Distinctive Investing Approach

THE CAPITAL SYSTEM

Our system prioritizes superior and repeatable fund results

Capital Group founder Jonathan Bell Lovelace in 1968.

Jonathan Bell Lovelace 1968

Early in Capital Group history, our leaders realized that their funds would outlast the professionals who managed them

They believed they had a responsibility to provide stability and management continuity to their investors, so they asked themselves a key question: If a portfolio manager left the firm, how could they keep funds going strong?

They pioneered a plan. By dividing funds into sections and giving each of the existing managers a portion to administer, no fund would be too dependent on a single person.

This distinctive way of managing money became The Capital System.^TM By incorporating the highest conviction investment ideas of each manager in a fund, we aim to both increase the diversity of those ideas and reduce the volatility of a fund, which can give investors a smoother ride in bumpy markets.

The best of both worlds

Capital Research and Management meeting in 1961, with Jonathan Bell Lovelace, Chuck Schimpff, Colman Morton, Jim Fullerton and Mary Bauer.

CRMC Meeting 1961: Jonathan Bell Lovelace,
Chuck Schimpff, Coleman Morton, Jim Fullerton,
Mary Bauer

The Capital System can give you the best of both worlds: the upside of high-conviction ideas and the power of collaboration

At Capital Group, home of American Funds, we assemble teams of managers who have different investing styles and complementary strengths to help foster a diversified investing approach.

The benefits of our multimanager approach can be boiled down to simple math: If a typical strategy has a star manager with 120 of her best ideas for investments, that’s a lot of ideas for one person to track. But imagine if the fund were divided among four managers, including each of their 30 highest conviction ideas — ideas they've explored inside out — that's The Capital System.

Graphic comparing the multi-manager approach of The Capital System with the industry standard single-manager system.

A history lesson

For decades, many of our funds have delivered strong results, helping investors stay on the path to achieving their financial goals

Take a look at the results of a $10,000 hypothetical investment in the S&P 500, as well as each of the five U.S. equity-focused American Funds available when the first S&P 500 index-tracking fund was founded in 1976.

Click for more information on the results of the American Funds equity, fixed income and multi-asset funds.

Read important investment disclosures

Class R-6

Source: Capital Group. Includes all five of the U.S. equity-focused American Funds available for investment when the first S&P 500 index-tracking fund was launched on 8/31/76. The market index is unmanaged and, therefore, has no expenses. Investors cannot invest directly in an index.

Aim for a smoother ride

A group of managers with complementary investing styles on a single fund seeks to diversify risk and deliver long-term results to help clients pursue their goals

Losing less when the market dips means you stand to gain more when it climbs. And a steadier journey can help you stay the course for the long term.

Take a look at these examples of market downturns from recent history. You can see that the U.S. equity-focused American Funds didn't drop as much as the index, on average.

See how it works

Class R-6

Chart shows a $10,000 hypothetical, equal-weighted investment in six U.S. equity-focused American Funds, including AMCAP Fund, American Mutual Fund, Fundamental Investors, The Growth Fund of America, The Investment Company of America, and Washington Mutual Investors Fund versus the S and P 500 Index from December 31, 1985 to December 31, 2021. The equal-weighted blended average of the American Funds returned $584,337 over the period, versus the S and P's $504,815. The chart also highlights the six American Fund's average performance versus the S and P for four major bear markets since 1986. Black Monday, 8/25/1987 - 12/4/1987, total percentage loss for the index was -32.8% and -28.7% for the American Funds average. The index recovered to its pre-bear market peak in 528 days versus 497 days for the American Funds average. The Dot-com bubble, 3/24/2000 - 10/9/2002, total percentage loss for the index was -47.4% and -28.0% for the American Funds average. The index recovered to its pre-bear market peak in 1,475 days versus 399 days for the American Funds average. Great Recession, 10/9/2007 - 3/9/2009, total percentage loss for the index was -55.3% and -51.5% for the American Funds average. The index recovered to its pre-bear market peak in 1,120 days versus 1,100 days for the American Funds average. COVID-19 pandemic, 2/19/2020 - 3/23/2020, total percentage loss for the index was -33.8% and -31.8% for the American Funds average. The index and American Funds average recovered to their pre-bear market peak in 140 days.

The U.S. equity-focused American Funds in these analyses include AMCAP Fund, American Mutual Fund, Fundamental Investors®, The Growth Fund of America, The Investment Company of America and Washington Mutual Investors Fund. The investment was rebalanced monthly.

Source: Capital Group calculations based on Capital Group and Morningstar data, as of 12/31/2021. The market indexes are unmanaged and, therefore, have no expenses. Investors cannot invest directly in an index. There may have been periods when the results lagged the index.

The $10,000 hypothetical investment in the line chart is based on daily returns. The S&P 500 values are calculated using the total return index, which includes dividends. The equal-weighted blended average of the six U.S. equity-focused American Funds includes AMCAP Fund, American Mutual Fund, Fundamental Investors, The Growth Fund of America, The Investment Company of America and Washington Mutual Investors Fund. The investment was rebalanced monthly. Dates shown for market highs and lows are based on the price return of the unmanaged S&P 500 Index, which does not include reinvested dividends. The total percentage loss from high to low shown for the index and American Funds averages are calculated using these dates and based on total returns, which include reinvested dividends. For each of the bear markets shown, the Days to Recovery for the S&P 500 Index and American Funds equal-weighted blended average reflect the number of calendar days (including weekends and holidays) between the stated market low and the next time the value of the investments for each met or surpassed the value set at the pre-downturn market high.

