# How Bank of America (BAC) compares with the whole market and its popular alternatives

> Source: EasyCompare research, https://easycompare.io/research/bac
> 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 BAC alone. It places BAC (Bank of America Corporation) 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 BAC stands in the market, and of the alternatives worth a closer look.

Period covered: BAC'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:** BAC has gone against the market, falling 15.8% over the past 3 months while the S&P 500 rose 3.9%. The slide is BAC's own: it is 21.5% below its high, against 1.3% for the S&P 500.
- **Stock or market?:** The weakness is BAC's own: it fell 15.8% over the past 3 months while the banks ETF KBE (State Street SPDR S&P Bank ETF) fell 6.8%. The S&P 500 rose 3.9%. Its bank peers did not move as one over the past 3 months: JPM (JPMorgan Chase & Co.) fell 0.6%, while BCS (Barclays) fell 17.1%.
- **Past 1 to 3 years:** Over the past year, BAC fell 0.6% while the S&P 500 rose 15.8%. On the flip side, BAC finished ahead of the S&P 500 in both 2024 and 2025.
- **Long term:** BAC turned $10,000 into $38,200 over the past decade, against $42,100 in the S&P 500.
- **In a crash:** Across seven sell-offs, BAC has typically fallen 1.8 times as far as the S&P 500.
- **Diversification:** BAC is more of the same, not a cushion: a correlation of 0.69 with the S&P 500 over 5 years and 0.71 with the total US market, more closely than 98% of stocks worth at least $300 million. Over 10 years, BAC's beta versus the S&P 500 was 1.36: in the S&P 500's rising months it gained 1.3 times as much as the index, and in falling months it lost 1.5 times as much.
- **Better options**
  - **Popular alternatives:** RY (Royal Bank of Canada), V (Visa) and TD (Toronto-Dominion Bank) earned more than BAC with less volatility over the past 5 years. RY returned 17.3% a year at 18.2% volatility, against 4.0% a year at 26.6%.
  - **Nearby categories and themes:** MA (Mastercard, payment processing) and CME (CME Group, capital markets) earned more than BAC with less volatility over the past 5 years. MA returned 12.4% a year at 23.8% volatility, against 4.0% a year at 26.6%.
  - **Versus the S&P 500:** Simply owning the S&P 500 would have done better over the past 5 years: 12.7% a year at 17.1% volatility, against 4.0% at 26.6% for BAC.

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

This chart tracks a hypothetical $10,000 investment in BAC over the past 29 years, with dividends reinvested, alongside the same amount in the S&P 500, investments that ended ahead of BAC over the same span and BAC's popular alternatives, among those that traded for the entire period.

- $10,000 invested in BAC at the end of September 1997 would have grown to $36,875 by September 2026, less than the $132,907 it would have become in SPY, an S&P 500 fund.
- Seven of the eight other investments on the chart ended ahead of BAC, and RY finished highest, at $442,765.

## BAC 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.

- BAC is still 21.5% below its all-time high.
- BAC's deepest decline since it began trading in 1986 was 93.4%, from October 2007 to March 2009. It took about 12 years from the low to climb back to its old high.
- Over 29 full calendar years, BAC's best was 2012, when it returned 109%, and its worst was 2008, when it lost 63.1%. It lost money in ten of those years.

- Type: Stock, Financials (Banks - Diversified)
- Trading since: October 17, 1986
- Market value: $354B
- Volatility (5 years): 26.6%; Sharpe ratio: 0.28
- Worst decline ever: −93.4%, from October 5, 2007 to March 6, 2009; back at its high by May 6, 2021

| Period | BAC total return |
| --- | --- |
| 1 month | −12.6% |
| 3 months | −15.8% |
| 6 months | −5.2% |
| year to date | −8.0% |
| 1 year | −0.6% |
| 3 years | +107% |
| 5 years | +21.6% |
| 10 years | +282% |

## BAC against the whole market

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

### How does BAC rank among all stocks?

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

- BAC is among the steadier stocks: its price swings rank in the top 16% of the 2,893 stocks worth at least $300 million, where the top is the calmest.

