# How ConocoPhillips (COP) compares with the whole market and its popular alternatives

> Source: EasyCompare research, https://easycompare.io/research/cop
> 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 COP alone. It places COP (ConocoPhillips) 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 COP stands in the market, and of the alternatives worth a closer look.

Period covered: COP'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:** COP has run far ahead of the market, rising 27.0% over the past 3 months against 3.9% for the S&P 500 and 3.2% for the Nasdaq 100. Its exploration & production peers were far apart over the past 3 months, from APA (up 44.2%) to EOG (EOG Resources, up 12.7%).
- **Stock or market?:** Not a move of its own: the exploration & production ETF XOP (State Street SPDR S&P Oil & Gas Exploration & Production ETF) rose 18.1% over the past 3 months, with CNQ (Canadian Natural Resources, up 24.4%) and OXY (Occidental Petroleum, up 14.5%), against 3.9% for the S&P 500. COP rose 14.4% last month as the S&P 500 fell 0.6% and the Nasdaq 100 fell 3.2%.
- **Past 1 to 3 years:** Over the past year, COP rose 72.9% against 15.8% for the S&P 500 and 17.9% for the Nasdaq 100. Even so, A ahead of 80% of stocks worth at least $300 million over 10 years, but behind 62% of the stocks worth at least $300 million over 3 years.
- **Long term:** COP turned $10,000 into $47,900 over the past decade, against $42,100 in the S&P 500. COP's 10-year return of 379% puts it ahead of 80% of the stocks worth at least $300 million with that much history. The S&P 500 returned 321%.
- **In a crash:** Across seven sell-offs, COP has typically fallen 1.6 times as far as the S&P 500. Even so, in the 2022 bear market, COP held up better than EQT, PR and OVV; only OXY (Occidental Petroleum) fell less.
- **Diversification:** COP is a real diversifier: a correlation of 0.13 with the S&P 500 over 5 years and 0.12 with the total US market, less closely than 93% of stocks worth at least $300 million. COP moves far less with the S&P 500 than it used to, with a correlation of 0.13 over the past 5 years against 0.60 in the 5 years before.
- **Better options**
  - **Popular alternatives:** XOM (Exxonmobil), CVX (Chevron) and WMB (Williams Companies) earned more than COP with less volatility over the past 5 years. XOM returned 27.1% a year at 26.5% volatility, against 18.2% a year at 32.6%.
  - **Nearby categories and themes:** E (Eni S.p.A., integrated oil & gas) and LNG (Cheniere Energy, oil & gas) earned more than COP with less volatility over the past 5 years. E returned 23.0% a year at 25.6% volatility, against 18.2% a year at 32.6%.
  - **Whole market:** 97 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than COP with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them WMT (Walmart), XOM (Exxonmobil) and ABBV (AbbVie).

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

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

- $10,000 invested in COP at the end of September 1997 would have grown to $156,444 by September 2026, more than the $132,907 it would have become in SPY, an S&P 500 fund.
- Five of the eight other investments on the chart ended ahead of COP, and VLO finished highest, at $1,019,941.

## COP 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.

- COP's deepest decline since it began trading in 1986 was 70.7%, from October 2018 to March 2020. It took 19 months from the low to climb back to its old high.
- COP is trading within 1% of its all-time high.
- Over 29 full calendar years, COP's best was 2021, when it returned 87.1%, and its worst was 2008, when it lost 39.9%. It lost money in seven of those years.

- Type: Stock, Energy (Oil & Gas Exploration & Production)
- Trading since: October 17, 1986
- Market value: $175B
- Volatility (5 years): 32.6%; Sharpe ratio: 0.68
- Worst decline ever: −70.7%, from October 1, 2018 to March 18, 2020; back at its high by October 8, 2021

| Period | COP total return |
| --- | --- |
| 1 month | +14.4% |
| 3 months | +27.0% |
| 6 months | +27.1% |
| year to date | +54.3% |
| 1 year | +72.9% |
| 3 years | +28.5% |
| 5 years | +131% |
| 10 years | +379% |

## COP against the whole market

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

### How does COP rank among all stocks?

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

- COP's 1-year return ranks in the top 10% of the 3,287 stocks worth at least $300 million with 1 year of history.

