PTRB vs SCHZ: Grades, Fees and Holdings Compared

PGIM Total Return Bond ETF

PTRBBNYSE Arca

Schwab U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF

SCHZANYSE Arca

Overlap

No data

Expense ratio

SCHZ −0.46pt a year

PTRB0.49%SCHZ0.03%

Avg volume · 30D

SCHZ 11.5×the volume

PTRB205KSCHZ2.37M

3Y return · a year

PTRB +0.8pt

PTRB+6.2%SCHZ+5.4%

PTRB vs SCHZ Performance

Oct 31, 2025 – Oct 30, 2026

−0.4%PTRB−0.2%SCHZ

Expense ratio: PTRB 0.49%; SCHZ 0.03%, better
Fund size: PTRB $1.2B; SCHZ $10.8B
1Y total return: PTRB −0.4%; SCHZ −0.2%, better
Yield (12M): PTRB 5.25%, better; SCHZ 4.27%
Holdings: PTRB 1301; SCHZ 12610
Avg volume (30D): PTRB 205K sh; SCHZ 2.37M sh, better
NAV per share: PTRB $40.18; SCHZ $22.54
52W range

ETF.net Grade

Pillar letters and Scores for PTRB, SCHZ, with each pillar’s weight
Pillar	PTRB	SCHZ
Cost30% weight	F18	A97Higher
Mission25% weight	A100	A100
Risk15% weight	C51Higher	C47
Tradability15% weight	A70	A85Higher
Holdings10% weight	B67	A78Higher
Durability5% weight	B66	A88Higher

Rank among US Aggregate Bond funds

How we build Categories ›

Same Category. PTRB and SCHZ are both graded against the same 114 US Aggregate Bond funds, so their Grades compare head to head.

US Aggregate Bond⁠

Category · 114 funds

See all 114 ›

SCHZ ranks 2nd and PTRB 61st of 114 funds in the US Aggregate Bond Category.

Rank 1AAGGiShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETFScore 87
Rank 2AIUSBiShares Core Universal USD Bond ETFScore 86
Rank 2ASCHZSchwab U.S. Aggregate Bond ETFScore 86
Rank 2ASPABState Street SPDR Portfolio Aggregate Bond ETFScore 86
Rank 61BGTOSInvesco Short Duration Total Return Bond ETFScore 58
Rank 61BPTRBPGIM Total Return Bond ETFScore 58
Rank 65BSCECSterling Capital Enhanced Core Bond ETFScore 57

Our read on each fund

ETF.net Research

PTRBBPGIM Total Return Bond ETF

SCHZASchwab U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF

In short

PTRB The ETF wrapper on PGIM Fixed Income's core-plus playbook: an active manager roaming multiple bond sectors in search of income and price gains, rather than cloning the Agg. You pay active freight for that freedom, and it pays monthly.

SCHZ Schwab's core bond holding: the broad U.S. investment-grade bond market, over 10,000 issues deep, for 0.03% a year. That is the floor of a category whose median fee is more than ten times higher. Running since 2011, pays monthly.

Stated mandate

PTRB The Fund seeks total return through a diversified portfolio of bonds from multiple fixed-income sectors and may suit investors seeking current income and capital appreciation.

SCHZ The fund seeks to track the total return of an index representing the broad U.S. investment-grade bond market.

Why people hold it

PTRB Genuinely active: managers allocate across multiple fixed income sectors instead of tracking the Agg, so the portfolio can look quite different from index rivals like BND or SCHZ.pgim.com
Run by PGIM Fixed Income, and the same core-plus strategy is also offered as a mutual fund, so the ETF wraps an established process rather than a brand-new idea.pgim.com
What the documents advertise is what shows up: a diversified, mainly investment grade multi-sector bond portfolio, paying distributions monthly. It sits in the upper half of its cohort.pgim.com

SCHZ 0.03% a year sits at the category floor, against a cohort median of 0.36%. Only a short list of aggregate-bond funds matches it, including AGG, BND and SPAB.
Tracks the Bloomberg US Aggregate Bond Index tightly, one of the cleanest index implementations among the 187 funds in its peer group.schwabassetmanagement.com
One ticker, thousands of investment-grade U.S. bonds, income paid monthly. The plumbing of a bond portfolio without buying a single bond yourself.
Live since 2011 and now a multi-billion-dollar fund that trades actively, so trading costs on ordinary retail-sized orders tend to be minor.

Worth knowing

PTRB Costs 0.49% a year, above the 0.36% median for aggregate bond funds and many times the 0.03% charged by index anchors like BND and SPAB.
Active means dispersion. Sector, credit and duration calls drive the outcome, so results can diverge from the Agg in either direction.pgim.com
Launched in 2021, so its live record as an ETF is short next to core bond funds with decades behind them. Trading is moderate, not the deepest in the category.