| Measure | BAC | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1-year return | −0.6% | 2,010 of 3,287 (top 62%) |
| 3-year return | +107% | 871 of 3,017 (top 29%) |
| 5-year return | +21.6% | 1,435 of 2,893 (top 50%) |
| 10-year return | +282% | 634 of 2,202 (top 29%) |
| Volatility, 5 years | 26.6% | 451 of 2,893 (top 16%) |
| Sharpe ratio, 5 years | 0.28 | 1,621 of 2,893 (top 57%) |
| Worst decline, past 10 years | −49.0% | 425 of 2,187 (top 20%) |

### What has beaten BAC 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).

- 181 stocks and 600 ETFs worth at least $500 million sit in the green region: each earned more than BAC over the past 5 years with smaller price swings. That is 21% of the 3,633 screened.
- Among those with at least half BAC's swings, CAH has the best return for its risk: 42.1% a year at 24.7% volatility, 7% less than BAC's 26.6%, and a Sharpe ratio (return above cash per unit of volatility) of 1.55 against 0.28 for BAC.
- Among BAC's popular alternatives, RY, TD and JPM are in the region. RY earned 17.3% a year against 4.0% a year for BAC, at 18.2% volatility, 31% less than BAC's 26.6%.

### Is there a better investment than BAC?

The table below lists investments that beat BAC 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 BAC's popular alternatives, RY, V and TD earned more than BAC with less volatility over the past 5 years. RY returned 17.3% a year at 18.2% volatility, against 4.0% a year at 26.6%.
- Looking beyond its popular alternatives, MA (payment processing) and CME (capital markets) earned more than BAC with less volatility over the past 5 years. MA returned 12.4% a year at 23.8% volatility, against 4.0% a year at 26.6%.
- Simply owning the S&P 500 would have done better over the past 5 years: 12.7% a year at 17.1% volatility, against 4.0% at 26.6% for BAC.

The 15 strongest of 781 investments that beat BAC 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 BAC | Better on |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| BAC: Bank of America Corporation (this page) |  | +4.0% | 26.6% | 0.28 | −49.0% | +282% |  |  |
| [VTI](https://easycompare.io/research/vti): Vanguard Morningstar Total Stock Market ETF | US Total Market | +11.5% | 17.5% | 0.71 | −35.0% | +302% | 0.71 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [VOO](https://easycompare.io/research/voo): Vanguard S&P 500 ETF | US Large-Cap Equity | +12.8% | 16.9% | 0.80 | −34.0% | +324% | 0.69 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [WMT](https://easycompare.io/research/wmt): Walmart Inc. | Discount Retail | +20.8% | 22.6% | 0.96 | −25.7% | +508% | 0.27 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | International Equity | +26.6% | 19.1% | 1.34 | −39.1% | +428% | 0.28 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [COST](https://easycompare.io/research/cost): Costco Wholesale Corporation | Discount Retail | +17.4% | 22.9% | 0.82 | −31.4% | +685% | 0.38 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [QQQ](https://easycompare.io/research/qqq): Invesco QQQ Trust, Series 1 | US Large-Cap Growth | +14.5% | 23.0% | 0.71 | −35.1% | +553% | 0.49 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [MCK](https://easycompare.io/research/mck): McKesson Corporation | Health Care Distribution | +38.7% | 25.0% | 1.44 | −38.1% | +586% | 0.21 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [RY](https://easycompare.io/research/ry): Royal Bank of Canada | Banks | +17.3% | 18.2% | 0.97 | −40.0% | +352% | 0.72 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [LIN](https://easycompare.io/research/lin): Linde plc | Chemicals | +11.5% | 20.9% | 0.63 | −32.6% | +394% | 0.36 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [COR](https://easycompare.io/research/cor): Cencora, Inc. | Health Care Distribution | +24.2% | 22.8% | 1.07 | −32.4% | +406% | 0.40 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [GWW](https://easycompare.io/research/gww): W.W. Grainger, Inc. | Industrial Distribution | +26.3% | 24.9% | 1.07 | −41.6% | +654% | 0.48 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [UNP](https://easycompare.io/research/unp): Union Pacific Corporation | Railroads | +7.1% | 22.9% | 0.42 | −38.7% | +295% | 0.53 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [RSG](https://easycompare.io/research/rsg): Republic Services, Inc. | Environmental Services | +13.9% | 18.5% | 0.80 | −34.0% | +446% | 0.23 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [ADP](https://easycompare.io/research/adp): Automatic Data Processing, Inc. | Business Services | +9.0% | 22.9% | 0.49 | −40.8% | +320% | 0.47 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [ORLY](https://easycompare.io/research/orly): O'Reilly Automotive, Inc. | Specialty Retail | +15.9% | 23.4% | 0.75 | −42.0% | +393% | 0.29 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |

