AB US Low Volatility Equity ETF

AB US Low Volatility Equity ETF (LOWV) is an actively managed AllianceBernstein fund that picks mostly large and mid-sized US stocks it judges to be profitable, steadily priced and reasonably valued. Its goal is stock-market growth with smaller swings. As of October 27, 2026, its one-year beta, a measure of how closely it moves with the market, was 0.69. Its 0.39% expense ratio is well above the 0.13% average for funds with similar holdings.

• Over the year to Oct 27, 2026, LOWV returned +8.0%, 8th of 9 among similar funds.
• Its worst full calendar year was 2025 (+12.3%); its best was 2024 (+20.4%).
• The deepest fall in its price history was 13.9% (Feb 19, 2025 to Apr 8, 2025), recovered by Jun 4, 2025.

As of Aug 31, 2026, the fund held 68 securities; the ten largest made up 41.62% of assets.

By sector

• Over the three months to Aug 31, 2026, investors withdrew a net $6.5M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
• Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: -1.59%, +3.57%, +1.46%.

LOWV does not track an index. AllianceBernstein's managers choose the holdings. At least 80% of net assets must be in stocks of US companies. A US company is one that is based in the US, trades mainly in the US, or does much of its business there. The fund may also own some foreign stocks. As of August 31, 2026, about 85.5% of assets were in US companies, with smaller amounts in the UK (4.8%), Ireland (3.7%) and Taiwan (1.9%).

The managers combine fundamental research (studying each company) with quantitative research (data-driven models). They look at a company's profit record and outlook, the quality of its management, its competitive edge, its valuation, how much its stock price swings, and how easily its shares trade. They then compare each company with the wider market. The fund focuses on companies worth $2 billion or more. The prospectus gives no fixed weighting formula or rebalancing schedule. Portfolio turnover, the share of holdings replaced in a year, was 34%.

The fund is non-diversified, meaning it can put more money into fewer companies. As of August 31, 2026, it held 68 stocks, and the top 10 made up 41.6% of assets. The largest were Apple (6.5%), NVIDIA (6.4%), Microsoft (5.9%) and Alphabet (5.8%), and technology was the biggest sector at about 31%. The fund held no derivatives. It aims for smaller swings than other US stock funds, but there is no guarantee it will achieve that.

• LOWV charges 0.39% a year, versus an average of 0.13% for the similar funds below (9th of 9, cheapest first).
• Using the prospectus's standard example, $10,000 invested would cost about $40 in the first year and $493 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).

It is a full stock fund, but both its stated goal and its short record point to smaller swings than the broad US market.

LOWV could give a portfolio stock-market growth with somewhat gentler swings. As of October 27, 2026, its one-year volatility (how much its returns bounce around) was 10.2%, and its beta was 0.69. The fund launched in March 2023, so it has no record in the 2008, 2020 or 2022 downturns. Its deepest drop was 13.9%, from February 19 to April 8, 2025. It regained its peak by June 4, 2025, about two months later. Anyone forced to take money out in early April 2025 would have done so near that low. Its weakest calendar year, 2025, still returned 12.23%, though the S&P 500 returned 17.88%.

Income is small: the trailing yield was 0.83% as of October 27, 2026, paid quarterly. The SEC's standard example puts costs at $493 over 10 years on $10,000. The fund's history is short, and past results don't predict the future. A retirement plan should look at the whole portfolio, not one fund.

Matched by holdings overlap from the latest N-PORT reports.