Fifteen Years of Ups, Downs and New Highs

SCHD, the Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF, has risen several-fold since it launched in October 2011, setting a series of record highs along the way. In 2026 it repeatedly closed at new all-time highs, reaching a record close of around $36 per share in early November 2026, after strongly outperforming the S&P 500 in the first half of the year.

Its path has not been smooth. SCHD’s price has fallen by 15% or more five times since launch, most sharply in the 2020 pandemic crash, when it dropped by about a third in two months. Each time, it eventually recovered and went on to new highs, although one recovery took two and a half years.

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This guide is part of FRC’s complete guide to SCHD, which starts with what SCHD is and how it works. It walks through SCHD’s price history, its record highs, its biggest falls, the 2024 stock split and the forces that move its price.

Why SCHD’s Price Looks So Different on Older Charts

Anyone comparing SCHD’s price today with a chart from a few years ago may be confused. Before October 2024, SCHD traded at around $80 or more per share. Today it trades at around a third of that.

The reason is a three-for-one share split in October 2024. It applied to shareholders of record at the close on 10 October, and SCHD began trading at its new split-adjusted price on 11 October, at around $28 per share instead of around $85. Every investor received two additional shares for each one they held, and the value of every investor’s holding stayed exactly the same.

Most financial websites now show split-adjusted prices, dividing all earlier prices by three so the chart is continuous. Some older articles and screenshots still quote pre-split prices, which can make SCHD look as if it fell by two-thirds overnight. It did not; only the number of shares and the price per share changed.

All the prices in this guide are split-adjusted unless stated otherwise.

SCHD’s Record Highs

SCHD set a run of record highs in 2026. By late May, it was up nearly 20% for the year, compared with roughly 9% for the S&P 500 and around 17% for the Nasdaq-100. By the end of October, its price was up around 30% for the year, against roughly 19% for the S&P 500, with a record close of about $35.78 on 30 October.

Its record close at the time of writing came on 4 November 2026, the day after the US midterm elections, at around $36.21 per share, with an intraday high of about $36.38. Two days later it closed at around $35.17, about 3% below that high, and its yield had fallen to around 3% as the price rose faster than the dividend.

Several factors drove the 2026 rally. Investors rotated money away from expensive growth and artificial intelligence stocks towards value and dividend companies. SCHD’s companies, heavy in consumer staples, healthcare and energy, reported strong earnings, and SCHD traded at a much lower price relative to earnings than the S&P 500 or the Nasdaq-100.

Record highs are a natural feature of a fund that grows over time, not a signal on their own to buy or sell. FRC’s guide on the dangers of chasing the best-performing ETFs explains why buying after a strong run can disappoint.

SCHD’s Biggest Falls

Since launch, SCHD’s price has fallen by 15% or more on five occasions. These figures are based on price alone, excluding dividends, and show how deep each fall went and how long it took to recover.

In 2015, SCHD fell about 15% between March and August, as worries about China and falling oil prices hit markets. It regained its previous high in June 2016, around fifteen months after the peak.

In 2018, it fell about 19% between January and December, ending with the sharp sell-off of late 2018 as investors worried about rising interest rates and a trade war. It recovered its high in April 2019.

In 2020, it suffered its deepest fall, dropping about 33% between 23 January and 23 March as the pandemic shut down economies. It recovered its previous high by November 2020, around ten months after the peak.

In 2022, it fell about 19% between January and September as interest rates rose sharply. On a price basis, it took until July 2024 to regain its previous high, two and a half years later, the longest recovery in its history.

Most recently, it fell about 18% between late November 2024 and early April 2025, a period that included the sharp market sell-off of April 2025. It recovered its previous high at the end of January 2026, before going on to its 2026 records.

What SCHD’s History Teaches Every Investor

SCHD’s record shows something every investor needs to understand before buying: even a fund built from financially strong, dividend-paying companies can fall by a third in two months, and can take years to regain a previous high. The investors who did best were those who understood what they owned and did not sell in a panic.

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What Happened to SCHD’s Dividend When Its Price Fell

One of the most striking features of SCHD’s history is that its dividend kept rising through its two biggest falls. Adjusted for the split, it paid roughly $0.57 per share in 2019, $0.68 in 2020, $0.75 in 2021 and $0.85 in 2022, an increase of about 49% across a period that included the pandemic crash and the 2022 bear market.

That means investors who held on through the price falls kept receiving a growing income, even while the value of their shares was down. Dividends per share grew at an average of around 9% a year from 2020 to 2025.