| Measure | COP | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1-year return | +72.9% | 320 of 3,287 (top 10%) |
| 3-year return | +28.5% | 1,875 of 3,017 (top 63%) |
| 5-year return | +131% | 530 of 2,893 (top 19%) |
| 10-year return | +379% | 445 of 2,202 (top 21%) |
| Volatility, 5 years | 32.6% | 965 of 2,893 (top 34%) |
| Sharpe ratio, 5 years | 0.68 | 505 of 2,893 (top 18%) |
| Worst decline, past 10 years | −70.7% | 1,311 of 2,187 (top 60%) |

### What has beaten COP 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).

- 77 stocks and 20 ETFs worth at least $500 million sit in the green region: each earned more than COP over the past 5 years with smaller price swings. That is 3% of the 3,633 screened.
- Among those with at least half COP's swings, CAH has the best return for its risk: 42.1% a year at 24.7% volatility, 24% less than COP's 32.6%, and a Sharpe ratio (return above cash per unit of volatility) of 1.55 against 0.68 for COP.
- Among COP's popular alternatives, XOM, WMB and CVX are in the region. XOM earned 27.1% a year against 18.2% a year for COP, at 26.5% volatility, 19% less than COP's 32.6%.

### Is there a better investment than COP?

The table below lists investments that beat COP 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 COP's popular alternatives, XOM, CVX and WMB earned more than COP with less volatility over the past 5 years. XOM returned 27.1% a year at 26.5% volatility, against 18.2% a year at 32.6%.
- Looking beyond its popular alternatives, E (integrated oil & gas) and LNG (oil & gas) earned more than COP with less volatility over the past 5 years. E returned 23.0% a year at 25.6% volatility, against 18.2% a year at 32.6%.
- Across the whole market, 97 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than COP with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them WMT, XOM and ABBV.

The 15 strongest of 97 investments that beat COP 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 COP | Better on |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| COP: ConocoPhillips (this page) |  | +18.2% | 32.6% | 0.68 | −70.7% | +379% |  |  |
| NHC: National HealthCare Corporation | Medical - Care Facilities | +32.0% | 28.5% | 1.12 | −35.3% | +394% | -0.08 | 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% | 0.00 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [ABBV](https://easycompare.io/research/abbv): AbbVie Inc. | Pharmaceuticals | +26.1% | 23.4% | 1.11 | −45.1% | +603% | 0.08 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | International Equity | +26.6% | 19.1% | 1.34 | −39.1% | +428% | 0.13 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; 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% | 0.25 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [PH](https://easycompare.io/research/ph): Parker-Hannifin Corporation | Industrial Machinery | +27.4% | 28.8% | 0.99 | −54.7% | +789% | 0.14 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [PGR](https://easycompare.io/research/pgr): The Progressive Corporation | Property & Casualty Insurance | +21.3% | 25.6% | 0.89 | −30.3% | +816% | 0.18 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [MAR](https://easycompare.io/research/mar): Marriott International, Inc. | Hotels & Resorts | +22.0% | 28.6% | 0.84 | −61.3% | +544% | 0.24 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; 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% | 0.28 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [MFC](https://easycompare.io/research/mfc): Manulife Financial Corporation | Life Insurance | +22.6% | 24.0% | 0.97 | −57.5% | +373% | 0.14 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; 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% | 0.12 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [CAH](https://easycompare.io/research/cah): Cardinal Health, Inc. | Health Care Distribution | +42.1% | 24.7% | 1.55 | −46.1% | +349% | 0.07 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| CBOE: Cboe Global Markets, Inc. | Capital Markets | +21.5% | 25.1% | 0.91 | −43.2% | +463% | 0.17 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| IRM: Iron Mountain Incorporated | Specialty REITs | +24.6% | 30.3% | 0.88 | −39.0% | +470% | 0.12 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| CASY: Casey's General Stores, Inc. | Convenience Stores | +29.9% | 29.3% | 1.04 | −36.1% | +537% | 0.33 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Smaller losses in recent crashes |

## COP against its popular alternatives

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

### How do COP'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.

- 14 of the 22 popular alternatives earned less than COP over the past 5 years while swinging more, the weaker corner of the map.
- Four of the 22 popular alternatives, led by XOM, CNQ and WMB, were both more rewarding and calmer than COP over the past 5 years, earning a higher annual return with lower volatility.
- Over the past 5 years, COP returned 18.2% a year, more than the S&P 500's 12.7%, with higher volatility (32.6% against 17.1%).

