ASTEX Alternatives & Similar Mutual Funds

American Funds Short-Term Tax Exempt Bond Fund (ASTEX) belongs to the Municipal Bonds category. Below you'll find alternative mutual funds from the same category, ranked by key criteria, plus funds that investors commonly compare with ASTEX. Use the tables to find lower-cost options, better risk-adjusted returns, or a closer substitute for your current allocation.

Cheapest Alternatives to ASTEX

ASTEX charges 0.53% annually. There are 174 mutual funds in the Municipal Bonds category with lower expense ratios, going as low as 0.01%.

Symbol	Name	Expense Ratio	AUM	Inception
LSMSX	Western Asset SMASh Series TF Fund	0.01%	—	Dec 2015	ASTEX vs LSMSX
VTMFX	Vanguard Tax-Managed Balanced Fund Admiral Shares	0.05%	12.30B	Sep 1994	ASTEX vs VTMFX
FHMIX	Federated Hermes Conservative Municipal Microshort...	0.05%	—	Feb 2021	ASTEX vs FHMIX
NMTRX	Nuveen Municipal Total Return Managed Accounts	0.05%	—	May 2007	ASTEX vs NMTRX
FSMUX	Strategic Advisers Municipal Bond Fund	0.06%	—	Jun 2021	ASTEX vs FSMUX

Best Risk-Adjusted Alternatives to ASTEX

ASTEX has a PortfoliosLab risk / return rank of 76. There are 109 mutual funds in the Municipal Bonds category with higher risk-adjusted ranks, going as high as 100.

Symbol	Name	Risk / Return Rank	AUM	Inception
DFABX	DFA Short-Term Selective State Municipal Bond Port...	100	—	Apr 2022	ASTEX vs DFABX
ATOIX	abrdn Ultra Short Municipal Income Fund	99	—	Dec 2002	ASTEX vs ATOIX
DFCMX	DFA California Short Term Municipal Bond Portfolio	99	—	Apr 2007	ASTEX vs DFCMX
DNYMX	DFA NY Municipal Bond Portfolio	99	—	Jun 2015	ASTEX vs DNYMX
DFSMX	DFA Short Term Municipal Bond Portfolio	99	—	Aug 2002	ASTEX vs DFSMX

Top Performing ASTEX Alternatives (YTD)

ASTEX is at 0.90% YTD. There are 409 mutual funds in the Municipal Bonds category with higher YTD returns, going as high as 13.22%.

Symbol	Name	YTD Return	AUM	Inception
NMI	Nuveen Municipal Income Fund, Inc.	13.22%	—	Apr 1998	ASTEX vs NMI
NRK	Nuveen New York AMT Free Quality Municipal Income	9.70%	—	Nov 2002	ASTEX vs NRK
AFB	AllianceBernstein National Municipal Income Fund	7.62%	—	Nov 2001	ASTEX vs AFB
MIY	BlackRock MuniYield Michigan Quality Fund	6.57%	—	Oct 1992	ASTEX vs MIY
NPV	Nuveen Virginia Quality Municipal Income Fund	6.33%	—	Mar 1993	ASTEX vs NPV

Lowest Volatility Alternatives to ASTEX

ASTEX has 1.42% 1-year volatility. There are 46 mutual funds in the Municipal Bonds category with lower 1-year volatility, going as low as 0.56%.

Symbol	Name	Volatility 1Y	AUM	Inception
DFABX	DFA Short-Term Selective State Municipal Bond Port...	0.56%	—	Apr 2022	ASTEX vs DFABX
DFCMX	DFA California Short Term Municipal Bond Portfolio	0.59%	—	Apr 2007	ASTEX vs DFCMX
USMSX	JPMorgan Ultra-Short Municipal Fund	0.59%	—	May 2016	ASTEX vs USMSX
USMTX	JPMorgan Ultra-Short Municipal Fund	0.60%	—	May 2016	ASTEX vs USMTX
DFSMX	DFA Short Term Municipal Bond Portfolio	0.61%	—	Aug 2002	ASTEX vs DFSMX

Lowest Drawdown Alternatives to ASTEX

ASTEX has a 1-year max drawdown of -1.28%. There are 37 mutual funds in the Municipal Bonds category with shallower 1-year drawdowns, going as shallow as 0.00%.

Symbol	Name	Max Drawdown 1Y	AUM	Inception
BATVX	BlackRock Allocation Target Shares	0.00%	—	May 2021	ASTEX vs BATVX
ATOIX	abrdn Ultra Short Municipal Income Fund	-0.10%	—	Dec 2002	ASTEX vs ATOIX
APUSX	Cavanal Hill Ultra Short Tax-Free Income Fund	-0.10%	—	Dec 2017	ASTEX vs APUSX
TFCYX	SEI Institutional Managed Trust Tax-Free Conservat...	-0.10%	—	Apr 2016	ASTEX vs TFCYX
FHMIX	Federated Hermes Conservative Municipal Microshort...	-0.10%	—	Feb 2021	ASTEX vs FHMIX

Other Mutual Funds from American Funds

The 10 most viewed American Funds mutual funds shown here include ABALX, AIVSX, AWSHX and span 7 categories.