## BAC against its popular alternatives

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

### How do BAC'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.

- Six of the 25 popular alternatives, led by HSBC, JPM and RY, were both more rewarding and calmer than BAC over the past 5 years, earning a higher annual return with lower volatility.
- Over the past 5 years, BAC returned 4.0% a year, less than the S&P 500's 12.7%, with higher volatility (26.6% against 17.1%).

### Has BAC consistently beaten its popular alternatives?

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

- 17 of the 25 popular alternatives, led by JPM, RY and SAN, outperformed BAC in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes.
- JPM, RY and SAN outperformed BAC in every long-term period and in all but one short-term period, the most consistent record in the group.
- RY, TD and JPM earned more for the risk they took than BAC (a higher Sharpe ratio) and fell less in their worst decline of the past 10 years.

| Investment | 1Y return | 3Y return | 5Y return | 10Y return | Periods ahead of BAC | Verdict | Sharpe |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| BAC: Bank of America Corporation (this page) | −0.6% | +107% | +21.6% | +282% |  |  | 0.28 |
| [JPM](https://easycompare.io/research/jpm): JPMorgan Chase & Co. | +13.0% | +150% | +122% | +537% | 5/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.78 |
| [RY](https://easycompare.io/research/ry): Royal Bank of Canada | +39.2% | +173% | +122% | +352% | 5/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.97 |
| [SAN](https://easycompare.io/research/san): Banco Santander, S.A. | +35.9% | +305% | +295% | +332% | 5/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.99 |
| [HSBC](https://easycompare.io/research/hsbc): HSBC Holdings plc | +47.7% | +201% | +318% | +319% | 5/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 1.24 |
| [TD](https://easycompare.io/research/td): The Toronto-Dominion Bank | +57.5% | +141% | +109% | +310% | 5/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.84 |
| [BMO](https://easycompare.io/research/bmo): Bank of Montreal | +37.6% | +146% | +89.4% | +295% | 5/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.71 |
| [MS](https://easycompare.io/research/ms): Morgan Stanley | +13.9% | +170% | +110% | +627% | 4/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.66 |
| [GS](https://easycompare.io/research/gs): The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. | +18.2% | +215% | +145% | +521% | 3/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | consistent | 0.77 |
| [V](https://easycompare.io/research/v): Visa Inc. | +19.0% | +78.2% | +82.5% | +429% | 5/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 0.64 |
| RF: Regions Financial Corporation | +20.5% | +120% | +45.7% | +278% | 5/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 0.40 |
| CFG: Citizens Financial Group, Inc. | +31.5% | +205% | +55.0% | +266% | 5/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 0.43 |
| [FITB](https://easycompare.io/research/fitb): Fifth Third Bancorp | +29.6% | +151% | +38.9% | +255% | 5/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 0.37 |
| [PNC](https://easycompare.io/research/pnc): The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. | +25.3% | +120% | +25.1% | +230% | 5/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 0.30 |
| MTB: M&T Bank Corporation | +23.4% | +111% | +59.3% | +143% | 5/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 0.46 |
| [C](https://easycompare.io/research/c): Citigroup Inc. | +26.0% | +238% | +102% | +234% | 4/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 0.63 |
| [COF](https://easycompare.io/research/cof): Capital One Financial Corporation | −4.7% | +134% | +27.0% | +222% | 3/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 0.31 |
| [WFC](https://easycompare.io/research/wfc): Wells Fargo & Company | −2.4% | +119% | +85.0% | +141% | 3/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 0.57 |
| [BCS](https://easycompare.io/research/bcs): Barclays PLC | +15.1% | +242% | +134% | +238% | 2/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.67 |
| [DB](https://easycompare.io/research/db): Deutsche Bank AG | −3.1% | +244% | +171% | +165% | 2/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.72 |
| KEY: KeyCorp | +24.6% | +143% | +11.9% | +143% | 5/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.25 |
| [USB](https://easycompare.io/research/usb): U.S. Bancorp | +30.3% | +117% | +17.6% | +94.6% | 5/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.26 |
| KRE: State Street SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF | +19.4% | +95.8% | +11.7% | +111% | 5/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.22 |
| [TFC](https://easycompare.io/research/tfc): Truist Financial Corporation | +13.6% | +102% | −5.7% | +82.7% | 4/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.12 |
| HBAN: Huntington Bancshares Incorporated | +1.9% | +82.4% | +16.1% | +132% | 3/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.25 |
| [SCHW](https://easycompare.io/research/schw): The Charles Schwab Corporation | −3.1% | +86.2% | +19.1% | +221% | 2/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.27 |

