# How AngloGold Ashanti (AU) compares with the whole market and its popular alternatives

> Source: EasyCompare research, https://easycompare.io/research/au
> 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 AU alone. It places AU (AngloGold Ashanti Plc) against 20+ 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 AU stands in the market, and of the alternatives worth a closer look.

Period covered: AU's full trading record, from October 1986 through September 2026. All returns include reinvested dividends. Data as of October 20, 2026.

## Key findings

- **Right now:** AU has gone against the market, falling 13.1% over the past 6 months while the S&P 500 rose 9.1%. AU is 26.7% below its high, bear-market territory, while the S&P 500 sits 1.3% below a record.
- **Stock or market?:** AU's 22.1% gain over the past 3 months is part of a broader gold mining rally: the gold mining ETF GDX (VanEck Gold Miners ETF) rose 21.7%, with NEM (Newmont, up 31.2%) and AEM (Agnico Eagle Mines, up 36.9%). Its gold mining peers did not move as one over the past 3 months: AEM rose 36.9%, while KGC (Kinross Gold) rose 5.1%.
- **Past 1 to 3 years:** Over the past year, AU rose 26.2% against 15.8% for the S&P 500 and 17.9% for the Nasdaq 100. The same gap shows up over 3 years (416% against 89.3%). AU lagged its gold mining peers in 2023, then moved up the pack in 2025.
- **Long term:** AU turned $10,000 into $78,100 over the past decade, against $42,100 in the S&P 500. AU's 10-year return of 681% puts it ahead of 91% of the stocks worth at least $300 million with that much history. The S&P 500 returned 321%.
- **In a crash:** AU fell harder than the S&P 500 in five of seven sell-offs. The late-2018 sell-off was the exception: AU fell 10.7%, less than the S&P 500's 19.3%.
- **Diversification:** Against the S&P 500, AU has a correlation of 0.20 over 5 years, less closely than 86% of stocks worth at least $300 million. Next to an index fund it is a real diversifier. Over 10 years, AU's beta versus the S&P 500 was 0.61: 88% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 40% of its losses in falling ones.
- **Better options**
  - **Popular alternatives:** IAG (Iamgold) was ahead of AU in most short and long periods.
  - **Nearby categories and themes:** ATI (metals & mining) and HWM (Howmet Aerospace, aerospace & defense) earned more than AU with less volatility over the past 5 years. ATI returned 61.8% a year at 42.9% volatility, against 40.4% a year at 49.9%.
  - **Whole market:** Few investments have done better on both counts: only 22 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than AU with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them AVGO (Broadcom), PBR (Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. - Petrobras) and PBR-A (Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. - Petrobras).

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

This chart tracks a hypothetical $10,000 investment in AU over the past 28 years, with dividends reinvested, alongside the same amount in the S&P 500, investments that ended ahead of AU over the same span and AU's popular alternatives, among those that traded for the entire period.

- $10,000 invested in AU at the end of September 1998 would have grown to $64,042 by September 2026, less than the $121,630 it would have become in SPY, an S&P 500 fund.
- Five of the eight other investments on the chart ended ahead of AU, and RGLD finished highest, at $718,022.

## AU 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.

- AU is still 26.7% below its all-time high.
- AU's deepest decline since it began trading in 1986 was 89.7%, from January 2006 to August 2015. It took about ten years from the low to climb back to its old high.
- Over 28 full calendar years, AU's best was 2025, when it returned 288%, and its worst was 2013, when it lost 62.4%. It lost money in 15 of those years.

- Type: Stock, Materials (Gold)
- Trading since: October 20, 1986
- Market value: $46B
- Volatility (5 years): 49.9%; Sharpe ratio: 0.93
- Worst decline ever: −89.7%, from January 31, 2006 to August 5, 2015; back at its high by June 12, 2025

| Period | AU total return |
| --- | --- |
| 1 month | −10.9% |
| 3 months | +22.1% |
| 6 months | −13.1% |
| year to date | +9.9% |
| 1 year | +26.2% |
| 3 years | +416% |
| 5 years | +445% |
| 10 years | +681% |

## AU against the whole market

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

### How does AU rank among all stocks?

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

- AU's 5-year return ranks in the top 3% of the 2,893 stocks worth at least $300 million with 5 years of history.