There is a caveat. In the twelve months to late 2026, SCHD’s dividend grew by only around 2% on the previous year, a sharp slowdown. Past dividend growth through downturns is encouraging, but it is no guarantee of future increases, and the income could stall or fall in a deeper, longer recession.

Price Return vs Total Return

The figures above measure SCHD’s share price only. They do not include the dividends SCHD paid along the way, which have typically added around 3% or more a year to investors’ returns.

Including reinvested dividends, SCHD’s recoveries were noticeably faster. After the 2022 fall, for example, an investor who reinvested dividends regained their previous peak value well before the share price itself did, because the dividends kept buying more shares.

That is why total return, which combines price changes and dividends, is the best measure of what SCHD investors actually earned. Price charts alone understate the performance of any dividend fund, and the gap widens the longer you hold. Over a decade, reinvested dividends can account for a large share of the total growth in an investor’s holding.

How SCHD Compared With the Wider Market

SCHD’s price history differs from the S&P 500’s in revealing ways. In 2022, when the S&P 500 fell around 18% for the year, SCHD’s total return was close to flat, and its fall from peak to trough was shallower than the wider market’s.

In the technology-led rallies of 2023 and 2024, SCHD lagged far behind, rising only modestly while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 surged. In 2026, the pattern reversed again, as SCHD outperformed both in the first half of the year.

These swings reflect SCHD’s mix of companies. It holds little of the technology giants that drive the S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100, so it tends to lag when they lead and hold up when they fall. FRC’s guide to SCHD vs VOO compares the two in detail.

The market doesn’t care whether you understand the risks. It will expose you to them regardless. ETF Investing Strategies shows you how to build a portfolio that can hold up when one part of the market falls and another leads.

What Moves SCHD’s Price

SCHD’s price follows the combined value of the roughly 100 companies it holds. When those companies’ share prices rise, SCHD rises; when they fall, it falls. Its largest holdings, each around 4% of the fund, have the biggest influence.

Interest rates matter too. Dividend-paying stocks compete with bonds and savings accounts for income investors’ money, so sharp rises in interest rates, as in 2022, can weigh on funds like SCHD.

Sector rotation can move SCHD sharply. When investors move money out of technology and growth stocks into value and dividend companies, SCHD tends to benefit, as it did in early 2026. When the flow reverses, SCHD tends to lag.

SCHD’s annual reconstitution every March can also shift its price behaviour, because the companies and sectors it holds change. The March 2026 reconstitution, for example, replaced around a quarter of the fund’s companies.

Why SCHD’s Price Drops on Ex-Dividend Days

Four times a year, SCHD’s price falls by roughly the amount of its dividend on the ex-dividend date. That is because the money paid out as dividends leaves the fund, so the fund’s value per share falls by the same amount.

This is not a loss. Investors who own the shares before the ex-dividend date receive the dividend, so the fall in price is matched by the cash they receive. FRC’s guide on how ETF dividends work explains ex-dividend, record and payment dates.

Price charts that do not adjust for dividends show these small regular drops. Total return charts add the dividends back, giving a truer picture of investors’ results.

Price vs Value: Is SCHD Expensive?

SCHD’s share price on its own says nothing about whether it is cheap or expensive. A price of $35 per share is not more expensive than a price of $25 for a different fund; what matters is what the fund holds and what those companies earn.

A more useful measure is the price-to-earnings ratio of the companies it holds. Through 2026, SCHD’s holdings traded at roughly 18 to 20 times earnings, compared with around 22 to 24 times for the S&P 500 and around 35 times for the Nasdaq-100. That gap reflects SCHD’s focus on slower-growing, value-oriented companies, although SCHD’s own valuation rose above its recent average as its price climbed.

A lower valuation does not guarantee better returns, and valuations change constantly. But it explains why SCHD often holds up better when expensive growth stocks fall.

SCHD’s Key Moments at a Glance

October 2011: SCHD launches, tracking the Dow Jones U.S. Dividend 100 Index with a very low fee. March 2020: it suffers its deepest fall, around a third in two months, before recovering by November.

2022: SCHD holds up far better than the wider market for the full year, but its price falls about 19% from peak to trough and takes until mid-2024 to regain its high. October 2024: the three-for-one share split cuts the price per share to a third.

April 2025: a sharp market sell-off pushes SCHD about 18% below its late-2024 peak. March 2026: an unusually large reconstitution replaces around a quarter of its companies. 2026: SCHD sets a series of record highs, outperforming the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq-100 for much of the year.