Please see below for the individual returns of the six U.S. equity-focused American Funds during these periods.

Built to last

The Capital System has stood the test of time

An innovative idea then and now, our distinctive multimanager system has become a defining feature of our success. Distinct in the market and diverse in its strategy, The Capital System has helped many of our investment vehicles generate superior outcomes.

Capital Group has managed investment strategies through funds and other vehicles over the years, the results of which have varied.

See how

Click for more information on the results of the American Funds equity, fixed income and multi-asset funds.

Our beliefs

Your goals power ours

We have four core beliefs central to helping you succeed.

Learn more

More beliefs

Find your solution

Your company is just as unique as the people who work there. We offer an array of innovative client solutions designed to meet your employees’ needs.

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Individual returns for the six U.S. equity-focused American Funds available for investment beginning in 1985 and the S and P 500 for the four major bear markets since 1985. Bear markets shown include Black Monday, market high on August 25, 1987 and market low on December 4, 1987; the dot-com crisis, market high on March 24, 2000 and market low on October 9, 2002; the Great Recession, market high on October 9, 2007 and market low on March 9, 2009; and the COVID-19 pandemic, market high February 19, 2020 and market low on March 23, 2020. Total percentage losses for the 6 funds and the S and P 500 Index for these four periods are as follows: The Investment Company of America, inception January 1, 1934, Black Monday: -27.55%; the dot-com crisis: -27.74%; the Great Recession: -50.68%; the COVID-19 pandemic: -31.03%. American Mutual Fund, inception February 21, 1950, Black Monday: -21.33%; the dot-com crisis: -6.42%; the Great Recession: -48.07%; the COVID-19 pandemic: -29.74%. Washington Mutual Investors Fund, inception July 31, 1952, Black Monday: -28.33%; the dot-com crisis: -15.97%; the Great Recession: -53.84%; the COVID-19 pandemic: -34.56%. AMCAP Fund, inception May 1, 1967, Black Monday: -29.81%; the dot-com crisis: -32.48%; the Great Recession: -52.51%; the COVID-19 pandemic: -31.02%. The Growth Fund of America, inception December 1, 1973, Black Monday: -32.34%; the dot-com crisis: -45.71%; the Great Recession: -51.48%; the COVID-19 pandemic: -30.34%. Fundamental Investors, inception August 1, 1978, Black Monday: -32.74%; the dot-com crisis: -35.36%; the Great Recession: -52.62%; the COVID-19 pandemic: -33.88%. The S and P 500, Black Monday: -32.80%; the dot-com crisis: -47.38%; the Great Recession: -55.25%; the COVID-19 pandemic: -33.79%.

S&P 500 Index is a market capitalization-weighted index based on the results of approximately 500 widely held common stocks. This index is unmanaged, and its results include reinvested dividends and/or distributions but do not reflect the effect of sales charges, commissions, account fees, expenses or U.S. federal income taxes.

Figures shown are past results and are not predictive of results in future periods. Current and future results may be lower or higher than those shown. Investing for short periods makes losses more likely. Prices and returns will vary, so investors may lose money. View mutual fund expense ratios and returns.

Investments are not FDIC-insured, nor are they deposits of or guaranteed by a bank or any other entity, so they may lose value.

Investors should carefully consider investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses. This and other important information is contained in the fund prospectuses and summary prospectuses, which can be obtained from a financial professional and should be read carefully before investing.

Investing outside the United States involves risks, such as currency fluctuations, periods of illiquidity and price volatility. These risks may be heightened in connection with investments in developing countries.

Capital Group offers a range of share classes designed to meet the needs of retirement plan sponsors and participants. The different share classes incorporate varying levels of financial professional compensation and service provider payments. Because Class R-6 shares do not include any recordkeeping payments, expenses are lower and results are higher. Other share classes that include recordkeeping costs have higher expenses and lower results than Class R-6.

There may have been periods when the results lagged the index(es). The indexes are unmanaged and, therefore, have no expenses. Investors cannot invest directly in an index.

Each S&P Index ("Index") shown is a product of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC and/or its affiliates and has been licensed for use by Capital Group. Copyright © 2023 S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC, a division of S&P Global, and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Redistribution or reproduction in whole or in part is prohibited without written permission of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC.

All Capital Group trademarks mentioned are owned by The Capital Group Companies, Inc., an affiliated company or fund. All other company and product names mentioned are the property of their respective companies.

Investment results assume all distributions are reinvested and reflect applicable fees and expenses.

Results for certain funds with an inception date after the share class inception also include hypothetical returns because those funds' shares sold after the funds' date of first offering. View dates of first sale and specific expense adjustment information.

Use of this website is intended for U.S. residents only.

American Funds Distributors, Inc.

This content, developed by Capital Group, home of American Funds, should not be used as a primary basis for investment decisions and is not intended to serve as impartial investment or fiduciary advice.

©2023 Morningstar, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Some of the information contained herein: (1) is proprietary to Morningstar and/or its content providers; (2) may not be copied or distributed; and (3) is not warranted to be accurate, complete or timely. Neither Morningstar, its content providers nor Capital Group are responsible for any damages or losses arising from any use of this information. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Information is calculated by Morningstar. Due to differing calculation methods, the figures shown here may differ from those calculated by Capital Group.

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