funds Short-Term Tax Exempt Bond Fund (ASTEX)

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The chart shows the growth of an initial investment of $10,000 in American Funds Short-Term Tax Exempt Bond Fund, comparing it to the performance of the S&P 500 index or another benchmark. All prices have been adjusted for splits and dividends.

American Funds Short-Term Tax Exempt Bond Fund (ASTEX) has returned 0.02% so far this year and 3.62% over the past 12 months. Over the last ten years, ASTEX has returned 1.50% per year, falling short of the S&P 500 Index benchmark, which averaged 12.16% annually.

Based on dividend-adjusted daily data since Aug 10, 2009, ASTEX's average daily return is +0.01%, while the average monthly return is +0.12%. At this rate, your investment would double in approximately 48.2 years.

Historically, 63% of months were positive and 37% were negative. The best month was Nov 2023 with a return of +2.5%, while the worst month was Sep 2022 at -1.4%. The longest winning streak lasted 11 consecutive months, and the longest losing streak was 5 months.

On a daily basis, ASTEX closed higher 18% of trading days. The best single day was Mar 25, 2020 with a return of +1.4%, while the worst single day was Mar 20, 2020 at -1.1%.

American Funds Short-Term Tax Exempt Bond Fund has an annualized alpha of 1.43%, beta of 0.00, and R² of 0.00 versus S&P 500 Index. Calculated based on daily prices since August 11, 2009.

• This fund participates in less of S&P 500 Index's moves in both directions, but captures a larger share of gains (5.52%) than losses (2.11%) — typical of diversified or defensive assets.
• Beta of 0.00 may look defensive, but with R² of 0.00 this fund is largely uncorrelated with S&P 500 Index — low beta reflects independence, not downside protection. See the Volatility section for a true picture of this fund's risk.
• R² of 0.00 means this fund moves largely independently of S&P 500 Index — capture ratios reflect limited market correlation rather than active downside protection. Consider using a more representative benchmark.

ASTEX has an expense ratio of 0.53%, placing it in the medium range.

ASTEX ranks 92 for risk / return — in the top 92% of mutual funds on our site. This means strong returns relative to risk — exactly what professional investors look for. Well-suited for investors who want to maximize return per unit of risk.

The table below present risk-adjusted performance metrics for American Funds Short-Term Tax Exempt Bond Fund (ASTEX) and compare them to a chosen benchmark (S&P 500 Index).

American Funds Short-Term Tax Exempt Bond Fund provided a 2.76% dividend yield over the last twelve months, with an annual payout of $0.28 per share. The fund has been increasing its distributions for 4 consecutive years.

The table displays the monthly dividend distributions for American Funds Short-Term Tax Exempt Bond Fund. The dividends shown in the table have been adjusted to account for any splits that may have occurred.

The Drawdowns chart displays portfolio losses from any high point along the way. Drawdowns are calculated considering price movements and all distributions paid, if any.

The table below displays the maximum drawdowns of the American Funds Short-Term Tax Exempt Bond Fund. A maximum drawdown is a measure of risk, indicating the largest reduction in portfolio value due to a series of losing trades.

The maximum drawdown for the American Funds Short-Term Tax Exempt Bond Fund was 5.73%, occurring on Oct 25, 2022. Recovery took 432 trading sessions.

The current American Funds Short-Term Tax Exempt Bond Fund drawdown is 1.28%.

The chart below shows the rolling one-month volatility.