### Has COP consistently beaten its popular alternatives?

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

- VLO outperformed COP in every long-term period and in all but one short-term period, the most consistent record in the group.
- Two of the 22 popular alternatives, VLO and PR, outperformed COP in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes.
- XOM, WMB and CVX earned more for the risk they took than COP (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 COP | Verdict | Sharpe |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| COP: ConocoPhillips (this page) | +72.9% | +28.5% | +131% | +379% |  |  | 0.68 |
| [VLO](https://easycompare.io/research/vlo): Valero Energy Corporation | +176% | +259% | +524% | +1,061% | 4/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 1.18 |
| PR: Permian Resources Corporation | +108% | +86.6% | +317% | +99.2% | 3/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 0.85 |
| [CNQ](https://easycompare.io/research/cnq): Canadian Natural Resources Limited | +87.7% | +90.4% | +224% | +433% | 2/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.89 |
| [WMB](https://easycompare.io/research/wmb): The Williams Companies, Inc. | +14.9% | +125% | +200% | +288% | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 1.04 |
| [CVX](https://easycompare.io/research/cvx): Chevron Corporation | +51.9% | +53.4% | +144% | +238% | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.84 |
| [XOM](https://easycompare.io/research/xom): Exxonmobil Holdings Corporation | +62.4% | +76.7% | +232% | +214% | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 1.04 |
| EQT: EQT Corporation | −1.8% | +35.0% | +175% | +69.1% | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.70 |
| OVV: Ovintiv Inc. | +98.3% | +52.5% | +99.6% | +56.0% | 4/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.54 |
| APA: APA Corporation | +130% | +31.9% | +111% | +0.9% | 4/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.56 |
| RRC: Range Resources Corporation | +18.7% | +30.6% | +86.3% | +20.8% | 1/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.51 |
| [FANG](https://easycompare.io/research/fang): Diamondback Energy, Inc. | +46.8% | +35.7% | +125% | +160% | 0/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.63 |
| [EOG](https://easycompare.io/research/eog): EOG Resources, Inc. | +53.1% | +31.9% | +115% | +131% | 0/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.64 |
| AR: Antero Resources Corporation | +21.9% | +38.8% | +87.2% | +42.8% | 0/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.50 |
| SM: SM Energy Company | +88.7% | −1.4% | +39.5% | +123% | 3/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.39 |
| NOG: Northern Oil and Gas, Inc. | +39.8% | −16.6% | +40.8% | +41.7% | 2/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.38 |
| CHRD: Chord Energy Corporation | +77.0% | +4.9% | +117% | — | 2/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.59 |
| MTDR: Matador Resources Company | +36.6% | −5.3% | +39.7% | +168% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.38 |
| [DVN](https://easycompare.io/research/dvn): Devon Energy Corporation | +61.8% | +15.0% | +56.0% | +69.6% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.42 |
| CRK: Comstock Resources, Inc. | −21.9% | +16.3% | +54.8% | +45.7% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.44 |
| [OXY](https://easycompare.io/research/oxy): Occidental Petroleum Corporation | +56.4% | +2.0% | +103% | +11.6% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.56 |
| [SLB](https://easycompare.io/research/slb): Slb N.V. | +53.2% | −7.2% | +60.7% | −21.3% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.44 |
| MGY: Magnolia Oil & Gas Corporation | +14.0% | +18.4% | +35.9% | — | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.35 |

### How did COP do year by year?

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

- COP finished ahead of the S&P 500 in 13 of its 29 full calendar years, and behind it in each of the last three.
- Ranked against its popular alternatives each year, COP finished in the top quarter in seven of 29 years and in the bottom quarter in three. In 2025, it ranked 15 of 23.
- Among its popular alternatives, MTDR came out ahead of COP most often, in nine of the 13 years both traded.

| Year | COP | SPY |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2025 | −2.3% | +17.7% |
| 2024 | −12.2% | +24.9% |
| 2023 | +2.0% | +26.2% |
| 2022 | +72.2% | −18.2% |
| 2021 | +87.1% | +28.7% |
| 2020 | −36.0% | +18.3% |
| 2019 | +6.6% | +31.2% |
| 2018 | +15.6% | −4.6% |
| 2017 | +11.9% | +21.7% |
| 2016 | +10.1% | +12.0% |

## Risk and diversification

How COP 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 COP's worst declines?