Symbol	Name	Category	Risk / Return Rank	YTD Return	AUM	Inception
ABALX	American Funds American Balanced Fund Class A	Diversified Portfolio	82	9.39%	—	Jul 1975	ASTEX vs ABALX
AIVSX	American Funds Investment Company of America Class...	Large Cap Blend Equities	45	8.86%	—	Jan 1934	ASTEX vs AIVSX
AWSHX	American Funds Washington Mutual Investors Fund Cl...	Large Cap Blend Equities	38	5.48%	—	Jul 1952	ASTEX vs AWSHX
RGAGX	American Funds The Growth Fund of America Class R-...	Large Cap Growth Equities	30	8.89%	—	Dec 1973	ASTEX vs RGAGX
RERGX	American Funds EUPAC Fund Class R-6	Foreign Large Cap Equities, Large Cap Growth Equities, Actively Managed	48	13.57%	—	May 2009	ASTEX vs RERGX
ANCFX	American Funds Fundamental Investors Class A	Large Cap Blend Equities, Actively Managed	68	14.25%	—	Aug 1978	ASTEX vs ANCFX
ANWPX	American Funds New Perspective Fund Class A	Global Equities, Large Cap Growth Equities, Actively Managed	28	6.46%	—	Mar 1973	ASTEX vs ANWPX
GFFFX	American Funds The Growth Fund of America Class F-...	Large Cap Growth Equities	30	8.83%	—	Dec 1973	ASTEX vs GFFFX
AMECX	American Funds The Income Fund of America Class A	Diversified Portfolio, Dividend	48	5.72%	—	Dec 1973	ASTEX vs AMECX
AMCPX	American Funds AMCAP Fund Class A	Large Cap Growth Equities	21	4.20%	—	Jan 1967	ASTEX vs AMCPX

Often Compared With ASTEX

Investors most often compare ASTEX with AAATX, NYAAX, TEPAX. These 20 comparison targets span 10 categories, based on PortfoliosLab usage data.

Symbol	Name	Category	Risk / Return Rank	YTD Return	AUM	Inception
AAATX	American Funds 2010 Target Date Retirement Fund	Target Retirement Date	58	3.43%	—	Jan 2007	ASTEX vs AAATX
NYAAX	American Funds Tax-Exempt Fund of New York	Municipal Bonds	73	2.18%	—	Oct 2010	ASTEX vs NYAAX
TEPAX	American Funds Tax-Exempt Preservation Portfolio	Municipal Bonds	67	0.81%	—	May 2012	ASTEX vs TEPAX
LTEBX	American Funds Limited Term Tax-Exempt Bond Fund	Municipal Bonds	65	0.80%	—	Oct 1993	ASTEX vs LTEBX
AFTEX	American Funds Tax Exempt Bond Fund	Municipal Bonds	70	1.58%	—	Oct 1979	ASTEX vs AFTEX
EBNAX	American Funds Emerging Markets Bond Fund	Emerging Markets Bonds	53	1.88%	—	Apr 2016	ASTEX vs EBNAX
INPAX	American Funds Conservative Growth and Income Port...	Diversified Portfolio	48	4.09%	—	May 2012	ASTEX vs INPAX
MIAQX	American Funds Multi-Sector Income Fund	Multisector Bonds	43	0.90%	—	Mar 2019	ASTEX vs MIAQX
FXAIX	Fidelity 500 Index Fund	S&P 500	65	9.79%	—	Feb 1988	ASTEX vs FXAIX
AMUSX	American Funds U.S. Government Securities Fund	Government Bonds	10	-0.94%	—	Oct 1985	ASTEX vs AMUSX
VGIT	Vanguard Intermediate-Term Treasury ETF	Government Bonds	22	-0.39%	49.50B	Nov 2009	ASTEX vs VGIT
NAARX	American Funds Retirement Income Portfolio - Conse...	Diversified Portfolio	44	2.98%	—	Aug 2015	ASTEX vs NAARX
TAIAX	American Funds Tax-Aware Conservative Growth and I...	Diversified Portfolio	70	6.28%	—	May 2012	ASTEX vs TAIAX
AIBAX	American Funds Intermediate Bond Fund of America	Short-Term Bond	17	-0.50%	—	Feb 1988	ASTEX vs AIBAX
NJTFX	T. Rowe Price New Jersey Tax Free Bond Fund	Municipal Bonds	89	2.03%	—	Apr 1991	ASTEX vs NJTFX
BIL	SPDR Bloomberg 1-3 Month T-Bill ETF	Government Bonds, Ultrashort Bond	100	1.67%	46.54B	May 2007	ASTEX vs BIL
BOND	PIMCO Active Bond ETF	Intermediate Core-Plus Bond	41	0.82%	8.04B	Mar 2012	ASTEX vs BOND
DCARX	DFA California Municipal Real Return Portfolio	Municipal Bonds	94	1.84%	—	Oct 2017	ASTEX vs DCARX
FGNSX	Strategic Advisers Tax-Sensitive Short Duration Fu...	Municipal Bonds	97	0.77%	—	Dec 2017	ASTEX vs FGNSX
FXIEX	PIMCO Fixed Income SHares: Series TE	Municipal Bonds	78	1.81%	—	Jun 2012	ASTEX vs FXIEX

Compare ASTEX with Any Fund or Stock

Compare ASTEX with any ETF, mutual fund, or stock using PortfoliosLab's comparison tool.

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Diversifiers

Pair ASTEX with funds that move differently

American Funds Short-Term Tax Exempt Bond Fund alternatives help with substitution. Diversifiers are the next step when you want funds with lower historical correlation to ASTEX.

Explore ASTEX Diversifiers

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