SCHD gets a ton of attention for good reason. It is one of the most searched, most owned, and most talked-about dividend ETFs out there. Every March, the fund goes through its annual reconstitution, reshuffling holdings based on its screening formula and resetting the portfolio for the next year.
The big question is simple: has SCHD benefited from the latest reconstitution?
Looking at the first trading day after the reconstitution, March 23, 2026, through the close on May 14, 2026, SCHD climbed from $30.54 to about $31.80. That works out to roughly a 4% gain in less than two months. For a dividend ETF with a mid-to-high 3% yield and strong dividend growth characteristics, that is not bad at all.
But when you compare SCHD to a couple of its peers, the picture gets more interesting.
- SCHD: up about 4%
- VYM: up about 7.2%
- DGRO: up about 6%
So yes, SCHD is positive since the reconstitution. But it is also lagging both VYM and DGRO over the same stretch.
What the SCHD Reconstitution Actually Does
SCHD does not just passively drift along unchanged forever. Each year, the fund effectively re-runs its process.
The portfolio gets reshuffled. Some stocks are removed. New stocks are added. Existing positions are resized. The result is a refreshed list of the core 100 holdings that SCHD will carry forward.
This year, one of the bigger themes was a reduced emphasis on energy and a bit more exposure to healthcare. That adjustment appears to have helped in some spots, especially with certain new additions that have been on fire.
SCHD’s Top 10 Holdings: The Real Story Since March
The easiest way to understand how SCHD has performed since the reconstitution is to look at its biggest positions. These top 10 holdings make up about 44% of the entire fund, so their movement matters a lot.
And right away, there is a pretty clear pattern: the winners have been huge, but the losers have been numerous.
1. Texas Instruments (TXN)
Texas Instruments is now SCHD’s top holding, and it has been an absolute monster since the reconstitution. TXN is up 63% over that period and now makes up roughly 6% of SCHD.
The move makes sense in the current market. Semiconductors, chips, and anything adjacent to the AI buildout have been getting a lot of love. Texas Instruments has ridden that wave hard.
It is one of the clearest examples of SCHD benefiting from having at least some exposure to what has been working best in 2026.
2. Qualcomm (QCOM)
Another major winner for SCHD has been Qualcomm. QCOM is up 56% since the reconstitution and now accounts for about 5.86% of the fund.
This was also a new addition during the reconstitution, and so far that move looks very smart. Like Texas Instruments, Qualcomm has benefited from strength in tech and chips.
When the market is rewarding semiconductor names, SCHD’s exposure here gives it a boost. The problem is that it still may not have enough of that exposure to keep up with ETFs that lean further into tech.
3. UnitedHealth (UNH)
UnitedHealth was another new addition and another standout. UNH is up 48% since the reconstitution and has grown to about 5.5% of SCHD.
The rebound in UnitedHealth has been very real. Investors who bought during the earlier weakness in the low $200s and low $300s have been rewarded in a big way. SCHD’s shift toward healthcare looks especially strong here.
That is a meaningful point. This was not only a tech story. SCHD also got a lift from healthcare exposure added at a very good time.
4. Coca-Cola (KO)
Coca-Cola may not be flashy, but it has quietly done what Coca-Cola tends to do: just keep grinding higher. KO is up about 7% since the reconstitution.
For a slower-moving consumer staple, that is a very solid gain in a month and a half. The stock is now trading above $80 per share, which says a lot about how investors are still valuing steady, dependable businesses.
Up to this point, SCHD looks great. Four names, four winners, and some of them are massive winners.
Where SCHD Starts to Stall
After those top four names, the tone changes fast.
The next six holdings in SCHD’s top 10 were all down over the same period. That matters because these are not tiny positions. Together, those six laggards make up roughly 22% of the entire ETF.
5. Chevron (CVX)
Chevron has been the biggest loser among SCHD’s top 10 since the reconstitution, down about 9%. It still makes up around 4% of the fund, so that decline carries weight.
This fits with the broader point that energy has not been the place to be over this stretch. SCHD cut back in that area, but it still has enough exposure for weakness there to matter.
