American Funds' American High-Income Trust
Bond
Overview
American High-Income Trust may be appropriate for:
- Investors looking for a sensible way to invest in the high-yield bond market
- Individuals and organizations that want an opportunity to increase their investment income and are willing to take equity-type risk
- Growth-oriented investors seeking to diversity their holdings into income-producing investments
Objective
The fund's primary investment objective is to provide you with a high level of current income. Its secondary investment objective is capital appreciation.
Manager
The fund is managed by Capital Research and Management Company, one of the nation’s oldest, largest investment management firms. Since 1931, Capital Research has invested with a long-term focus based on thorough research and attention to risk.
Fund information
- Began operations: 2/19/88
- Variable investment inception date: 2/28/12
- Net and gross expense ratios:* 1.80% / 1.80%
- Investment expenses paid annually:† $18.00 for a $1,000 balance
*Each expense ratio is the sum of the program charges and the operating expenses of the underlying mutual fund. The operating expense of the underlying mutual fund is for an institutional share class. The net expense ratio reflects any applicable waivers and/or reimbursements to the underlying mutual fund. The gross expense ratio does not.
†You can estimate the investment expenses you’re paying annually by multiplying your balance in the fund by the expense ratio.
Investments
The fund seeks to invest primarily in a broad range of lower quality, higher yielding debt securities that also provide an opportunity to increase in value. At least 65% of the portfolio will be invested in high-yield, high-risk bonds (Ba or BB or below at time of purchase, or unrated but determined by the fund’s investment adviser to be of equivalent quality) and other similar securities, including preferred stocks. Up to 25% may be invested in common stocks or equity-related securities. Additionally, up to 25% of assets may be invested in securities based outside the U.S.
Asset mix
(as of 2/28/26; percentage of net assets; holdings are subject to change)
Where the fund was invested
(as of 12/31/25; percentage of net assets; holdings are subject to change)
Past results
The bar graph below shows the investment’s annual results and illustrates the fluctuations over the past 10 years. (The percentages are shown at unit value, updated annually as of 12/31.) If the results reflected deduction of the maximum sales charge of 5.75%, they would have been lower. Variable investment results are based upon a single investment at the beginning of the period being reported and retained throughout the period.
Investments are offered through a group annuity issued by Great-West Life & Annuity Insurance Company, Corporate Headquarters: Greenwood Village, CO; or, in New York, by Great-West Life & Annuity Insurance Company of New York, Home Office: White Plains, NY. The investment above is an account under the annuity that invest solely in shares of an underlying mutual fund (“variable investments”). The name of the variable investment reflects the underlying mutual fund. Results for each variable investment are stated after deduction of a variable asset charge of 1.44% for administrative, service and other fees (the “program charge”). The expense ratio for each variable investment is the sum of the program charge and the operating expense of the underlying mutual fund.
The investment does not require an up-front or deferred sales charge. Results of the variable investment prior to its inception date are hypothetical based on the underlying fund’s oldest share class without a sales charge, adjusted for typical additional expenses; results are hypothetical because the variable investment’s underlying fund was not offered in the group annuity prior to the variable investment’s inception date.
Figures shown are past results and are not predictive of future results. Current and future results may be lower or higher than those shown here. For more current information and month-end results, click here. Prices and results will vary, so you may lose money. However, assets in the Fixed Account are guaranteed by Great-West Life & Annuity Insurance Company, and payments on investments are subject to the insurer’s claims paying ability. Investing for short periods makes losses more likely. Investments are not FDIC-insured, nor are they deposits of or guaranteed by a bank or any other entity, so they may lose value.
Unit Class 1
| Average annual total returns | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| As of month-end February 28, 2026 | As of quarter-end December 31, 2025 | |||||||
| Underlying fund inception date | Variable investment inception date | Year to date return | 10 year | 5 year | 3 year | 1 year | Variable investment lifetime | |
| At unit value | 2/19/88 | 2/28/12 | 1.13% | 5.51% | 4.37% | 8.74% | 7.10% | 4.19% |
Investment results reflect the deduction of applicable fees and expenses and the reinvestment of all distributions. When applicable, investment results reflect fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements, without which results would have been lower. Read details about how waivers and/or reimbursements affect the results for each American Fund.
Important information
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.All Capital Group trademarks mentioned are owned by The Capital Group Companies, Inc., an affiliated company or fund. All other company and product names are the property of their respective companies.
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