### How did BAC do year by year?

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

- BAC finished ahead of the S&P 500 in 14 of its 29 full calendar years, and ahead of it in each of the last two.
- Among its popular alternatives, JPM came out ahead of BAC most often, in 19 of the 29 years both traded.
- Ranked against its popular alternatives each year, BAC finished in the top quarter in eight of 29 years and in the bottom quarter in six. In 2025, it ranked 16 of 26.

| Year | BAC | SPY |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2025 | +28.0% | +17.7% |
| 2024 | +33.9% | +24.9% |
| 2023 | +4.9% | +26.2% |
| 2022 | −23.8% | −18.2% |
| 2021 | +49.6% | +28.7% |
| 2020 | −11.6% | +18.3% |
| 2019 | +46.1% | +31.2% |
| 2018 | −15.0% | −4.6% |
| 2017 | +35.7% | +21.7% |
| 2016 | +33.4% | +12.0% |

## Risk and diversification

How BAC 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 BAC's worst declines?

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

- In all three of BAC's worst declines, the S&P 500 held up better over the same dates.
- Not every decline was the market's doing: BAC fell 52.9% from July 1998 to December 2000, while the S&P 500 rose 17.9%.
- The slowest recovery came after BAC fell 93.4% from October 2007 to March 2009; it did not regain that peak until May 2021, 12 years later.

| Decline | Peak | Low | Back at the high | SPY over the same dates | Market event |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| −93.4% | October 5, 2007 | March 6, 2009 | May 6, 2021 | −54.5% | 2008 financial crisis |
| −67.9% | August 7, 1989 | October 30, 1990 | May 13, 1992 | — |  |
| −52.9% | July 14, 1998 | December 6, 2000 | May 17, 2002 | +17.9% | dot-com bust |
| −46.6% | February 8, 2022 | October 27, 2023 | November 11, 2024 | −6.4% | 2022 bear market |
| −41.4% | August 25, 1987 | December 3, 1987 | August 2, 1988 | — |  |

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

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

- BAC fell further than the S&P 500 in seven of the ten crashes it has traded through. The clearest case was the 2008 financial crisis, when BAC fell 93.4% and the S&P 500 fell 55.2%.
- Among its popular alternatives, RY held up best, falling less than BAC in all ten crashes they both traded through.

| Crash | Dates | BAC fall | SPY fall |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Dot-com bust | March 10, 2000 to October 9, 2002 | −36.3% | −47.5% |
| Global financial crisis | October 9, 2007 to March 9, 2009 | −93.4% | −55.2% |
| Flash crash | May 6, 2010 to May 7, 2010 | −0.6% | −1.5% |
| Euro debt crisis | July 22, 2011 to October 3, 2011 | −45.2% | −17.9% |
| China devaluation & oil rout | August 10, 2015 to February 11, 2016 | −37.8% | −12.8% |
| Volmageddon | February 2, 2018 to February 9, 2018 | −6.9% | −6.5% |
| Q4 2018 selloff | September 21, 2018 to December 24, 2018 | −26.4% | −19.3% |
| COVID crash | February 19, 2020 to March 23, 2020 | −47.8% | −33.7% |
| 2022 bear market | January 4, 2022 to October 12, 2022 | −38.7% | −24.5% |
| SVB / regional bank stress | March 8, 2023 to March 13, 2023 | −12.4% | −3.4% |

