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SEPARATELY MANAGED ACCOUNTS Flexibility to pursue complex tax and investing needs

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Your SMA questions, answered

We share the latest questions our specialists are answering for financial professionals.

Back to basics

New to SMAs? Discover the potential of this powerful vehicle.

Ryan Gundrum

Director of ETF and SMA sales

2 MIN VIDEO

A separately managed account (SMA) is a professionally managed portfolio of securities selected by an investment manager and owned by the end investor.

The primary difference is that with an SMA, your client directly owns the stocks and bonds. With a mutual fund or ETF, your client owns shares of the fund, which in turn invests in stocks and bonds.

Minimums differ by sponsor firm, but Capital Group minimums are typically $100K for equity SMAs and $250K for fixed income SMAs.

  • Customization and control: Your client can request that specific companies or business sectors be excluded from the portfolio (as agreed to by the investment manager). 
  • Transparency:  Portfolio holdings can be viewed at all times, because your client owns the underlying securities. 
  • Tax efficiency: Your client has more opportunities to reduce the impact of federal tax on investment returns.

It’s a technique to manage capital gains and losses to help limit tax liability. If an investment that’s lost value is sold, that realized loss can be used to offset gains at another time or in a different investment. In certain cases, holdings that have appreciated in value can also be harvested — for example, to take advantage of embedded losses elsewhere, increase cost basis or reduce concentrated positions.

Yes. Speak with your home office representative to understand how to pursue your client’s desired tax gain/loss harvesting objectives. Discretionary services may be offered by the financial intermediary, depending on the platform.

  • Equity SMAs: Your client can request exclusion of specific securities or business involvement in certain industries. Industries differ by sponsor firm but may include abortion, adult entertainment, alcohol, defense and weapons, firearms, fossil fuels, gambling and tobacco. 
  • Municipal bond SMAs: A range of state-focused portfolios are available. In addition, subject to approval and/or account minimums, your client can request directed sales/transitions, exclusionary requests and extended transition times.

In many cases, yes. If your client is considering this option, Capital Group offers an in-kind portfolio analysis to identify which securities would be kept (because they align with the investment strategy) and which would be liquidated. Contact your sales representative for more information.

Fees differ by sponsor firm, asset class and other factors. Your sales representative can help you understand the fee structure for your client. 

To get started, contact your sales representative or call (800) 421-0180, option 1.

 

†Industry exclusion availability and other customization options vary by sponsor and program. Please check with your home office.

**Holdings may fall below these amounts due to various factors including, but not limited to, market conditions, availability of the securities and investment conviction.

