# How AppLovin (APP) compares with the whole market and its popular alternatives

> Source: EasyCompare research, https://easycompare.io/research/app
> Data as of October 20, 2026. Total returns include reinvested dividends. Past performance does not predict future results; nothing here is investment advice.

Built by QuantCommons' quantitative engine, this page is about relative opportunity, not data on APP alone. It places APP (AppLovin Corporation) against 18 popular alternatives, its neighboring categories and the entire market of over 10,000 U.S.-listed stocks and ETFs, and surfaces what has done better on consistent outperformance, return for the risk taken, behavior in real market crashes and diversification. The result is a clearer view of where APP stands in the market, and of the alternatives worth a closer look.

Period covered: APP's full trading record, from April 2021 through September 2026. The crash tests reach back to 2000 using older funds and the S&P 500. All returns include reinvested dividends. Data as of October 20, 2026.

## Key findings

- **Right now:** Over the past 6 months, APP fell 44.5% while the S&P 500 rose 9.1%. APP is 62.9% below its high, bear-market territory, while the S&P 500 sits 1.3% below a record.
- **Stock or market?:** The weakness is APP's own: it fell 35.8% over the past 3 months while the software ETF IGV (iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF) rose 15.0%. The S&P 500 rose 3.9%.
- **Past 1 to 3 years:** APP has gone against the market, falling 51.9% over the past year while the S&P 500 rose 15.8%. Even so, it finished ahead of the S&P 500 in both 2024 and 2025.
- **Long term:** APP turned $10,000 into $29,200 over the past 5 years, against $18,200 in the S&P 500. APP's 5-year return of 192% puts it ahead of 88% of the stocks worth at least $300 million with that much history. The S&P 500 returned 81.7%.
- **In a crash:** The 2022 bear market took 80.0% off APP, against 24.5% for the S&P 500, and more than software peers such as U (Unity Software, 76.6%).
- **Diversification:** Against the S&P 500, APP has a correlation of 0.47 over 5 years, more closely than 68% of stocks worth at least $300 million. Next to an index fund it is some diversification, but not a hedge. When the S&P 500 had a down month, APP usually fell with it (17 of 22 months).
- **Better options**
  - **Popular alternatives:** ZETA (Zeta Global) earned more than APP with less volatility over the past 5 years: 33.2% a year at 70.5% volatility, against 23.9% a year at 78.1%.
  - **Nearby categories and themes:** MU (Micron Technology, semiconductors) and PLTR (Palantir Technologies, enterprise software) earned more than APP with less volatility over the past 5 years. MU returned 68.1% a year at 57.1% volatility, against 23.9% a year at 78.1%.
  - **Whole market:** 270 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than APP with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them NVDA (NVIDIA), TSM (Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing) and AVGO (Broadcom).

## How much would $10,000 in APP have grown?

This chart tracks a hypothetical $10,000 investment in APP over the past 5 years, with dividends reinvested, alongside the same amount in the S&P 500, investments that ended ahead of APP over the same span and APP's popular alternatives, among those that traded for the entire period.

- $10,000 invested in APP at the end of September 2021 would have grown to $40,130 by September 2026, more than the $19,000 it would have become in SPY, an S&P 500 fund.
- Five of the eight other investments on the chart ended ahead of APP, and MU finished highest, at $153,675.

## APP at a glance

This section summarizes the key facts about the stock, its returns over periods from one to ten years and the risk it has carried, with dividends reinvested throughout.

- APP is still 62.9% below its all-time high.
- APP's deepest decline since it began trading in 2021 was 91.9%, from November 2021 to December 2022. It took 21 months from the low to climb back to its old high.
- Over four full calendar years, APP's best was 2024, when it returned 713%, and its worst was 2022, when it lost 88.8%. It lost money in one of those years.