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

- In all four of COP's worst declines, the S&P 500 held up better over the same dates.
- Not every decline was the market's doing: COP fell 36.3% from April 2024 to April 2025, while the S&P 500 slipped only 3.0%.
- The slowest recovery came after COP fell 62.4% from June 2008 to March 2009; it did not regain that peak until May 2013, four years later.

| Decline | Peak | Low | Back at the high | SPY over the same dates | Market event |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| −70.7% | October 1, 2018 | March 18, 2020 | October 8, 2021 | −15.7% | late-2018 sell-off |
| −62.4% | June 17, 2008 | March 2, 2009 | May 3, 2013 | −46.9% | 2008 financial crisis |
| −60.7% | July 23, 2014 | February 11, 2016 | September 24, 2018 | −5.1% | 2015 China and oil sell-off |
| −43.4% | August 3, 1987 | November 20, 1987 | March 17, 1988 | — |  |
| −36.3% | April 5, 2024 | April 8, 2025 | March 19, 2026 | −3.0% |  |

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

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

- COP fell further than the S&P 500 in eight of the ten crashes it has traded through. The clearest case was the 2015 China and oil sell-off, when COP fell 43.4% and the S&P 500 fell 12.8%.
- Among its popular alternatives, CVX held up best, falling less than COP in all ten crashes they both traded through.

| Crash | Dates | COP fall | SPY fall |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Dot-com bust | March 10, 2000 to October 9, 2002 | −31.7% | −47.5% |
| Global financial crisis | October 9, 2007 to March 9, 2009 | −62.4% | −55.2% |
| Flash crash | May 6, 2010 to May 7, 2010 | −0.8% | −1.5% |
| Euro debt crisis | July 22, 2011 to October 3, 2011 | −19.0% | −17.9% |
| China devaluation & oil rout | August 10, 2015 to February 11, 2016 | −43.4% | −12.8% |
| Volmageddon | February 2, 2018 to February 9, 2018 | −9.4% | −6.5% |
| Q4 2018 selloff | September 21, 2018 to December 24, 2018 | −28.3% | −19.3% |
| COVID crash | February 19, 2020 to March 23, 2020 | −61.8% | −33.7% |
| 2022 bear market | January 4, 2022 to October 12, 2022 | −33.0% | −24.5% |
| SVB / regional bank stress | March 8, 2023 to March 13, 2023 | −6.1% | −3.4% |

### How closely does COP 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 VLO and WMB had a higher capture ratio (upside capture divided by downside capture) than COP's 1.02, out of 20 popular alternatives with the same record.
- WMB took just 78% of the S&P 500's losses, against 92% for COP, while still keeping 85% of its gains.
- Over the past 10 years, COP captured 94% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 92% of its losses in falling months, with a beta of 0.91. It took about the same share of the market's gains as of its losses.

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

| Investment | Upside capture | Downside capture | Beta |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| COP: ConocoPhillips (this page) | 94.0% | 92.0% | 0.91 |
| [VLO](https://easycompare.io/research/vlo): Valero Energy Corporation | 142% | 114% | 1.31 |
| PR: Permian Resources Corporation | 139% | 234% | 3.38 |
| [CNQ](https://easycompare.io/research/cnq): Canadian Natural Resources Limited | 110% | 109% | 1.13 |
| [WMB](https://easycompare.io/research/wmb): The Williams Companies, Inc. | 85.0% | 78.0% | 1.02 |
| [CVX](https://easycompare.io/research/cvx): Chevron Corporation | 86.0% | 94.0% | 0.89 |
| [XOM](https://easycompare.io/research/xom): Exxonmobil Holdings Corporation | 78.0% | 83.0% | 0.76 |
| EQT: EQT Corporation | 62.0% | 101% | 0.90 |
| OVV: Ovintiv Inc. | 131% | 228% | 2.14 |
| APA: APA Corporation | 124% | 246% | 2.54 |
| RRC: Range Resources Corporation | 63.0% | 123% | 1.48 |
| [FANG](https://easycompare.io/research/fang): Diamondback Energy, Inc. | 108% | 148% | 1.54 |
| [EOG](https://easycompare.io/research/eog): EOG Resources, Inc. | 92.0% | 135% | 1.17 |
| AR: Antero Resources Corporation | 80.0% | 142% | 2.44 |
| SM: SM Energy Company | 154% | 244% | 3.21 |
| NOG: Northern Oil and Gas, Inc. | 123% | 228% | 1.68 |
| MTDR: Matador Resources Company | 156% | 239% | 2.70 |
| [DVN](https://easycompare.io/research/dvn): Devon Energy Corporation | 118% | 199% | 1.80 |
| CRK: Comstock Resources, Inc. | 74.0% | 110% | 0.90 |
| [OXY](https://easycompare.io/research/oxy): Occidental Petroleum Corporation | 80.0% | 155% | 1.24 |
| [SLB](https://easycompare.io/research/slb): Slb N.V. | 104% | 212% | 1.54 |

