Which Is the Better Dividend ETF: Schwab's Defensive SCHD or Fidelity's Tech-Tilted FDVV?

Sara Appino, The Motley Fool

Sat, August 15, 2026 astatine 5:57 PM CDT 4 min read

The Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF (NYSEMKT:SCHD) offers a lower-cost, lower-volatility attack compared to the Fidelity High Dividend ETF (NYSEMKT:FDVV), which leans heavy into growth-oriented sectors similar exertion and fiscal services.

Income investors often take betwixt precocious existent output and semipermanent maturation potential. While some funds people dividend-paying stocks, they instrumentality diverging paths done the market. The Fidelity money seeks enhanced income done tactical assemblage tilts, whereas the Schwab money tracks a disciplined scale of high-quality companies. Choosing betwixt them requires weighing assemblage vulnerability against outgo efficiency.

Snapshot (cost & size)

Beta measures terms volatility comparative to the S&P 500; beta is calculated from monthly returns implicit the disposable money past (up to 5 years). The 1-yr instrumentality represents full instrumentality implicit the trailing 12 months. Dividend output is the trailing-12-month organisation yield.

The Schwab money is importantly much affordable with an disbursal ratio of 0.06%, compared to 0.15% for the Fidelity fund. Additionally, it offers a higher payout, providing a 0.36 percent constituent vantage successful trailing-12-month dividend yield.

Performance & hazard examination

Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF focuses connected antiaircraft stability, weighting its portfolio toward healthcare astatine 21%, user antiaircraft astatine 20%, and vigor astatine 15%. Its largest positions see Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) astatine 4.78%, Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) astatine 4.63%, and Merck (NYSE:MRK) astatine 4.42%. It holds 103 stocks and presently has nary structural quirks. The money was launched successful 2011. Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF has paid $1.05 per stock implicit the trailing 12 months, which connected its caller ~$34.43 stock terms works retired to a 3.1% yield.

Fidelity High Dividend ETF takes a much assertive approach, holding 119 stocks with dense concentrations successful exertion astatine 29%, fiscal services astatine 19%, and user cyclical astatine 13%. Its apical holdings see Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) astatine 7.18%, Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) astatine 5.94%, and Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) astatine 5.09%. This strategy captures much exertion upside but typically involves higher volatility arsenic evidenced by its higher beta. The money was launched successful 2016. Fidelity High Dividend ETF has paid $1.73 per stock implicit the trailing 12 months, which connected its caller ~$64.33 stock terms works retired to a 2.7% yield.