| Measure | AU | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1-year return | +26.2% | 1,076 of 3,287 (top 33%) |
| 3-year return | +416% | 139 of 3,017 (top 5%) |
| 5-year return | +445% | 82 of 2,893 (top 3%) |
| 10-year return | +681% | 200 of 2,202 (top 10%) |
| Volatility, 5 years | 49.9% | 1,917 of 2,893 (top 67%) |
| Sharpe ratio, 5 years | 0.93 | 146 of 2,893 (top 6%) |
| Worst decline, past 10 years | −66.3% | 1,154 of 2,187 (top 53%) |

### What has beaten AU 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).

- 22 stocks worth at least $500 million sit in the green region: each earned more than AU over the past 5 years with smaller price swings. That is fewer than 1% of the 3,633 screened. Few investments beat it on both counts.
- Among those with at least half AU's swings, FIX has the best return for its risk: 77.0% a year at 46.7% volatility, 6% less than AU's 49.9%, and a Sharpe ratio (return above cash per unit of volatility) of 1.46 against 0.93 for AU.
- None of AU's popular alternatives made it, but HWM (aerospace & defense) did: 47.3% a year at 32.5% volatility, 35% less than AU's 49.9%.

### Is there a better investment than AU?

The table below lists investments that beat AU 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 AU's popular alternatives, IAG was ahead of AU in most short and long periods.
- Looking beyond its popular alternatives, ATI (metals & mining) and HWM (aerospace & defense) earned more than AU with less volatility over the past 5 years. ATI returned 61.8% a year at 42.9% volatility, against 40.4% a year at 49.9%.
- Few investments have done better on both counts: only 22 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than AU with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them AVGO, PBR and PBR-A.

The 15 strongest of 22 investments that beat AU 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) | 10Y return | Correlation with AU | Better on |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| AU: AngloGold Ashanti Plc (this page) |  | +40.4% | 49.9% | 0.93 | −66.3% | +681% |  |  |
| [ASX](https://easycompare.io/research/asx): ASE Technology Holding Co., Ltd. | Semiconductors | +48.8% | 43.0% | 1.15 | −52.5% | +967% | 0.14 | 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% | +1,387% | 0.10 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher return in most periods |
| [PBR-A](https://easycompare.io/research/pbr-a): Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. - Petrobras | Integrated Oil & Gas | +51.8% | 37.5% | 1.31 | −71.7% | +768% | -0.08 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher return in most periods |
| [CAH](https://easycompare.io/research/cah): Cardinal Health, Inc. | Health Care Distribution | +42.1% | 24.7% | 1.55 | −46.1% | +349% | 0.08 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| [FIX](https://easycompare.io/research/fix): Comfort Systems USA, Inc. | Engineering & Construction | +77.0% | 46.7% | 1.46 | −49.7% | +5,305% | -0.02 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| [AVGO](https://easycompare.io/research/avgo): Broadcom Inc. | Semiconductors | +48.3% | 44.5% | 1.11 | −48.3% | +2,380% | 0.04 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| ATI: ATI Inc. | Metals & Mining | +61.8% | 42.9% | 1.34 | −82.4% | +929% | 0.12 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher return in most periods |
| [VLO](https://easycompare.io/research/vlo): Valero Energy Corporation | Oil & Gas | +44.2% | 36.9% | 1.18 | −71.9% | +1,061% | 0.08 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher return in most periods |
| [TRGP](https://easycompare.io/research/trgp): Targa Resources Corp. | Oil & Gas Midstream | +41.8% | 31.7% | 1.27 | −90.8% | +829% | 0.22 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher return in most periods |
| INSW: International Seaways, Inc. | Oil & Gas | +56.5% | 40.5% | 1.31 | −57.4% | — | -0.10 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| EME: EMCOR Group, Inc. | Engineering & Construction | +43.0% | 35.3% | 1.20 | −48.0% | +1,202% | -0.13 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| LPG: Dorian LPG Ltd. | Oil & Gas Midstream | +54.6% | 43.6% | 1.22 | −62.9% | +1,821% | 0.09 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher return in most periods |
| TRMD: TORM plc | Marine Shipping | +54.3% | 45.9% | 1.18 | −60.6% | — | -0.07 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| [HWM](https://easycompare.io/research/hwm): Howmet Aerospace Inc. | Aerospace & Defense | +47.3% | 32.5% | 1.36 | −68.9% | +1,028% | 0.16 | Higher return, lower volatility |
| [PBR](https://easycompare.io/research/pbr): Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. - Petrobras | Integrated Oil & Gas | +50.3% | 37.5% | 1.28 | −75.3% | +674% | -0.10 | Higher return, lower volatility |

## AU against its popular alternatives

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

### How do AU'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.

- None of the 22 popular alternatives earned more than AU over the past 5 years with smaller price swings, so every higher return on the map came with a bumpier ride.
- Over the past 5 years, AU returned 40.4% a year, more than the S&P 500's 12.7%, with higher volatility (49.9% against 17.1%).