- Type: Stock, Technology (Software - Application)
- Trading since: April 15, 2021
- Market value: $92B
- Volatility (5 years): 78.1%; Sharpe ratio: 0.66
- Worst decline ever: −91.9%, from November 11, 2021 to December 27, 2022; back at its high by September 16, 2024

| Period | APP total return |
| --- | --- |
| 1 month | −17.5% |
| 3 months | −35.8% |
| 6 months | −44.5% |
| year to date | −55.9% |
| 1 year | −51.9% |
| 3 years | +625% |
| 5 years | +192% |

## APP against the whole market

Where APP ranks among every stock and fund, and what across the market has done better.

### How does APP rank among all stocks?

This section ranks APP on return, volatility, risk-adjusted return and worst decline against every stock worth at least $300 million with enough history.

- APP's 3-year return ranks in the top 2% of the 3,017 stocks worth at least $300 million with 3 years of history.
- APP's 1-year return ranks in the bottom 5% of the 3,287 stocks worth at least $300 million with 1 year of history.

| Measure | APP | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1-year return | −51.9% | 3,126 of 3,287 (top 96%) |
| 3-year return | +625% | 69 of 3,017 (top 3%) |
| 5-year return | +192% | 337 of 2,893 (top 12%) |
| Volatility, 5 years | 78.1% | 2,608 of 2,893 (top 91%) |
| Sharpe ratio, 5 years | 0.66 | 552 of 2,893 (top 20%) |

### What has beaten APP on both return and risk?

Each dot is an investment, placed by how much it earned a year over the past 5 years (higher is better) and how much its price swung, its volatility (further left is calmer).

- 264 stocks and six ETFs worth at least $500 million sit in the green region: each earned more than APP over the past 5 years with smaller price swings. That is 7% of the 3,633 screened.
- Among those with at least half APP's swings, CLS has the best return for its risk: 101% a year at 59.7% volatility, 24% less than APP's 78.1%, and a Sharpe ratio (return above cash per unit of volatility) of 1.47 against 0.66 for APP.
- Among APP's popular alternatives, ZETA is in the region. ZETA earned 33.2% a year against 23.9% a year for APP, at 70.5% volatility, 10% less than APP's 78.1%.

### Is there a better investment than APP?

The table below lists investments that beat APP over the past 5 years on at least one of these measures: a higher annual return with lower volatility, a higher annual return at similar volatility, a similar return with lower volatility, a higher Sharpe ratio with a smaller worst decline, a higher total return in most periods from 3 months to 10 years, or smaller losses in recent market crashes.

- Among APP's popular alternatives, ZETA earned more than APP with less volatility over the past 5 years: 33.2% a year at 70.5% volatility, against 23.9% a year at 78.1%.
- Looking beyond its popular alternatives, MU (semiconductors) and PLTR (enterprise software) earned more than APP with less volatility over the past 5 years. MU returned 68.1% a year at 57.1% volatility, against 23.9% a year at 78.1%.
- Across the whole market, 270 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than APP with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them NVDA, TSM and AVGO.

The 15 strongest of 270 investments that beat APP over the past 5 years, out of 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million.

