AFB vs PCQ: Correlation
How closely do AllianceBernstein National Municipal Income Fund Inc (AFB) and PIMCO California Municipal Income Fund (PCQ) trade together? Their weekly returns over three years give a correlation of 0.80, which is very strong.
Data as of 2026-08-27 · refreshed every trading day · weekly returns · methodology
How correlated are AFB and PCQ?
On 3 years of weekly data the AFB/PCQ correlation comes out at 0.80, very strong, meaning they move nearly in lockstep. Recent behaviour matches the longer record: 0.85 over 1 year against 0.80 over 3. The 5-year figure is 0.48, and annualized covariance runs at 124.8 %².
Among the 24 assets we track against AFB, PCQ ranks #8 by 3-year correlation. Neither side won the trailing year by much: +10.5% against +11.3%.
How is this computed?
Pearson correlation on weekly returns: ρ(A,B) = cov(rA, rB) / (σA · σB), over windows of 52, 156 and 260 weeks. Covariance is annualized (×52) and expressed in %². Full definitions on the methodology page.
AFB vs PCQ: side by side
| AFB (AllianceBernstein National Municipal Income Fund Inc) | PCQ (PIMCO California Municipal Income Fund) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1-year return | +10.5% | +11.3% |
| 5-year return | -9.9% | -40.9% |
| Volatility (ann.) | 12.6% | 12.5% |
| Beta vs S&P 500 | 0.26 | 0.25 |
| Max drawdown (3Y) | -15.1% | -17.4% |
| Market cap | – | – |
| P/E (trailing) | 13.6 | 291.0 |
| Dividend yield | 4.97% | 4.94% |
| Sector / category | US Listed | US Listed |
Year-by-year returns
| Year | AFB | PCQ |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | -25.9% | -14.7% |
| 2023 | +7.5% | -35.4% |
| 2024 | +4.1% | +1.5% |
| 2025 | +4.4% | +1.5% |
| 2026 | +4.6% | +3.3% |
Calendar-year price returns; the current year is year-to-date as of the data date above.
Are AFB and PCQ good diversifiers for each other?
Not really. At 0.80, the two trade almost as one position, and owning both buys little extra protection.
FAQ
What is the correlation between AFB and PCQ?
As of 2026-08-27, the correlation of weekly returns between AFB and PCQ is 0.80 over 3 years, 0.85 over 1 year and 0.48 over 5 years.
Is PCQ a good diversifier for AFB?
Not really. At 0.80, the two trade almost as one position, and owning both buys little extra protection.
What does a correlation of 0.80 mean?
On the −1 to +1 scale, 0.80 describes how much the two returns move together: +1 is lockstep, 0 is independence, negative values mean opposite directions. It says nothing about which performed better.
Use this data
$ curl https://www.pairbook.io/api/v1/pairs/afb-vs-pcq.json
Markdown for the live badge, attribution link included:
[](https://www.pairbook.io/pair/afb-vs-pcq/)
No key needed, free to use. Full endpoint list in the API documentation.
Related comparisons
Hubs: AFB correlations · PCQ correlations