### How closely does BAC 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.

- JPM took just 103% of the S&P 500's losses, against 146% for BAC, while still keeping 117% of its gains.
- Over the past 10 years, BAC captured 127% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 146% of its losses in falling months, with a beta of 1.36. It amplified the market's moves in both directions.
- 12 of the 25 popular alternatives had a higher capture ratio (upside capture divided by downside capture) than BAC's 0.87, led by HSBC, V and JPM.

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

| Investment | Upside capture | Downside capture | Beta |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| BAC: Bank of America Corporation (this page) | 127% | 146% | 1.36 |
| [JPM](https://easycompare.io/research/jpm): JPMorgan Chase & Co. | 117% | 103% | 1.09 |
| [RY](https://easycompare.io/research/ry): Royal Bank of Canada | 97.0% | 88.0% | 0.88 |
| [SAN](https://easycompare.io/research/san): Banco Santander, S.A. | 101% | 92.0% | 1.02 |
| [HSBC](https://easycompare.io/research/hsbc): HSBC Holdings plc | 79.0% | 53.0% | 0.58 |
| [TD](https://easycompare.io/research/td): The Toronto-Dominion Bank | 89.0% | 80.0% | 0.88 |
| [BMO](https://easycompare.io/research/bmo): Bank of Montreal | 104% | 112% | 1.12 |
| [MS](https://easycompare.io/research/ms): Morgan Stanley | 142% | 137% | 1.39 |
| [GS](https://easycompare.io/research/gs): The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. | 136% | 133% | 1.39 |
| [V](https://easycompare.io/research/v): Visa Inc. | 93.0% | 79.0% | 0.87 |
| RF: Regions Financial Corporation | 113% | 127% | 1.26 |
| CFG: Citizens Financial Group, Inc. | 118% | 140% | 1.37 |
| [FITB](https://easycompare.io/research/fitb): Fifth Third Bancorp | 102% | 114% | 1.22 |
| [PNC](https://easycompare.io/research/pnc): The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. | 108% | 127% | 1.15 |
| MTB: M&T Bank Corporation | 75.0% | 86.0% | 0.86 |
| [C](https://easycompare.io/research/c): Citigroup Inc. | 131% | 165% | 1.49 |
| [COF](https://easycompare.io/research/cof): Capital One Financial Corporation | 115% | 146% | 1.39 |
| [WFC](https://easycompare.io/research/wfc): Wells Fargo & Company | 96.0% | 129% | 1.13 |
| [BCS](https://easycompare.io/research/bcs): Barclays PLC | 113% | 131% | 1.26 |
| [DB](https://easycompare.io/research/db): Deutsche Bank AG | 102% | 118% | 1.21 |
| KEY: KeyCorp | 100% | 132% | 1.28 |
| [USB](https://easycompare.io/research/usb): U.S. Bancorp | 89.0% | 130% | 1.05 |
| KRE: State Street SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF | 86.0% | 117% | 1.12 |
| [TFC](https://easycompare.io/research/tfc): Truist Financial Corporation | 86.0% | 126% | 1.11 |
| HBAN: Huntington Bancshares Incorporated | 89.0% | 116% | 1.13 |
| [SCHW](https://easycompare.io/research/schw): The Charles Schwab Corporation | 89.0% | 90.0% | 0.91 |

### What diversifies BAC?

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 BAC into GLD would have cut the portfolio's volatility by 20% over the past 5 years and raised its annual return (+7.7% for BAC alone, +10.7% for the mix).
- Among large ETFs, DXJ, GCOW and SMH have moved largely independently of BAC over the past 5 years, with correlations of 0.49 or lower, and each still earned a positive 5-year return.
- MCK made money in six of the ten calendar years in which BAC lost money.