### Has AU consistently beaten its popular alternatives?

This section compares AU with the investments people most often weigh against it, checking each one over eight periods from one month to ten years.

- Only one of the 22 popular alternatives, IAG, outperformed AU in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes.
- GLD earned more for the risk it took than AU (a higher Sharpe ratio) and fell less in its worst decline of the past 10 years.

| Investment | 1Y return | 3Y return | 5Y return | 10Y return | Periods ahead of AU | Verdict | Sharpe |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| AU: AngloGold Ashanti Plc (this page) | +26.2% | +416% | +445% | +681% |  |  | 0.93 |
| IAG: Iamgold Corporation | +29.9% | +637% | +517% | +343% | 3/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 0.90 |
| GFI: Gold Fields Limited | −13.0% | +187% | +356% | +1,008% | 0/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.84 |
| CDE: Coeur Mining, Inc. | −31.3% | +480% | +131% | +33.9% | 0/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.59 |
| [NEM](https://easycompare.io/research/nem): Newmont Corporation | +24.3% | +219% | +135% | +304% | 4/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.63 |
| BTG: B2Gold Corp. | −7.3% | +72.8% | +49.0% | +139% | 4/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.40 |
| [WPM](https://easycompare.io/research/wpm): Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. | +25.2% | +212% | +236% | +510% | 3/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.85 |
| [FNV](https://easycompare.io/research/fnv): Franco-Nevada Corporation | +18.4% | +78.8% | +79.9% | +303% | 3/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.53 |
| RGLD: Royal Gold, Inc. | +24.0% | +124% | +155% | +282% | 3/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.74 |
| DRD: DRDGOLD Limited | −9.9% | +195% | +230% | +589% | 2/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.72 |
| HMY: Harmony Gold Mining Company Limited | −13.2% | +265% | +366% | +504% | 2/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.82 |
| [AEM](https://easycompare.io/research/aem): Agnico Eagle Mines Limited | +5.3% | +293% | +264% | +352% | 2/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.87 |
| [B](https://easycompare.io/research/b): Barrick Mining Corporation | +18.8% | +156% | +138% | +194% | 2/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.65 |
| EGO: Eldorado Gold Corporation | +23.1% | +247% | +271% | +89.1% | 2/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.79 |
| FSM: Fortuna Mining Corp. | +16.7% | +242% | +116% | +53.5% | 2/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.56 |
| EQX: Equinox Gold Corp. | −9.0% | +144% | +42.2% | — | 2/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.41 |
| AGI: Alamos Gold Inc. | −9.3% | +154% | +310% | +294% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.88 |
| [GLD](https://easycompare.io/research/gld): SPDR Gold Shares | −6.3% | +106% | +126% | +213% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.96 |
| OGC: OceanaGold Corporation | +7.6% | +382% | +385% | +176% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.86 |
| NG: NovaGold Resources Inc. | −36.0% | +69.4% | −15.3% | +41.3% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.25 |
| KGC: Kinross Gold Corporation | −8.3% | +356% | +311% | +572% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.85 |
| SLV: iShares Silver Trust | +9.2% | +144% | +131% | +213% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.64 |
| SA: Seabridge Gold Inc. | −2.9% | +123% | +43.5% | +127% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.40 |

### How did AU do year by year?

This table shows each investment's total return in every full calendar year since 1997, along with where AU ranked among its popular alternatives each year.

- AU finished ahead of the S&P 500 in 13 of its 28 full calendar years.
- Among its popular alternatives, GLD came out ahead of AU most often, in 15 of the 21 years both traded.
- Ranked against its popular alternatives each year, AU finished in the top quarter in three of 28 years and in the bottom quarter in five. In 2025, it ranked 1 of 23.

| Year | AU | SPY |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2025 | +288% | +17.7% |
| 2024 | +25.5% | +24.9% |
| 2023 | −2.7% | +26.2% |
| 2022 | −5.1% | −18.2% |
| 2021 | −4.9% | +28.7% |
| 2020 | +1.9% | +18.3% |
| 2019 | +78.8% | +31.2% |
| 2018 | +24.1% | −4.6% |
| 2017 | −2.2% | +21.7% |
| 2016 | +48.1% | +12.0% |

## Risk and diversification

How AU 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 AU's worst declines?

