# How iShares Core Dividend Growth ETF (DGRO) compares with the whole market and its popular alternatives

> Source: EasyCompare research, https://easycompare.io/research/dgro
> 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 DGRO alone. It places DGRO (iShares Core Dividend Growth ETF) 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 DGRO stands in the market, and of the alternatives worth a closer look.

Period covered: DGRO's full trading record, from June 2014 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

- **What you're buying:** A correlation of 0.98 with VIG (Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF) over 5 years: effectively the same bet as the larger fund.
- **Right now:** Both DGRO and the S&P 500 are within a few percent of a record high.
- **Fund or market?:** DGRO rose 3.9% over the past 3 months, 2.2 points ahead of the US dividend equity ETF VYM (Vanguard High Dividend Yield ETF), which rose 1.7%. The S&P 500 rose 3.9%. Last month cut against the tape: DGRO rose 2.8% while the S&P 500 fell 0.6%.
- **Long term:** Over the past decade, DGRO returned 13.9% a year against 15.5% a year for the S&P 500 (267% in total against 321%). On the flip side, DGRO's 10-year return of 267% puts it ahead of 86% of the ETFs with at least $100 million in assets with that much history. The S&P 500 returned 321%.
- **In a crash:** DGRO fell less than the S&P 500 in three of the last four sell-offs, including the 2022 bear market (19.3% against 24.5%). The 2022 bear market took 19.3% off DGRO, against 24.5% for the S&P 500. That was more than SCHD (Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF, 16.9%) but less than VIG (Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF, 20.4%).
- **Diversification:** Against the S&P 500, DGRO has a correlation of 0.88 over 5 years, more closely than 80% of ETFs with at least $100 million in assets. Next to an index fund it is more of the same, not a cushion. When the S&P 500 had a down month, DGRO usually fell with it (19 of 22 months).
- **Better options**
  - **Popular alternatives:** HDV (iShares Core High Dividend ETF) earned more than DGRO with less volatility over the past 5 years: 12.9% a year at 13.0% volatility, against 10.9% a year at 13.7%.
  - **Nearby categories and themes:** PVAL (Putnam Focused Large Cap Value ETF, US large-cap value) and AVLV (Avantis U.S. Large Cap Value ETF, US large-cap value) were ahead of DGRO in most short and long periods.
  - **Whole market:** Few investments have done better on both counts: only three of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than DGRO with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them HDV (iShares Core High Dividend ETF), LVHI (Franklin International Low Volatility High Dividend Index ETF) and SIXA (ETC 6 Meridian Mega Cap Equity ETF).

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

This chart tracks a hypothetical $10,000 investment in DGRO over the past 12 years, with dividends reinvested, alongside the same amount in the S&P 500, investments that ended ahead of DGRO over the same span and DGRO's popular alternatives, among those that traded for the entire period.

- $10,000 invested in DGRO at the end of September 2014 would have grown to $39,595 by September 2026, less than the $47,240 it would have become in SPY, an S&P 500 fund.
- Five of the eight other investments on the chart ended ahead of DGRO, and RSG finished highest, at $66,262.

## DGRO at a glance

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

- DGRO is trading within 1% of its all-time high.
- DGRO's deepest decline since it began trading in 2014 was 35.1%, from February to March 2020. It took eight months from the low to climb back to its old high.
- Over 11 full calendar years, DGRO's best was 2019, when it returned 29.9%, and its worst was 2022, when it lost 7.9%. It lost money in three of those years.

- Type: ETF, Dividend & Income (Asset Management - Income)
- Trading since: June 12, 2014
- Assets: $44B
- Expense ratio: 0.08%
- Volatility (5 years): 13.7%; Sharpe ratio: 0.83
- Worst decline ever: −35.1%, from February 12, 2020 to March 23, 2020; back at its high by November 9, 2020

| Period | DGRO total return |
| --- | --- |
| 1 month | +2.8% |
| 3 months | +3.9% |
| 6 months | +9.4% |
| year to date | +15.1% |
| 1 year | +18.1% |
| 3 years | +74.2% |
| 5 years | +68.0% |
| 10 years | +267% |

## DGRO against the whole market

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

### How does DGRO rank among all ETFs?

This section ranks DGRO on return, volatility, risk-adjusted return and worst decline against every ETF worth at least $100 million with enough history.

- DGRO's 10-year return ranks in the top 14% of the 958 ETFs with at least $100 million in assets with 10 years of history.

| Measure | DGRO | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1-year return | +18.1% | 544 of 2,485 (top 22%) |
| 3-year return | +74.2% | 701 of 1,949 (top 36%) |
| 5-year return | +68.0% | 419 of 1,560 (top 27%) |
| 10-year return | +267% | 137 of 958 (top 15%) |
| Volatility, 5 years | 13.7% | 522 of 1,560 (top 34%) |
| Sharpe ratio, 5 years | 0.83 | 291 of 1,560 (top 19%) |
| Worst decline, past 10 years | −35.1% | 353 of 951 (top 38%) |

### What has beaten DGRO 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).

- Three ETFs worth at least $500 million sit in the green region: each earned more than DGRO 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 DGRO's swings, LVHI has the best return for its risk: 17.0% a year at 11.1% volatility, 19% less than DGRO's 13.7%, and a Sharpe ratio (return above cash per unit of volatility) of 1.48 against 0.83 for DGRO.
- Among DGRO's popular alternatives, HDV is in the region. HDV earned 12.9% a year against 10.9% a year for DGRO, at 13.0% volatility, 6% less than DGRO's 13.7%.