| Investment | Correlation with BAC | 5Y return | Volatility | Sharpe | Rose in BAC's 10 down years |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | 0.28 | +225% | 19.1% | 1.34 | 3 of 10 |
| GCOW: Pacer Global Cash Cows Dividend ETF | 0.49 | +93.4% | 13.6% | 1.04 | 1 of 10 |
| [SMH](https://easycompare.io/research/smh): VanEck Semiconductor ETF | 0.40 | +323% | 36.9% | 0.97 | 4 of 10 |
| [GLD](https://easycompare.io/research/gld): SPDR Gold Shares | -0.04 | +126% | 18.9% | 0.96 | 5 of 10 |
| [XLE](https://easycompare.io/research/xle): State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF | 0.47 | +177% | 25.5% | 0.93 | 6 of 10 |
| EWT: iShares MSCI Taiwan ETF | 0.37 | +153% | 24.2% | 0.89 | 3 of 10 |
| EDIV: State Street SPDR S&P Emerging Markets Dividend ETF | 0.38 | +69.9% | 13.8% | 0.84 | 0 of 10 |
| PTLC: Pacer Trendpilot US Large Cap ETF | 0.45 | +57.4% | 11.8% | 0.83 | 1 of 10 |

## Common questions

### What was BAC's worst drawdown?

BAC's deepest decline since it began trading in 1986 was 93.4%, from October 2007 to March 2009. It took about 12 years from the low to climb back to its old high.

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

Over 29 full calendar years, BAC's best year was 2012, when it returned 109%. Its worst was 2008, with a return of -63.1%.

### Is there a better investment than BAC?

Among BAC's popular alternatives, RY, V and TD earned more than BAC with less volatility over the past 5 years. RY returned 17.3% a year at 18.2% volatility, against 4.0% a year at 26.6%. Looking beyond its popular alternatives, MA (payment processing) and CME (capital markets) earned more than BAC with less volatility over the past 5 years. MA returned 12.4% a year at 23.8% volatility, against 4.0% a year at 26.6%.

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

Yes. BAC's volatility over the past 5 years was 26.6%, 1.6 times the S&P 500's 17.1%. Volatility measures how widely returns swing around their average: in roughly two years out of three, BAC's return lands within 26.6% 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 BAC's Sharpe ratio?

BAC's Sharpe ratio over the past 5 years was 0.28, against 0.79 for the S&P 500, so BAC 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 BAC with the S&P 500?

Over the past 5 years, BAC's monthly returns had a correlation of 0.69 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 BAC instead: the lower it is, the more that option would diversify a BAC holding.

### What are the best alternatives to BAC?

Of the 25 popular alternatives we compared, 17 outperformed BAC in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes, with dividends reinvested: JPM, RY and SAN.

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

BAC finished ahead of the S&P 500 (SPY) in 14 of 29 full calendar years. In 2025, it returned +28.0%, against +17.7% for the index.

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

BAC fell less than the S&P 500 (SPY) in two of the ten major crashes it has traded through, and further in seven. The clearest case was the 2008 financial crisis, when BAC fell 93.4% and the S&P 500 fell 55.2%.

### What diversifies BAC?

These had a low correlation with BAC over the past 5 years and still earned a positive 5-year return: among large ETFs, DXJ (correlation 0.28), GCOW (correlation 0.49) and SMH (correlation 0.40); among large stocks, CAH (correlation 0.32), CLS (correlation 0.49) and FIX (correlation 0.39). A correlation near zero means the two have moved largely independently.

## More research

- [JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/jpm)
- [Royal Bank of Canada (RY) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/ry)
- [Banco Santander (SAN) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/san)
- [HSBC Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/hsbc)
- [Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/td)
- [Bank of Montreal (BMO) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/bmo)
- [Morgan Stanley (MS) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/ms)
- [Goldman Sachs Group (GS) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/gs)
- [Visa (V) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/v)
- [Fifth Third Bancorp (FITB) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/fitb)
- [PNC Financial Services Group (PNC) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/pnc)
- [Citigroup (C) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/c)

## Explore further

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