SCHZ This is duration exposure, not a cash substitute. Interest-rate moves, not credit selection, drive most of the ride, and that is the weakest part of its risk profile.
Investment grade and U.S. only: no high-yield, no foreign bonds. Funds like BNDX cover the international side of the cohort.
The aggregate-bond aisle is commoditized. Against AGG, BND and SPAB at the same 0.03%, the differences come down to index variant and where you already custody, not fee.

Full PTRB profile⁠

Full SCHZ profile⁠

PTRB vs SCHZ Holdings

How PTRB and SCHZ differ

No overlap figure

Two bond funds rarely hold the same issues.

Level by level

Countryby domicile89.2%
Asset classFixed Income100%

Sector

No Sector split for PTRB and SCHZ.

Country, concentration and asset class

Country by domicile

Country weights in PTRB and SCHZ, widest gap first
Country	More in PTRBMore in SCHZ	PTRB	SCHZ
United States	SCHZ +8.2 points	86.1%	94.3%
Cayman Islands	PTRB +6.0 points	6.3%	0.3%
Ireland	PTRB +1.6 points	1.7%	0.1%
France	PTRB +0.7 points	0.8%	0.1%
Colombia	PTRB +0.5 points	0.5%	0.0%
Other countries (30)	SCHZ +0.6 points	4.6%	5.2%

Concentration

Weight in the 10 largest Holdings

PTRB20.1%
SCHZ4.8%

Securities held

PTRB765
SCHZ12,608

Asset class

PTRB: Fixed Income
SCHZ: Fixed Income

Holdings

Two bond funds rarely hold the same issues, so this page lists no shared Holdings. PTRB holds 765 securities, SCHZ 12,608.

All PTRB holdings⁠All 12,611 SCHZ holdings⁠

How we measure overlap

Each holding counts at its smaller weight in the two funds, summed over the full Holdings. Sector, country and asset class use the same rule on each fund’s split. Cash, FX and derivative lines stay out of the counts. Two bond funds get no overlap figure.

PTRB vs SCHZ Cost

Overpaying PTRB vs SCHZ

$9,154

On $10,000 over 30 years. 7% growth a year before fees, expense ratio only.

PTRB 0.49%
$9,792
SCHZ 0.03%
$638

Amount$10,000

Years30 years

Cost over time

PTRB 0.49%
SCHZ 0.03%
Overpaying

Year by year

Year	PTRB	SCHZ	Overpaying
10	$883	$55	$828
20	$3,394	$216	$3,178
30	$9,792	$638	$9,154

Expense ratio

0.49%PTRB
0.03%SCHZ, cheaper

SCHZ0.03%PTRB0.49%

0.00%1.04%

Middle half of US Aggregate Bond funds
Median 0.34%

SCHZ 2nd cheapest of 114 funds

PTRB 92nd cheapest of 114 funds

PTRB vs SCHZ Dividends

Last 12 months to Oct 30, 2026

Yield (12M): PTRB 5.25%, better; SCHZ 4.27%
Payout (12M): PTRB $2.11; SCHZ $0.96
Last payment: PTRB $0.16; SCHZ $0.08
Ex-dividend: PTRB Oct 30, 2026; SCHZ Oct 1, 2026
Paid on: PTRB Pays Nov 3, 2026; SCHZ Oct 7, 2026
Frequency: PTRB Monthly; SCHZ Monthly

Distribution history

Per share, 2023 to 2026, same scale for both

PTRBMonthly · 46 paymentsAll PTRB payments⁠

SCHZMonthly · 45 paymentsAll SCHZ payments⁠

PTRB vs SCHZ Risk

Fall from peak · 5 years

This chart needs five years of history for both funds.

Risk facts

VolatilityStd dev, 3 years: PTRB 5.8%SCHZ 5.6%, better
Return per unit of riskSharpe ratio, 3 years: PTRB 0.30, betterSCHZ 0.17
Worst fallMax drawdown, 5 years: PTRB −19.2%since Dec 2021SCHZ −17.5%
Market sensitivityBeta, 5 years: PTRB 1.02SCHZ 0.99; Market = 1

PTRB and SCHZ in the news

All news⁠

Best ETFs
Best bond ETFs: LQD, HYG and TLT cost more than the funds beside them
Updated Oct 2, 2026SCHZ

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PTRB vs SCHZ

In short

Stated mandate

Why people hold it

Worth knowing

How PTRB and SCHZ differ

Level by level

Sector

Country, concentration and asset class

Country by domicile

Concentration

Asset class

Holdings

Cost over time

Year by year

Distribution history

Fall from peak · 5 years

Risk facts

Best bond ETFs: LQD, HYG and TLT cost more than the funds beside them

How PTRB and SCHZ differ

Level by level

Sector

Country, concentration and asset class

Country by domicile

Concentration

Asset class

Holdings