| Investment | Group | Annual return (5 years) | Volatility | Sharpe | Worst decline (10 years) | 5Y return | Correlation with APP | Better on |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| APP: AppLovin Corporation (this page) |  | +23.9% | 78.1% | 0.66 | −91.9% | +192% |  |  |
| [FIX](https://easycompare.io/research/fix): Comfort Systems USA, Inc. | Engineering & Construction | +77.0% | 46.7% | 1.46 | −49.7% | +1,636% | 0.42 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [CLS](https://easycompare.io/research/cls): Celestica Inc. | Electronics Manufacturing | +101% | 59.7% | 1.47 | −80.6% | +3,143% | 0.41 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [STX](https://easycompare.io/research/stx): Seagate Technology Holdings plc | Computer Hardware | +57.4% | 48.7% | 1.18 | −57.0% | +866% | 0.29 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [WDC](https://easycompare.io/research/wdc): Western Digital Corporation | Computer Hardware | +53.7% | 53.5% | 1.07 | −70.5% | +759% | 0.32 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [LITE](https://easycompare.io/research/lite): Lumentum Holdings Inc. | Communications Equipment | +57.3% | 64.5% | 1.03 | −66.9% | +863% | 0.24 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [CIEN](https://easycompare.io/research/cien): Ciena Corporation | Communications Equipment | +45.2% | 52.6% | 0.97 | −49.5% | +546% | 0.35 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [MU](https://easycompare.io/research/mu): Micron Technology, Inc. | Semiconductors | +68.1% | 57.1% | 1.20 | −57.6% | +1,244% | 0.25 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [PLTR](https://easycompare.io/research/pltr): Palantir Technologies Inc. | Enterprise Software | +51.4% | 67.0% | 0.95 | −84.6% | +695% | 0.55 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| IESC: IES Holdings, Inc. | Engineering & Construction | +58.5% | 58.0% | 1.09 | −54.3% | +900% | 0.59 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| TTMI: TTM Technologies, Inc. | Electronic Components | +48.0% | 54.3% | 0.99 | −57.6% | +609% | 0.26 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| PTGX: Protagonist Therapeutics, Inc. | Biotechnology | +35.7% | 66.8% | 0.80 | −85.8% | +360% | 0.20 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| AGX: Argan, Inc. | Engineering & Construction | +53.5% | 54.1% | 1.06 | −56.7% | +751% | 0.35 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| TSEM: Tower Semiconductor Ltd. | Semiconductors | +42.5% | 52.2% | 0.93 | −62.3% | +487% | 0.18 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [MPC](https://easycompare.io/research/mpc): Marathon Petroleum Corporation | Oil & Gas | +51.2% | 33.4% | 1.41 | −79.7% | +690% | -0.09 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| [PBR-A](https://easycompare.io/research/pbr-a): Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. - Petrobras | Integrated Oil & Gas | +51.8% | 37.5% | 1.31 | −71.7% | +705% | -0.17 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |

## APP against its popular alternatives

The investments people most often weigh against APP, compared period by period and year by year.

### How do APP's risk and return compare with its alternatives?

This map plots each investment's annual return over the past 5 years against its volatility, the size of its typical price swings.

- Only ZETA was both more rewarding and calmer than APP over the past 5 years, earning a higher annual return with lower volatility.
- Over the past 5 years, APP returned 23.9% a year, more than the S&P 500's 12.7%, with higher volatility (78.1% against 17.1%).

### Has APP consistently beaten its popular alternatives?

This section compares APP with the investments people most often weigh against it, checking each one over seven periods from one month to five years.

- None of the 18 popular alternatives outperformed APP in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 2 long-term timeframes. The closest was ZETA.
- ZETA and GOOG earned more for the risk they took than APP (a higher Sharpe ratio) and fell less in their worst decline of the past 10 years.

