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Should Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF (SCHD) Be on Your Investing Radar?

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Looking for broad exposure to the Large Cap Value segment of the US equity market? You should consider the Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF (SCHD - Free Report) , a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on 10/20/2011.

The fund is sponsored by Charles Schwab. It has amassed assets over $67.51 billion, making it the largest ETFs attempting to match the Large Cap Value segment of the US equity market.

Why Large Cap Value

Companies that find themselves in the large cap category typically have a market capitalization above $10 billion. They tend to be stable companies with predictable cash flows and are usually less volatile than mid and small cap companies.

While value stocks have lower than average price-to-earnings and price-to-book ratios, they also have lower than average sales and earnings growth rates. Looking at their long-term performance, value stocks have outperformed growth stocks in almost all markets. They are however likely to underperform growth stocks in strong bull markets.

Costs

Expense ratios are an important factor in the return of an ETF and in the long term, cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive counterparts, other things remaining the same.

Annual operating expenses for this ETF are 0.06%, making it one of the least expensive products in the space.

It has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 3.33%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

Even though ETFs offer diversified exposure which minimizes single stock risk, it is still important to look into a fund's holdings before investing. Luckily, most ETFs are very transparent products that disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

This ETF has heaviest allocation to the Financials sector--about 20.10% of the portfolio. Healthcare and Industrials round out the top three.

Looking at individual holdings, Bristol Myers Squibb (BMY - Free Report) accounts for about 4.53% of total assets, followed by Cisco Systems Inc (CSCO - Free Report) and Blackrock Inc (BLK - Free Report) .

The top 10 holdings account for about 40.65% of total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

SCHD seeks to match the performance of the Dow Jones U.S. Dividend 100 Index before fees and expenses. The Dow Jones U.S. Dividend 100 Index is designed to measure the performance of high dividend yielding stocks issued by U.S. companies that have a record of consistently paying dividends, selected for fundamental strength relative to their peers, based on financial ratios.

The ETF has added about 18.49% so far this year and is up roughly 24.34% in the last one year (as of 12/03/2024). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $24.04 and $29.53.

The ETF has a beta of 0.85 and standard deviation of 14.51% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 103 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF carries a Zacks ETF Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on expected asset class return, expense ratio, and momentum, among other factors. Thus, SCHD is a sufficient option for those seeking exposure to the Style Box - Large Cap Value area of the market. Investors might also want to consider some other ETF options in the space.

The iShares Russell 1000 Value ETF (IWD - Free Report) and the Vanguard Value ETF (VTV - Free Report) track a similar index. While iShares Russell 1000 Value ETF has $63.58 billion in assets, Vanguard Value ETF has $133.57 billion. IWD has an expense ratio of 0.19% and VTV charges 0.04%.

Bottom-Line

Passively managed ETFs are becoming increasingly popular with institutional as well as retail investors due to their low cost, transparency, flexibility and tax efficiency. They are excellent vehicles for long term investors.

To learn more about this product and other ETFs, screen for products that match your investment objectives and read articles on latest developments in the ETF investing universe, please visit Zacks ETF Center.

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