### What diversifies COP?

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 COP into SMH would have cut the portfolio's volatility by 20% over the past 5 years and raised its annual return (+17.3% for COP alone, +23.2% for the mix).
- CAH made money in five of the seven calendar years in which COP lost money.
- Among large ETFs, LVHI, DXJ and SMH have moved largely independently of COP over the past 5 years, with correlations of 0.39 or lower, and each still earned a positive 5-year return.

| Investment | Correlation with COP | 5Y return | Volatility | Sharpe | Rose in COP's 7 down years |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| LVHI: Franklin International Low Volatility High Dividend Index ETF | 0.39 | +119% | 11.1% | 1.48 | 2 of 7 |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | 0.13 | +225% | 19.1% | 1.34 | 4 of 7 |
| [SMH](https://easycompare.io/research/smh): VanEck Semiconductor ETF | -0.13 | +323% | 36.9% | 0.97 | 3 of 7 |
| DBEF: Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Hedged Equity ETF | 0.14 | +85.0% | 13.8% | 0.96 | 4 of 7 |
| [GLD](https://easycompare.io/research/gld): SPDR Gold Shares | 0.07 | +126% | 18.9% | 0.96 | 4 of 7 |
| SPMO: Invesco S&P 500 Momentum ETF | -0.03 | +136% | 20.8% | 0.93 | 3 of 7 |
| DFIV: Dimensional - International Value ETF | 0.40 | +99.4% | 16.4% | 0.93 | 2 of 7 |
| [VTV](https://easycompare.io/research/vtv): Vanguard Morningstar Value ETF | 0.38 | +76.6% | 13.7% | 0.90 | 3 of 7 |

## Common questions

### What was COP's worst drawdown?

COP's deepest decline since it began trading in 1986 was 70.7%, from October 2018 to March 2020. It took 19 months from the low to climb back to its old high.

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

Over 29 full calendar years, COP's best year was 2021, when it returned 87.1%. Its worst was 2008, with a return of -39.9%.

### Is there a better investment than COP?

Among COP's popular alternatives, XOM, CVX and WMB earned more than COP with less volatility over the past 5 years. XOM returned 27.1% a year at 26.5% volatility, against 18.2% a year at 32.6%. Looking beyond its popular alternatives, E (integrated oil & gas) and LNG (oil & gas) earned more than COP with less volatility over the past 5 years. E returned 23.0% a year at 25.6% volatility, against 18.2% a year at 32.6%.

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

Yes. COP's volatility over the past 5 years was 32.6%, about twice the S&P 500's 17.1%. Volatility measures how widely returns swing around their average: in roughly two years out of three, COP's return lands within 32.6% 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 COP's Sharpe ratio?

COP's Sharpe ratio over the past 5 years was 0.68, against 0.79 for the S&P 500, so COP 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 COP with the S&P 500?

Over the past 5 years, COP's monthly returns had a correlation of 0.13 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 COP instead: the lower it is, the more that option would diversify a COP holding.

### What are the best alternatives to COP?

Of the 22 popular alternatives we compared, two outperformed COP in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes, with dividends reinvested: VLO and PR.

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

COP finished ahead of the S&P 500 (SPY) in 13 of 29 full calendar years. In 2025, it returned -2.3%, against +17.7% for the index.

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

COP fell less than the S&P 500 (SPY) in two of the ten major crashes it has traded through, and further in eight. The clearest case was the 2015 China and oil sell-off, when COP fell 43.4% and the S&P 500 fell 12.8%.

### What diversifies COP?

These had a low correlation with COP over the past 5 years and still earned a positive 5-year return: among large ETFs, LVHI (correlation 0.39), DXJ (correlation 0.13) and SMH (correlation -0.13); among large stocks, CAH (correlation 0.07), CLS (correlation 0.03) and FIX (correlation -0.02). 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/cop
- All research pages: https://easycompare.io/llms.txt
- Compare the entire market against COP live: https://betterthanspy.com/?b=COP&utm_source=easycompare&utm_medium=research