| Investment | 1Y return | 3Y return | 5Y return | Periods ahead of APP | Verdict | Sharpe |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| APP: AppLovin Corporation (this page) | −51.9% | +625% | +192% |  |  | 0.66 |
| ZETA: Zeta Global Holdings Corp. | +81.0% | +300% | +320% | 5/5 short-term, 1/2 long-term |  | 0.77 |
| [GOOG](https://easycompare.io/research/goog): Alphabet Inc. | +31.2% | +148% | +138% | 5/5 short-term, 0/2 long-term |  | 0.71 |
| [META](https://easycompare.io/research/meta): Meta Platforms, Inc. | −4.9% | +127% | +106% | 5/5 short-term, 0/2 long-term |  | 0.55 |
| [AMZN](https://easycompare.io/research/amzn): Amazon.com, Inc. | +21.3% | +110% | +53.8% | 5/5 short-term, 0/2 long-term |  | 0.42 |
| DSP: Viant Technology Inc. | +55.3% | +161% | +5.4% | 5/5 short-term, 0/2 long-term |  | 0.34 |
| MGNI: Magnite, Inc. | +27.5% | +238% | −21.4% | 5/5 short-term, 0/2 long-term |  | 0.29 |
| PUBM: PubMatic, Inc. | +110% | +49.4% | −41.8% | 5/5 short-term, 0/2 long-term |  | 0.17 |
| NEXN: Nexxen International Ltd. | +4.8% | +170% | −53.4% | 5/5 short-term, 0/2 long-term |  | 0.01 |
| PERI: Perion Network Ltd. | −8.6% | −65.2% | −59.5% | 5/5 short-term, 0/2 long-term |  | -0.07 |
| CRTO: Criteo S.A. | −25.1% | −46.5% | −59.6% | 5/5 short-term, 0/2 long-term |  | -0.17 |
| DV: DoubleVerify Holdings, Inc. | +20.2% | −51.7% | −61.9% | 5/5 short-term, 0/2 long-term |  | -0.11 |
| U: Unity Software Inc. | +13.9% | +47.8% | −71.8% | 5/5 short-term, 0/2 long-term |  | 0.06 |
| SNAP: Snap Inc. | −17.5% | −32.4% | −91.6% | 5/5 short-term, 0/2 long-term |  | -0.26 |
| BRZE: Braze, Inc. | +65.6% | +4.1% | — | 5/5 short-term, 0/2 long-term |  | — |
| [RBLX](https://easycompare.io/research/rblx): Roblox Corporation | −61.2% | +64.8% | −33.4% | 4/5 short-term, 0/2 long-term |  | 0.24 |
| TBLA: Taboola.com Ltd. | +10.9% | −2.8% | −62.6% | 4/5 short-term, 0/2 long-term |  | -0.04 |
| APPS: Digital Turbine, Inc. | +55.8% | +90.3% | −88.7% | 4/5 short-term, 0/2 long-term |  | 0.12 |
| TTD: The Trade Desk, Inc. | −75.9% | −82.9% | −84.1% | 2/5 short-term, 0/2 long-term |  | -0.20 |

### How did APP do year by year?

This table shows each investment's total return in every full calendar year since 2022, along with where APP ranked among its popular alternatives each year.

- APP finished ahead of the S&P 500 in three of its four full calendar years, and ahead of it in each of the last three.
- Ranked against its popular alternatives each year, APP finished in the top quarter in three of four years and in the bottom quarter in one. In 2025, it ranked 2 of 19.
- None of the 18 popular alternatives came out ahead of APP in most of the years they have in common.

| Year | APP | SPY |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2025 | +108% | +17.7% |
| 2024 | +713% | +24.9% |
| 2023 | +278% | +26.2% |
| 2022 | −88.8% | −18.2% |

## Risk and diversification

How APP has fallen, how it held up in crashes beside the S&P 500 and its popular alternatives, and what moves independently of it.

### What were APP's worst declines?

A drawdown is the decline from a peak to the lowest point before a new high.

- In all five of APP's worst declines, the S&P 500 held up better over the same dates.
- Not every decline was the market's doing: APP fell 64.3% from December 2025 to October 2026, while the S&P 500 rose 13.3%.
- The longest climb back to a previous high took 21 months, after APP fell 91.9% from November 2021 to December 2022.

| Decline | Peak | Low | Back at the high | SPY over the same dates | Market event |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| −91.9% | November 11, 2021 | December 27, 2022 | September 16, 2024 | −16.1% | 2022 bear market |
| −64.3% | December 22, 2025 | October 14, 2026 | not yet | +13.3% |  |
| −57.0% | February 14, 2025 | April 4, 2025 | September 8, 2025 | −16.9% |  |
| −36.7% | June 17, 2021 | August 16, 2021 | October 14, 2021 | +6.3% |  |
| −27.6% | September 30, 2025 | November 21, 2025 | December 9, 2025 | −1.1% |  |

### How did APP do in stock market crashes?

This section measures how far APP, the S&P 500 and each alternative fell from peak to trough during every major market crash since 2000.

