Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
CGBL vs XLU: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, CGBL returned +7.1% to XLU's −3.0%; 2% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $7.9bn for Capital Group Core Balanced ETF and $23.9bn for State Street Utilities Select Sector SPDR ETF.
Pair scorecard
XLU costs 0.25 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 10.1 points; XLU is 3.0 times larger.
| Measure | CGBL | XLU |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +7.1% | −3.0% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 3.4%, high on Aug 13, 2026 | 9.1%, high on Feb 27, 2026 |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | No index, actively managed | Utilities Select Sector Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.33% | 0.08% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 | $7.9bn | $23.9bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 2% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 59.3% | 58.7% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Jun 30, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Oct 6, 2023 to Oct 23, 2026 · 159 weekly returnsXLU returned more: +62.5% to +55.6%. CGBL swung less: 10.4% to 15.3%. CGBL fell less at its worst: −10.0% to −15.5%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | CGBL | XLU | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +55.6% | +62.5% | XLU | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +15.6% | +17.2% | XLU (slight) | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +46.8% | +48.7% | XLU (slight) | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 10.4% | 15.3% | CGBL | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 6.7% | 10.1% | CGBL | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −10.0% | −15.5% | CGBL | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 1.02 | 0.82 | CGBL | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 1.58 | 1.25 | CGBL | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 1.55 | 1.11 | CGBL | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 159 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, CGBL and XLU hold 2% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Jun 30, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026.
half
2% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
CGBL and XLU on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
No client brief for this pair: the two funds' holdings are dated 119 days apart.
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +7.1% with distributions reinvested, against +7.5% for its benchmark, the 60%/40% S&P 500 Index/Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Index.
CGBL is actively managed and tracks no index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.33% a year. By its holdings filed for Jun 30, 2026, 48% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 77 positions, with the top ten at 59.3%. It sat 3.4% below its high of Aug 13, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
XLU
XLU tracks an index of Utilities. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned −3.0% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.08% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 100% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 32 positions, with the top ten at 58.7%. It sat 9.1% below its high of Feb 27, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, CGBL or XLU?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, CGBL returned +7.1% and XLU −3.0%.
- Which is cheaper, CGBL or XLU?
- XLU is cheaper, by 0.25 percentage points a year. That is about $25 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Links are sources, not endorsements. A comparison is not a recommendation.
How this is computed
Overlap adds up the smaller of the two weights for each security both funds hold.
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ETFIQ, CGBL against XLU, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/cgbl-vs-xlu
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). CGBL against XLU. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/cgbl-vs-xlu
[CGBL against XLU (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/cgbl-vs-xlu)
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