6. Merck (MRK)
Merck is down roughly 2% since the reconstitution. That is not a disaster, but it is still a drag.
In a market where a handful of sectors are running hot, even modest declines in defensive names can hold back a diversified dividend ETF.
7. ConocoPhillips (COP)
ConocoPhillips is down about 6.5%, another sign that energy exposure has not helped SCHD much in the post-reconstitution period.
Again, this is part of why the ETF has not fully translated its biggest winners into stronger overall returns.
8. Verizon (VZ)
Verizon is another laggard. The stock has pulled back to around $47 per share, and there was even a moment where it briefly touched the mid-$40s.
That drop has put Verizon back on the radar for some income investors who would not mind buying more at lower prices, but in the short term it has weighed on SCHD.
9. PepsiCo (PEP)
Pepsi is down about 1.46% and currently trades below $150. It makes up around 3.65% of SCHD.
This is another one that may interest dividend investors at current levels, but for this performance check-in, it lands in the loser bucket.
10. Procter & Gamble (PG)
Procter & Gamble was a new addition in the latest SCHD reconstitution, and it has been basically flat, down just under 1%.
That is not painful, but it is not helping either. Like Pepsi, PG remains a high-quality dividend stock that many investors like at these prices, yet the short-term contribution to SCHD has been minimal.
Why SCHD Is Up, But Not Up More
This is where the math matters.
Even with Texas Instruments, Qualcomm, UnitedHealth, and Coca-Cola posting strong gains, the rest of the top 10 has dragged enough to cap SCHD’s total upside. When you look at the weighted average of the top 10 holdings, which represent 44% of the fund, that group is up about 9%.
That sounds healthy, and it is. But SCHD as a whole is only up around 4%.
That tells you two things:
- The losing positions in the top 10 are taking a meaningful bite out of the winners.
- There are likely more laggards deeper in the portfolio that are weighing on overall returns.
That is especially important in the current market environment, where tech, chips, AI, and data center names are doing most of the heavy lifting. SCHD has some exposure there, but not nearly as much as funds that are more growth-oriented or that simply hold more of the market’s current leaders.
One Interesting Miss: Cisco
There is another wrinkle worth pointing out. Cisco was removed from SCHD in the latest reconstitution. Since then, Cisco has risen about 46%.
So while SCHD made some smart additions, it also left a notable winner on the table.
That is not a knock on the process as a whole. Every rebalance will include names that look good in hindsight. But it is a reminder that even disciplined ETF screens can miss strong runs, especially in fast-moving sectors like tech.
Is SCHD Still Worth Buying in 2026?
This depends on what you expect SCHD to do.
If you want SCHD to suddenly behave like a hyper-growth tech ETF, that is probably the wrong expectation. SCHD is still a dividend-focused fund built around quality, profitability, and dividend growth.
And in that context, a roughly 4% gain in under two months is perfectly respectable.
SCHD still offers a pretty attractive mix:
- A mid-to-high 3% dividend yield
- High single-digit dividend growth
- Low cost and broad diversification
- Exposure to high-quality dividend-paying companies
That combination is still compelling, even if SCHD is currently trailing VYM and DGRO.
So no, SCHD is not blowing the doors off the market right now. But it also is not broken.
The Bottom Line on SCHD After the Reconstitution
The latest SCHD reconstitution has produced a mixed but still solid early result.
On the positive side, SCHD added or emphasized several names that have performed extremely well, especially Texas Instruments, Qualcomm, and UnitedHealth. Coca-Cola also chipped in with a steady gain.
On the negative side, six of the fund’s top 10 holdings are down since the reconstitution, and that drag has kept SCHD from matching the stronger gains posted by VYM and DGRO.
That leaves SCHD in a familiar spot. It is still a very good dividend ETF. It is still producing positive returns. It still offers a compelling income-and-growth combination. But in a market dominated by tech, chips, and AI, SCHD is participating without fully leading.
For long-term dividend investors, that may be perfectly fine.
SCHD is still doing SCHD things. Just maybe not with the knockout punch some people were hoping for after the March shake-up.