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

- In all three of AU's worst declines, the S&P 500 held up better over the same dates.
- Not every decline was the market's doing: AU fell 89.7% from January 2006 to August 2015, while the S&P 500 rose 100%.
- The slowest recovery came after AU fell 83.2% from August 1987 to November 1992; it did not regain that peak until January 2006, 13 years later.

| Decline | Peak | Low | Back at the high | SPY over the same dates | Market event |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| −89.7% | January 31, 2006 | August 5, 2015 | June 12, 2025 | +100% | 2008 financial crisis |
| −83.2% | August 3, 1987 | November 10, 1992 | January 19, 2006 | — |  |
| −39.9% | March 2, 2026 | July 20, 2026 | not yet | +8.7% |  |
| −28.7% | April 14, 1987 | June 1, 1987 | August 3, 1987 | — |  |
| −19.7% | January 28, 2026 | January 30, 2026 | February 23, 2026 | −0.5% |  |

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

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

- Among its popular alternatives, B held up best, falling less than AU in seven of the ten crashes they both traded through.
- AU fell further than the S&P 500 in six of the ten crashes it has traded through. The clearest case was the 2022 bear market, when AU fell 51.7% and the S&P 500 fell 24.5%.

| Crash | Dates | AU fall | SPY fall |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Dot-com bust | March 10, 2000 to October 9, 2002 | −50.6% | −47.5% |
| Global financial crisis | October 9, 2007 to March 9, 2009 | −71.5% | −55.2% |
| Flash crash | May 6, 2010 to May 7, 2010 | 0.0% | −1.5% |
| Euro debt crisis | July 22, 2011 to October 3, 2011 | −15.3% | −17.9% |
| China devaluation & oil rout | August 10, 2015 to February 11, 2016 | −36.9% | −12.8% |
| Volmageddon | February 2, 2018 to February 9, 2018 | −9.4% | −6.5% |
| Q4 2018 selloff | September 21, 2018 to December 24, 2018 | −10.7% | −19.3% |
| COVID crash | February 19, 2020 to March 23, 2020 | −37.1% | −33.7% |
| 2022 bear market | January 4, 2022 to October 12, 2022 | −51.7% | −24.5% |
| SVB / regional bank stress | March 8, 2023 to March 13, 2023 | −0.3% | −3.4% |

### How closely does AU 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.

- Over the past 10 years, AU captured 88% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 40% of its losses in falling months, with a beta of 0.61. That is a defensive profile: it gave up some of the market's upside in exchange for smaller losses.
- Only GLD and GFI had a higher capture ratio (upside capture divided by downside capture) than AU's 2.19, out of 21 popular alternatives with the same record.

Measured over the past 10 years of monthly returns against SPY.

| Investment | Upside capture | Downside capture | Beta |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| AU: AngloGold Ashanti Plc (this page) | 88.0% | 40.0% | 0.61 |
| IAG: Iamgold Corporation | 120% | 131% | 1.17 |
| GFI: Gold Fields Limited | 102% | 46.0% | 0.69 |
| CDE: Coeur Mining, Inc. | 126% | 213% | 1.56 |
| [NEM](https://easycompare.io/research/nem): Newmont Corporation | 68.0% | 45.0% | 0.39 |
| BTG: B2Gold Corp. | 63.0% | 61.0% | 0.78 |
| [WPM](https://easycompare.io/research/wpm): Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. | 78.0% | 37.0% | 0.48 |
| [FNV](https://easycompare.io/research/fnv): Franco-Nevada Corporation | 69.0% | 47.0% | 0.49 |
| RGLD: Royal Gold, Inc. | 69.0% | 54.0% | 0.56 |
| DRD: DRDGOLD Limited | 89.0% | 43.0% | 0.80 |
| HMY: Harmony Gold Mining Company Limited | 89.0% | 57.0% | 1.07 |
| [AEM](https://easycompare.io/research/aem): Agnico Eagle Mines Limited | 77.0% | 57.0% | 0.70 |
| [B](https://easycompare.io/research/b): Barrick Mining Corporation | 57.0% | 43.0% | 0.40 |
| EGO: Eldorado Gold Corporation | 82.0% | 115% | 1.06 |
| FSM: Fortuna Mining Corp. | 81.0% | 128% | 1.10 |
| AGI: Alamos Gold Inc. | 76.0% | 52.0% | 0.80 |
| [GLD](https://easycompare.io/research/gld): SPDR Gold Shares | 40.0% | 3.0% | 0.14 |
| OGC: OceanaGold Corporation | 113% | 143% | 0.98 |
| NG: NovaGold Resources Inc. | 51.0% | 91.0% | 0.80 |
| KGC: Kinross Gold Corporation | 100% | 70.0% | 0.83 |
| SLV: iShares Silver Trust | 78.0% | 79.0% | 0.58 |
| SA: Seabridge Gold Inc. | 88.0% | 110% | 0.91 |