***The Morningstar Medalist Rating™  is the summary expression of Morningstar's forward-looking analysis of investment strategies as offered via specific vehicles using a rating scale of Gold, Silver, Bronze, Neutral, and Negative. The Medalist Ratings indicate which investments Morningstar believes are likely to outperform their Morningstar Category average on a risk-adjusted basis over time. Investment products are evaluated on three fundamental pillars (People, Parent, and Process) and the Medalist Rating Price Score, which forms the basis for Morningstar's conviction in those products' investment merits and determines the Medalist Rating they are assigned. Pillar ratings take the form of Low (-2), Below Average (-1), Average (0), Above Average (+1), and High (+2). Pillars may be evaluated via an analyst's qualitative assessment (either directly to a vehicle the analyst covers or indirectly when the pillar ratings of a covered vehicle are mapped to a related uncovered vehicle) or using algorithmic techniques. The cost of an investment product is evaluated using the Medalist Rating Price Score, which is a continuous score running from negative 2.5 to positive 2.5 based on the percentile rank of a vehicle's expense ratio within its Morningstar Category. Morningstar combines the pillar scores and Medalist Rating Price Score using predetermined weights for actively and passively managed vehicles to calculate a weighted score. The weighted score is then compared to a set of fixed numeric thresholds employed consistently across Morningstar Categories and regions, with separate thresholds for actively and passively managed investments. Rating thresholds are reviewed at least annually. Buffers and ratings caps are employed to prevent frequent ratings changes. When analysts directly cover a vehicle, they assign the fundamental pillar ratings based on their qualitative assessment, subject to the oversight of the Analyst Rating Committee, and monitor and reevaluate them approximately once a year. When vehicles are covered either indirectly by analysts or by algorithm, the ratings are assigned monthly. The Morningstar Medalist Ratings are not statements of fact, nor are they credit or risk ratings. The Morningstar Medalist Rating (i) should not be used as the sole basis in evaluating an investment product, (ii) involves unknown risks and uncertainties which may cause expectations not to occur or to differ significantly from what was expected, (iii) is not guaranteed to be based on complete or accurate assumptions or models when determined algorithmically, (iv) involves the risk that return targets will not be met due to unforeseen changes in management, technology, economic development, interest rate development, operating and/or material costs, competitive pressure, supervisory law, exchange rates, tax rates, or political and social conditions, and (v) should not be considered an offer or solicitation to buy or sell the investment product. A change in the fundamental factors underlying the Morningstar Medalist Rating may result in the rating no longer being accurate. Analysts do not have any other material conflicts of interest at the time of publication. Users wishing to obtain further information should contact their local Morningstar office. Capital Group did not compensate Morningstar for the ratings and comments contained in this material. However, the firm has paid Morningstar a licensing fee to access and publish its ratings data.

 

For registered investment advisors only.

Important investment disclosure

 

Source: Capital Group. ACWI = All Country World Index; EAFE = Europe, Australasia, Far East. For Global Growth SMA vs. benchmark comparison, previous to 9/30/11, benchmark returns reflect MSCI World Index. For International Growth SMA vs. benchmark comparison, previous to 3/31/07, returns reflect MSCI EAFE Index.

 

Total returns (%)1,2,3,4,5,6
as of December 31, 2025

  Cumulative Average annual
  1 year 5 years 10 years
Capital Group U.S. Conservative Growth and Income
"Pure" gross 16.59 12.10 11.78
Net of fees 13.18 8.81 8.50
Capital Group U.S. Core
"Pure" gross 22.19 16.40 14.78
Net of fees 18.63 13.00 11.42
Capital Group U.S. Equity
"Pure" gross 17.92 13.29 14.37
Net of fees 14.48 9.97 11.02
Capital Group U.S. Flexible Growth
"Pure" gross 17.71 11.41 15.40
Net of fees 14.27 8.14 12.02
Capital Group U.S. Flexible Growth and Income
"Pure" gross 23.85 15.44 14.84
Net of fees 20.25 12.07 11.48
Capital Group U.S. Growth
"Pure" gross 18.66 11.51 13.63
Net of fees 15.20 8.24 10.30
Capital Group U.S. Income and Growth
"Pure" gross 19.82 14.66 13.94
Net of fees 16.32 11.30 10.60
Capital Group International Equity
"Pure" gross 27.87 7.38 9.49
Net of fees 24.16 4.22 6.27
Capital Group International Growth
"Pure" gross 24.67 5.37 9.31
Net of fees 21.05 2.26 6.09
Capital Group Global Equity
"Pure" gross 25.65 10.90 12.51
Net of fees 22.00 7.64 9.21
Capital Group Global Growth
"Pure" gross 22.09 10.15 14.05
Net of fees 18.53 6.91 10.71
Capital Group World Dividend Growers
"Pure" gross 24.39 10.69 10.51
Net of fees 20.77 7.44 7.26

Index total returns (%)4
as of December 31, 2025

  Cumulative Average annual
  1 year 5 years 10 years
S&P 500 Index
  17.88 14.42 14.82
MSCI EAFE Index
  31.22 8.92 8.18
MSCI ACWI ex USA
  32.39 7.91 8.41
MSCI World Index
  21.09 12.15 12.17
MSCI ACWI
  22.34 11.19 11.72
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