- APP fell further than the S&P 500 in all two crashes it has traded through. The clearest case was the 2022 bear market, when APP fell 80.0% and the S&P 500 fell 24.5%.
- Among its popular alternatives, GOOG held up best, falling less than APP in all two crashes they both traded through.
- APP began trading after the 2008 financial crisis, but four of its popular alternatives lived through it. The mildest fall among them was AMZN's 65.3%, against 55.2% for the S&P 500.

| Crash | Dates | APP fall | SPY fall |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Dot-com bust | March 10, 2000 to October 9, 2002 | not trading | −47.5% |
| Global financial crisis | October 9, 2007 to March 9, 2009 | not trading | −55.2% |
| Flash crash | May 6, 2010 to May 7, 2010 | not trading | −1.5% |
| Euro debt crisis | July 22, 2011 to October 3, 2011 | not trading | −17.9% |
| China devaluation & oil rout | August 10, 2015 to February 11, 2016 | not trading | −12.8% |
| Volmageddon | February 2, 2018 to February 9, 2018 | not trading | −6.5% |
| Q4 2018 selloff | September 21, 2018 to December 24, 2018 | not trading | −19.3% |
| COVID crash | February 19, 2020 to March 23, 2020 | not trading | −33.7% |
| 2022 bear market | January 4, 2022 to October 12, 2022 | −80.0% | −24.5% |
| SVB / regional bank stress | March 8, 2023 to March 13, 2023 | −7.4% | −3.4% |

### How closely does APP move with the S&P 500?

Upside capture measures how much of the S&P 500's gains an investment kept in the months the market rose, and downside capture how much of its losses it took in the months the market fell.

- Only ZETA and GOOG had a higher capture ratio (upside capture divided by downside capture) than APP's 0.96, out of 17 popular alternatives with the same record.
- Over the past 5 years, APP captured 257% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 267% of its losses in falling months, with a beta of 2.56. It amplified the market's moves in both directions.

Measured over the past 5 years of monthly returns against SPY.

| Investment | Upside capture | Downside capture | Beta |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| APP: AppLovin Corporation (this page) | 257% | 267% | 2.56 |
| ZETA: Zeta Global Holdings Corp. | 178% | 106% | 1.38 |
| [GOOG](https://easycompare.io/research/goog): Alphabet Inc. | 140% | 132% | 1.20 |
| [META](https://easycompare.io/research/meta): Meta Platforms, Inc. | 139% | 150% | 1.18 |
| [AMZN](https://easycompare.io/research/amzn): Amazon.com, Inc. | 125% | 170% | 1.45 |
| DSP: Viant Technology Inc. | 100% | 177% | 1.11 |
| MGNI: Magnite, Inc. | 190% | 333% | 2.33 |
| PUBM: PubMatic, Inc. | 57.0% | 144% | 1.55 |
| NEXN: Nexxen International Ltd. | 98.0% | 257% | 1.62 |
| PERI: Perion Network Ltd. | 31.0% | 140% | 1.13 |
| CRTO: Criteo S.A. | −8.0% | 95.0% | 0.29 |
| DV: DoubleVerify Holdings, Inc. | 52.0% | 205% | 0.99 |
| U: Unity Software Inc. | 101% | 308% | 2.10 |
| SNAP: Snap Inc. | −61.0% | 207% | 1.08 |
| [RBLX](https://easycompare.io/research/rblx): Roblox Corporation | 24.0% | 115% | 1.45 |
| TBLA: Taboola.com Ltd. | 69.0% | 233% | 1.50 |
| APPS: Digital Turbine, Inc. | 108% | 397% | 3.00 |
| TTD: The Trade Desk, Inc. | −12.0% | 192% | 0.99 |

### What diversifies APP?

Correlation measures how closely two investments move together, on a scale from 1 (in lockstep) through 0 (unrelated) to -1 (in opposite directions).

- Moving a fifth of the money in APP into MPC would have cut the portfolio's volatility by 20% over the past 5 years and raised its annual return (+32.0% for APP alone, +43.2% for the mix).
- Among large ETFs, LVHI, DXJ and EMLP have moved largely independently of APP over the past 5 years, with correlations of 0.25 or lower, and each still earned a positive 5-year return.
- In 2022, the one year APP lost money (-88.8%), MPC returned +86.6%.