### What diversifies AU?

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 AU into CLS would have cut the portfolio's volatility by 20% over the past 5 years and raised its annual return (+46.4% for AU alone, +65.3% for the mix).
- MCK made money in 11 of the 15 calendar years in which AU lost money.
- Among large ETFs, LVHI, DXJ and EMLP have moved largely independently of AU over the past 5 years, with correlations of 0.34 or lower, and each still earned a positive 5-year return.

| Investment | Correlation with AU | 5Y return | Volatility | Sharpe | Rose in AU's 15 down years |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| LVHI: Franklin International Low Volatility High Dividend Index ETF | 0.34 | +119% | 11.1% | 1.48 | 4 of 15 |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | 0.19 | +225% | 19.1% | 1.34 | 8 of 15 |
| EMLP: First Trust North American Energy Infrastructure Fund | 0.24 | +101% | 14.5% | 1.04 | 6 of 15 |
| HDV: iShares Core High Dividend ETF | 0.29 | +83.3% | 13.0% | 1.00 | 7 of 15 |
| [SMH](https://easycompare.io/research/smh): VanEck Semiconductor ETF | 0.14 | +323% | 36.9% | 0.97 | 8 of 15 |
| DBEF: Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Hedged Equity ETF | 0.29 | +85.0% | 13.8% | 0.96 | 7 of 15 |
| SPMO: Invesco S&P 500 Momentum ETF | 0.06 | +136% | 20.8% | 0.93 | 3 of 15 |
| [XLE](https://easycompare.io/research/xle): State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF | 0.08 | +177% | 25.5% | 0.93 | 9 of 15 |

## Common questions

### What was AU's worst drawdown?

AU's deepest decline since it began trading in 1986 was 89.7%, from January 2006 to August 2015. It took about ten years from the low to climb back to its old high.

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

Over 28 full calendar years, AU's best year was 2025, when it returned 288%. Its worst was 2013, with a return of -62.4%.

### Is there a better investment than AU?

Among AU's popular alternatives, IAG was ahead of AU in most short and long periods. Looking beyond its popular alternatives, ATI (metals & mining) and HWM (aerospace & defense) earned more than AU with less volatility over the past 5 years. ATI returned 61.8% a year at 42.9% volatility, against 40.4% a year at 49.9%.

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

Yes. AU's volatility over the past 5 years was 49.9%, 2.9 times the S&P 500's 17.1%. Volatility measures how widely returns swing around their average: in roughly two years out of three, AU's return lands within 49.9% 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 AU's Sharpe ratio?

AU's Sharpe ratio over the past 5 years was 0.93, against 0.79 for the S&P 500, so AU earned more 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 AU with the S&P 500?

Over the past 5 years, AU's monthly returns had a correlation of 0.20 with the S&P 500. Correlation runs from 1 (moving in lockstep) through 0 (unrelated) to −1 (moving in opposite directions). They are only loosely linked, which makes it a real diversifier next to an index fund. In the table, the correlation column measures each option against AU instead: the lower it is, the more that option would diversify a AU holding.

### What are the best alternatives to AU?

Of the 22 popular alternatives we compared, one outperformed AU in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes, with dividends reinvested: IAG.

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

AU finished ahead of the S&P 500 (SPY) in 13 of 28 full calendar years. In 2025, it returned +288%, against +17.7% for the index.

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

AU fell less than the S&P 500 (SPY) in four of the ten major crashes it has traded through, and further in six. The clearest case was the 2022 bear market, when AU fell 51.7% and the S&P 500 fell 24.5%.

### What diversifies AU?

These had a low correlation with AU over the past 5 years and still earned a positive 5-year return: among large ETFs, LVHI (correlation 0.34), DXJ (correlation 0.19) and EMLP (correlation 0.24); among large stocks, CAH (correlation 0.08), CLS (correlation -0.11) and FIX (correlation -0.02). A correlation near zero means the two have moved largely independently.

## More research

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- [Amazon.com (AMZN) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/amzn)

## Explore further

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