SCHD Dividend: Next Ex-Date, History & Total Return

The Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF (SCHD) generally invests in stocks included in the Dow Jones U.S. Dividend 100 Index and aims to track as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the total return of that index. The 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.¹

Under normal circumstances SCHD will invest at least 90% of its net assets in the index stocks, and it generally seeks to give each stock the same weight the index does. It may invest up to 10% of its net assets in securities outside the index, such as stocks expected to be added to the index, other investment companies and derivatives, principally futures contracts.¹

SCHD may use futures and other derivatives primarily to seek returns on its otherwise uninvested cash, to help it better track the index. Schwab's distribution schedule lists SCHD among its quarterly distribution funds and marks December as a month when additional distributions may be made, if necessary.^1,2

Every stock eligible for SCHD's index must have paid dividends for at least 10 consecutive years, have a minimum float-adjusted market capitalization of $500 million USD and meet minimum liquidity criteria. The index is drawn from the Dow Jones U.S. Broad Market Index and leaves out real estate investment trusts (REITs), master limited partnerships, preferred stocks and convertibles.¹

The index components are then selected by evaluating the highest dividend yielding eligible stocks on four fundamentals-based characteristics: cash flow to total debt, return on equity, dividend yield and 5-year dividend growth rate. The result is a 100-component index.¹

Weighting follows a modified market capitalization approach. No single stock can exceed 4.0% of the index and no sector can exceed 25%, measured when the index is constructed, reconstituted and rebalanced. The composition is reviewed annually and rebalanced quarterly, and SCHD may sell stocks ahead of their expected removal or buy stocks not yet in the index ahead of their expected addition.¹

Dividend Stacker's record of past SCHD payments starts with an ex-date of December 19, 2011, and each completed calendar year from 2012 through 2025 shows 4 distributions. The annual total rose from $0.27 per share in 2012 to $1.05 per share in 2025, and 2025 closed a run of 13 consecutive completed years with a higher annual total.³

The largest annual increase in the record was 19.8% in 2019 over 2018, and the smallest was 3.8% in 2023 over 2022. The total grew 12.2% in 2024 and 5.4% in 2025.³

Investment style risk comes from SCHD's focus on dividend paying stocks. Its results move with that segment of the stock market, and it may lag funds that do not limit themselves to dividend payers. A cut or halt in dividends by its stocks may reduce the fund's income. Equity prices rise and fall daily, and an investor could lose money over short or long periods.¹

As an index fund, SCHD follows its index through downturns as well as upturns and takes no steps to reduce market exposure, and its expenses may leave its performance below the index. There is no guarantee that SCHD's performance will closely track its index, and the prospectus says this tracking error may be significant. SCHD shares may trade at a market price that deviates from net asset value, sometimes significantly during market volatility or disruption.¹

SCHD will concentrate, meaning hold more than 25% of its total assets, in an industry, group of industries or sector to approximately the same extent its index does. To the extent that it is concentrated, the fund may be subject to increased price volatility and may be more vulnerable to adverse economic, market, political or regulatory occurrences affecting that area.¹

Because SCHD may use futures, derivatives risk applies: derivatives could reduce its performance or cause losses greater than the amount invested. Lending its securities risks losing rights to them if a borrower fails to return them or becomes insolvent. Under liquidity risk, the fund may be unable to sell certain securities readily at a favorable time or price. Under market trading risk, there can be no assurance that an active trading market for SCHD shares will develop or be maintained.¹