ABALX vs. SCHD

Last updated Apr 2, 2026

Compare and contrast key facts about American Funds American Balanced Fund Class A (ABALX) and Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF (SCHD).

ABALX is managed by American Funds. It was launched on Jul 26, 1975. SCHD is a passively managed fund by Charles Schwab that tracks the performance of the Dow Jones U.S. Dividend 100 Index. It was launched on Oct 20, 2011.

Performance

ABALX vs. SCHD - Performance Comparison

The chart below illustrates the hypothetical performance of a $10,000 investment in American Funds American Balanced Fund Class A (ABALX) and Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF (SCHD). The values are adjusted to include any dividend payments, if applicable.

ABALX vs. SCHD - Yearly Performance Comparison

	2026 (YTD)	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018	2017
ABALX American Funds American Balanced Fund Class A	-1.12%	18.45%	14.63%	13.65%	-12.13%	15.75%	10.85%	18.60%	-3.35%	14.69%
SCHD Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF	12.17%	4.34%	11.66%	4.54%	-3.26%	29.87%	15.03%	27.29%	-5.56%	20.85%

Returns By Period

In the year-to-date period, ABALX achieves a -1.12% return, which is significantly lower than SCHD's 12.17% return. Over the past 10 years, ABALX has underperformed SCHD with an annualized return of 9.17%, while SCHD has yielded a comparatively higher 12.25% annualized return.

ABALX

• 1D: 1.79%
• 1M: -4.88%
• YTD: -1.12%
• 6M: 2.08%
• 1Y: 16.95%
• 3Y*: 14.07%
• 5Y*: 8.20%
• 10Y*: 9.17%

SCHD

• 1D: -0.55%
• 1M: -3.43%
• YTD: 12.17%
• 6M: 12.91%
• 1Y: 13.70%
• 3Y*: 11.84%
• 5Y*: 8.32%
• 10Y*: 12.25%

*Multi-year figures are annualized to reflect compound growth (CAGR)

ABALX vs. SCHD - Expense Ratio Comparison

ABALX has a 0.56% expense ratio, which is higher than SCHD's 0.06% expense ratio.

ABALX

American Funds American Balanced Fund Class A

SCHD

Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF

Return for Risk

ABALX vs. SCHD — Risk / Return Rank

Compare risk-adjusted metric ranks to identify better-performing investments over the past 12 months.

ABALX

ABALX Risk / Return Rank: 85
ABALX Sharpe Ratio Rank: 82
ABALX Sortino Ratio Rank: 85
ABALX Omega Ratio Rank: 80
ABALX Calmar Ratio Rank: 89
ABALX Martin Ratio Rank: 90

SCHD

SCHD Risk / Return Rank: 43
SCHD Sharpe Ratio Rank: 46
SCHD Sortino Ratio Rank: 46
SCHD Omega Ratio Rank: 46
SCHD Calmar Ratio Rank: 39
SCHD Martin Ratio Rank: 38

The rank (0–100) shows how this investment's returns compare to the risk taken. Higher = better. Based on the past 12 months of data, combining Sharpe, Sortino, and other metrics used by quantitative funds and institutional investors.

ABALX vs. SCHD - Risk-Adjusted Trends Comparison

This table presents a comparison of risk-adjusted performance metrics for American Funds American Balanced Fund Class A (ABALX) and Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF (SCHD). Risk-adjusted metrics are performance indicators that assess an investment's returns in relation to its risk, enabling a more accurate comparison of different investment options.

	ABALX	SCHD	Difference
Sharpe ratio Return per unit of total volatility	1.56	0.88	+0.68
Sortino ratio Return per unit of downside risk	2.28	1.32	+0.96
Omega ratio Gain probability vs. loss probability	1.32	1.19	+0.14
Calmar ratio Return relative to maximum drawdown	2.43	1.05	+1.39
Martin ratio Return relative to average drawdown	10.15	3.55	+6.59
Data is calculated on a 1-year rolling basis and updated daily. The trend shows the change in the indicator over the past month.

ABALX vs. SCHD - Sharpe Ratio Comparison

The current ABALX Sharpe Ratio is 1.56, which is higher than the SCHD Sharpe Ratio of 0.88. The chart below compares the historical Sharpe Ratios of ABALX and SCHD, offering insights into how both investments have performed under varying market conditions. These values are calculated using daily returns over the previous 12 months.

Sharpe Ratios by Period

	ABALX	SCHD	Difference
Sharpe Ratio (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	1.56	0.88	+0.68
Sharpe Ratio (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period	0.79	0.58	+0.21
Sharpe Ratio (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period	0.87	0.74	+0.13
Sharpe Ratio (All Time) Calculated using the full available price history	0.79	0.84	-0.05

Correlation

The correlation between ABALX and SCHD is 0.83, which is considered to be high. That indicates a strong positive relationship between their price movements. Having highly-correlated positions in a portfolio may signal a lack of diversification, potentially leading to increased risk during market downturns.

Dividends

ABALX vs. SCHD - Dividend Comparison

ABALX's dividend yield for the trailing twelve months is around 8.39%, more than SCHD's 3.46% yield.

	TTM	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018	2017	2016	2015
ABALX American Funds American Balanced Fund Class A	8.39%	8.27%	6.87%	2.05%	2.30%	4.30%	4.35%	3.49%	5.49%	4.72%	4.24%	5.60%
SCHD Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF	3.46%	3.82%	3.64%	3.49%	3.39%	2.78%	3.16%	2.98%	3.06%	2.63%	2.89%	2.97%

Drawdowns

ABALX vs. SCHD - Drawdown Comparison

The maximum ABALX drawdown since its inception was -40.20%, which is greater than SCHD's maximum drawdown of -33.37%. Use the drawdown chart below to compare losses from any high point for ABALX and SCHD.

Drawdown Indicators

	ABALX	SCHD	Difference
Max Drawdown Largest peak-to-trough decline	-40.20%	-33.37%	-6.83%
Max Drawdown (1Y) Largest decline over 1 year	-7.33%	-12.74%	+5.41%
Max Drawdown (5Y) Largest decline over 5 years	-18.76%	-16.85%	-1.91%
Max Drawdown (10Y) Largest decline over 10 years	-22.34%	-33.37%	+11.03%
Current Drawdown Current decline from peak	-5.37%	-3.43%	-1.94%
Average Drawdown Average peak-to-trough decline	-3.86%	-3.34%	-0.52%
Ulcer Index Depth and duration of drawdowns from previous peaks	1.76%	3.75%	-1.99%

Volatility

ABALX vs. SCHD - Volatility Comparison

American Funds American Balanced Fund Class A (ABALX) has a higher volatility of 3.89% compared to Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF (SCHD) at 2.33%. This indicates that ABALX's price experiences larger fluctuations and is considered to be riskier than SCHD based on this measure. The chart below showcases a comparison of their rolling one-month volatility.

Volatility by Period

	ABALX	SCHD	Difference
Volatility (1M) Calculated over the trailing 1-month period	3.89%	2.33%	+1.56%
Volatility (6M) Calculated over the trailing 6-month period	6.96%	7.96%	-1.00%
Volatility (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	11.22%	15.69%	-4.47%
Volatility (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period, annualized	10.45%	14.40%	-3.95%
Volatility (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period, annualized	10.63%	16.70%	-6.07%