Preview The Client Research Experience

As your agreement for the receipt and use of market data provides, the securities markets (1) reserve all rights to the market data that they make available; (2) do not guarantee that data; and (3) shall not be liable for any loss due either to their negligence or to any cause beyond their reasonable control.

ETFs at Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. ("Schwab") which are U.S. exchange-listed can be traded without a commission on buy and sell transactions made online in a Schwab account. Unlisted ETFs are subject to a commission. Trade orders placed through a broker will receive the negotiated broker-assisted rate. An exchange process fee applies to sell transactions. All ETFs are subject to management fees and expenses. Please see the Charles Schwab Pricing Guide for additional information. Schwab's affiliate Charles Schwab Investment Management, Inc., dba Schwab Asset Management, serves as the investment adviser to the Schwab ETFs, which compensates Schwab Asset Management out of the applicable operating expense ratios. The amount of the fees is disclosed in the prospectus of each ETF.

Schwab receives remuneration from third-party active semi-transparent (also known as non-transparent) ETFs or their sponsors for platform support and technology, shareholder communications, reporting, and similar administrative services for third-party active semi-transparent ETFs available at Schwab. This fee will vary, but typically is an asset-based fee of 0.10% per annum of the assets held at Schwab. Neither Schwab's affiliate Charles Schwab Investment Management, Inc., dba Schwab Asset Management nor Schwab active semi-transparent ETFs pay a separate fee to Schwab for these services described, although Schwab Asset Management reimburses Schwab, in its capacity as an affiliated financial intermediary of CSIM's, for Schwab's costs in providing certain professional, administrative, and support services for the Schwab ETFs.

The Morningstar Rating™ for funds, or "star rating", is calculated for managed products (including mutual funds, variable annuity and variable life subaccounts, exchange-traded funds, closed-end funds, and separate accounts) with at least a three-year history. Exchange-traded funds and open-ended mutual funds are considered a single population for comparative purposes. It is calculated based on a Morningstar Risk-Adjusted Return measure that accounts for variation in a managed product's monthly excess performance, placing more emphasis on downward variations and rewarding consistent performance. The top 10% of products in each product category receive 5 stars, the next 22.5% receive 4 stars, the next 35% receive 3 stars, the next 22.5% receive 2 stars, and the bottom 10% receive 1 star. The Overall Morningstar Rating for a managed product is derived from a weighted average of the performance figures associated with its three-, five-, and 10-year (if applicable) Morningstar Rating metrics. The weights are: 100% three year rating for 36-59 months of total returns, 60% five-year rating/40% three-year rating for 60-119 months of total returns, and 50% 10-year rating/30% five-year rating/20% three-year rating for 120 or more months of total returns. While the 10-year overall star rating formula seems to give the most weight to the 10-year period, the most recent three-year period actually has the greatest impact because it is included in all three rating periods. Morningstar Ratings do not take into account sales loads that may apply to certain third party funds. The Overall Morningstar Ratings are derived from a weighted average of the risk adjusted performance figures associated with a Fund's 3-, 5-, and 10-year (if applicable) Morningstar Rating™ metrics.

Leveraged ETPs (Exchanged Traded Products, such a ETFs and ETNs), seek to provide a multiple of the investment returns of a given index or benchmark on a daily basis. Inverse ETPs seek to provide the opposite of the investment returns, also daily, of a given index or benchmark, either in whole or by multiples. Due to the effects of compounding and possible correlation errors, leveraged and inverse products may experience greater losses than one would ordinarily expect. Compounding can also cause a widening differential between the performances of an ETP and its underlying index or benchmark, so that returns over periods longer than one day can differ in amount and direction from the target return of the same period. Consequently, these ETPs may experience losses even in situations where the underlying index or benchmark has performed as hoped. Aggressive investment techniques such as futures, forward contracts, swap agreements, derivatives, options, can increase ETP volatility and decrease performance. Investors holding these ETPs should therefore monitor their positions as frequently as daily. To find out more about trading Leveraged and Inverse Products, please read Leveraged and Inverse Products: What you need to know.

Exchange-Traded Notes (ETNs) are distinct from Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs). ETNs are debt instruments backed by the credit of the issuer and carry inherent credit risk. In some instances, ETNs can be subject to early redemption prior to maturity at the issuer’s discretion. Therefore, their value when called may be less than the market price that you paid or even zero, resulting in a partial, or total, loss of your investment. ETNs are not generally appropriate for the average investor. To find out more about ETNs, please read Exchange-Traded Notes: The facts and the risks.

The Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS) was developed by and is the exclusive property of Morgan Stanley Capital International Inc. and S&P Capital IQ. GICS is a service mark of MSCI and S&P Capital IQ and has been licensed for use by Schwab.

The news sources used on Schwab.com come from independent third parties. Schwab is not affiliated with any of the news content providers. Schwab is not responsible for the content, and does not write or control which particular article appears on its website.

Environmental, social and governance (ESG) strategies implemented by mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and separately managed accounts are currently subject to inconsistent industry definitions and standards for the measurement and evaluation of ESG factors; therefore, such factors may differ significantly across strategies. As a result, it may be difficult to compare ESG investment products. Further, some issuers may present their investment products as employing an ESG strategy, but may overstate or inconsistently apply ESG factors. An investment product's ESG strategy may significantly influence its performance. Because securities may be included or excluded based on ESG factors rather than other investment methodologies, the product's performance may differ (either higher or lower) from the overall market or comparable products that do not have ESG strategies. Environmental ("E") factors can include climate change, pollution, waste, and how an issuer protects and/or conserves natural resources. Social ("S") factors can include how an issuer manages its relationships with individuals, such as its employees, shareholders, and customers as well as its community. Governance ("G") factors can include how an issuer operates, such as its leadership composition, pay and incentive structures, internal controls, and the rights of equity and debt holders. Carefully review an investment product's prospectus or disclosure brochure to learn more about how it incorporates ESG factors into its investment strategy.