What Price History Means for Regular Investors

For investors who add money every month, falls like these are less frightening than they look. Each regular contribution buys more shares when the price is low, so periods like 2020 and 2022 quietly increased the number of shares long-term investors owned.

That approach, known as dollar-cost averaging, takes the guesswork out of deciding when to buy. Investors who kept investing through SCHD’s falls owned more shares when it went on to set new records.

The picture is different for investors who need to sell. A retiree drawing on SCHD during a fall may have to sell shares at low prices, which is why many keep a cash buffer or bonds alongside dividend funds. FRC’s guide on what happens to your ETF during a stock market crash explains how to prepare.

How to Look Up SCHD’s Price History

Schwab Asset Management’s SCHD page shows the current price, recent performance and distribution history. Most brokerages and financial websites also offer full historical price charts.

When using any chart, check whether it is split-adjusted and whether it shows price return or total return. A total return chart, with dividends reinvested, gives the most accurate picture of what investors earned.

For the fund’s official performance figures, which are reported on a total return basis, the fact sheet and annual reports are the most reliable sources. Be wary of social media posts quoting SCHD’s price or yield without a date, because both change daily and old figures circulate for years.

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Common Questions

What is SCHD’s all-time high? SCHD’s record closing price at the time of writing is around $36.21 per share, set on 4 November 2026. It set several record highs during 2026.

Why did SCHD’s price drop so much in October 2024? It did not lose value. SCHD carried out a three-for-one share split in October 2024, which divided the price per share by three while tripling the number of shares each investor held.

What was SCHD’s biggest drop? SCHD’s deepest fall was in 2020, when its price dropped about 33% between late January and late March as the pandemic hit. It regained its previous high by November 2020.

How long did SCHD take to recover from the 2022 drop? On a price basis, SCHD fell about 19% in 2022 and took until July 2024 to regain its previous high. Including reinvested dividends, the recovery came considerably sooner.

How much was SCHD when it split? Just before the October 2024 split, SCHD traded at around $85 per share. After the three-for-one split, it began trading at around $28 per share, with each investor holding three times as many shares.

Why is SCHD booming? In 2026, investors moved money out of expensive growth and technology stocks and into value and dividend companies, SCHD’s holdings reported strong earnings, and its lower valuation attracted buyers. By late October it was up around 30% for the year.

How much SCHD do you need to make $100 a month? At a yield of around 3%, earning $1,200 a year would take roughly $40,000 invested in SCHD. The figure changes with SCHD’s price and dividend, and it pays quarterly rather than monthly.

Did SCHD’s dividend fall during market crashes? No. SCHD’s annual dividend rose in both 2020 and 2022, even though its share price fell in both years. Its dividend growth has slowed more recently, however.

Why did SCHD reach record highs in 2026? Investors rotated away from expensive growth and artificial intelligence stocks towards value and dividend companies, and SCHD’s companies reported strong earnings while trading at lower valuations than the wider market.

Does SCHD’s price go down when it pays a dividend? Yes. On each ex-dividend date, SCHD’s price falls by roughly the amount of the dividend, because that money leaves the fund. Investors receive the dividend, so the drop is not a loss.

Will SCHD hit $40 or $50? Nobody can reliably predict a fund’s future price. SCHD’s price will depend on the future performance and valuations of the companies it holds.

Is SCHD a good buy at a record high? Record highs are normal for funds that grow over time and are not, on their own, a reason to buy or sell. Many long-term investors invest regularly regardless of price rather than trying to time the market.

Has SCHD ever lost money over a full year? Yes, on a price basis SCHD has had down years, including 2018 and 2022, although its dividends reduced or offset those losses for investors. Over longer periods, its total return has been positive.

Your Portfolio Deserves an Educated Investor

SCHD’s price history tells the story of a steady, dividend-focused fund that has still faced sharp falls, long recoveries and periods of lagging the market, alongside a run of record highs. Understanding that history helps investors set realistic expectations and stay invested through the difficult stretches.

The question isn’t whether financial education costs money. It’s what a lack of it could cost you. FRC’s three progressive ETF programmes take you from how ETF prices work, through building a portfolio around your goals, to managing risk through every kind of market. FRC’s programmes and memberships are open to everyone, whether you are investing $500 or $500,000.

Invest in understanding the market before investing in the market itself. Know how far your fund can fall before it tests your nerve.