| Investment | Correlation with APP | 5Y return | Volatility | Sharpe | Rose in APP's 1 down years |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| LVHI: Franklin International Low Volatility High Dividend Index ETF | 0.05 | +119% | 11.1% | 1.48 | 1 of 1 |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | 0.18 | +225% | 19.1% | 1.34 | 1 of 1 |
| EMLP: First Trust North American Energy Infrastructure Fund | 0.25 | +101% | 14.5% | 1.04 | 1 of 1 |
| HDV: iShares Core High Dividend ETF | 0.03 | +83.3% | 13.0% | 1.00 | 1 of 1 |
| [SMH](https://easycompare.io/research/smh): VanEck Semiconductor ETF | 0.37 | +323% | 36.9% | 0.97 | 0 of 1 |
| DBEF: Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Hedged Equity ETF | 0.25 | +85.0% | 13.8% | 0.96 | 0 of 1 |
| [GLD](https://easycompare.io/research/gld): SPDR Gold Shares | 0.02 | +126% | 18.9% | 0.96 | 0 of 1 |
| SPMO: Invesco S&P 500 Momentum ETF | 0.43 | +136% | 20.8% | 0.93 | 0 of 1 |

## Common questions

### What was APP's worst drawdown?

APP's deepest decline since it began trading in 2021 was 91.9%, from November 2021 to December 2022. It took 21 months from the low to climb back to its old high. Because APP launched in April 2021, that record does not include the dot-com bust, the 2008 financial crisis or six other sell-offs.

### What were APP's best and worst years?

Over four full calendar years, APP's best year was 2024, when it returned 713%. Its worst was 2022, with a return of -88.8%.

### Is there a better investment than APP?

Among APP's popular alternatives, ZETA earned more than APP with less volatility over the past 5 years: 33.2% a year at 70.5% volatility, against 23.9% a year at 78.1%. Looking beyond its popular alternatives, MU (semiconductors) and PLTR (enterprise software) earned more than APP with less volatility over the past 5 years. MU returned 68.1% a year at 57.1% volatility, against 23.9% a year at 78.1%.

### Is APP more volatile than the S&P 500?

Yes. APP's volatility over the past 5 years was 78.1%, 4.6 times the S&P 500's 17.1%. Volatility measures how widely returns swing around their average: in roughly two years out of three, APP's return lands within 78.1% of its average, either way. The higher it is, the rougher the ride and the harder it is to hold through a slump.

### What is APP's Sharpe ratio?

APP's Sharpe ratio over the past 5 years was 0.66, against 0.79 for the S&P 500, so APP earned less for each unit of risk than an index fund did. The Sharpe ratio is the return earned above cash for each unit of volatility: two investments with the same return are not equal if one got there with far bigger swings.

### How correlated is APP with the S&P 500?

Over the past 5 years, APP's monthly returns had a correlation of 0.47 with the S&P 500. Correlation runs from 1 (moving in lockstep) through 0 (unrelated) to −1 (moving in opposite directions). They often move together: some diversification next to an index fund, but not a cushion. In the table, the correlation column measures each option against APP instead: the lower it is, the more that option would diversify a APP holding.

### What are the best alternatives to APP?

None of the 18 popular alternatives we compared outperformed APP in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 2 long-term timeframes, which says more about APP's strength than about its alternatives.

### Did APP outperform the S&P 500?

APP finished ahead of the S&P 500 (SPY) in three of four full calendar years. In 2025, it returned +108%, against +17.7% for the index.

### How did APP do in stock market crashes?

APP fell less than the S&P 500 (SPY) in none of the two major crashes it has traded through, and further in two. The clearest case was the 2022 bear market, when APP fell 80.0% and the S&P 500 fell 24.5%.

### What diversifies APP?

These had a low correlation with APP over the past 5 years and still earned a positive 5-year return: among large ETFs, LVHI (correlation 0.05), DXJ (correlation 0.18) and EMLP (correlation 0.25); among large stocks, CAH (correlation -0.07), CLS (correlation 0.41) and FIX (correlation 0.42). A correlation near zero means the two have moved largely independently.

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## Explore further

- Full page with charts: https://easycompare.io/research/app
- All research pages: https://easycompare.io/llms.txt
- Compare the entire market against APP live: https://betterthanspy.com/?b=APP&utm_source=easycompare&utm_medium=research