### Is there a better investment than DGRO?

The table below lists investments that beat DGRO 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, and, for funds, the same exposure at a lower expense ratio.

- Among DGRO's popular alternatives, HDV earned more than DGRO with less volatility over the past 5 years: 12.9% a year at 13.0% volatility, against 10.9% a year at 13.7%.
- Looking beyond its popular alternatives, PVAL (US large-cap value) and AVLV (US large-cap value) were ahead of DGRO in most short and long periods.
- Few investments have done better on both counts: only three of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than DGRO with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them HDV, LVHI and SIXA.

The 3 strongest of 3 investments that beat DGRO 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 DGRO | Better on |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| DGRO: iShares Core Dividend Growth ETF (this page) |  | +10.9% | 13.7% | 0.83 | −35.1% | +267% |  |  |
| SIXA: ETC 6 Meridian Mega Cap Equity ETF | Broad Market | +12.8% | 12.7% | 1.01 | −18.4% | — | 0.95 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| LVHI: Franklin International Low Volatility High Dividend Index ETF | International Equity | +17.0% | 11.1% | 1.48 | −32.4% | +194% | 0.77 | Higher return, lower volatility |
| HDV: iShares Core High Dividend ETF | US Dividend Equity | +12.9% | 13.0% | 1.00 | −37.0% | +172% | 0.86 | Higher return, lower volatility |

## DGRO against its popular alternatives

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

### How do DGRO'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.

- Four of the 24 popular alternatives, led by HDV, DLN and VTV, were both more rewarding and calmer than DGRO over the past 5 years, earning a higher annual return with lower volatility.
- Over the past 5 years, DGRO returned 10.9% a year, less than the S&P 500's 12.7%, with lower volatility (13.7% against 17.1%).

### Has DGRO consistently beaten its popular alternatives?

This section compares DGRO 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 24 popular alternatives, VTV, outperformed DGRO in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes.
- DIVO and DGRW earned more for the risk they took than DGRO (a higher Sharpe ratio) and fell less in their worst decline of the past 10 years.
- QUAL outperformed DGRO over all three long-term periods but in none of the five short-term ones, so DGRO has had the better of it lately.

| Investment | 1Y return | 3Y return | 5Y return | 10Y return | Periods ahead of DGRO | Verdict | Sharpe |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| DGRO: iShares Core Dividend Growth ETF (this page) | +18.1% | +74.2% | +68.0% | +267% |  |  | 0.83 |
| [VTV](https://easycompare.io/research/vtv): Vanguard Morningstar Value ETF | +22.5% | +77.9% | +76.6% | +235% | 3/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 0.90 |
| RDVY: First Trust Rising Dividend Achievers ETF | +20.0% | +87.7% | +71.0% | +322% | 1/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.67 |
| [QUAL](https://easycompare.io/research/qual): iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF | +16.4% | +76.9% | +71.5% | +293% | 0/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.71 |
| DGRW: WisdomTree U.S. Quality Dividend Growth Fund | +12.8% | +65.2% | +74.6% | +276% | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.87 |
| FDVV: Fidelity High Dividend ETF | +13.7% | +78.5% | +85.9% | +253% | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.92 |
| HDV: iShares Core High Dividend ETF | +26.8% | +71.8% | +83.3% | +172% | 5/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 1.00 |
| DHS: WisdomTree U.S. High Dividend Fund | +19.9% | +70.3% | +76.2% | +156% | 2/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.89 |
| DLN: WisdomTree U.S. LargeCap Dividend Fund | +16.9% | +75.2% | +78.2% | +231% | 0/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.95 |
| [VYM](https://easycompare.io/research/vym): Vanguard High Dividend Yield ETF | +16.9% | +72.8% | +71.1% | +208% | 0/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.85 |
| [SCHD](https://easycompare.io/research/schd): Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF | +33.0% | +67.5% | +59.1% | +252% | 5/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.72 |
| USMV: iShares MSCI USA Min Vol Factor ETF | +9.7% | +49.7% | +44.4% | +176% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.66 |
| NOBL: ProShares - S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats ETF | +14.1% | +43.3% | +37.3% | +172% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.51 |
| CDC: VictoryShares US EQ Income Enhanced Volatility Wtd ETF | +17.7% | +52.1% | +33.7% | +168% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.53 |
| SDY: State Street SPDR S&P Dividend ETF | +14.3% | +51.0% | +44.0% | +157% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.59 |
| DGRS: WisdomTree U.S. SmallCap Quality Dividend Growth Fund | +16.3% | +56.0% | +40.4% | +139% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.44 |
| PEY: Invesco High Yield Equity Dividend Achievers ETF | +17.7% | +48.2% | +43.0% | +134% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.52 |
| DIVO: Amplify CWP Enhanced Dividend Income ETF | +14.6% | +63.4% | +69.0% | — | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.95 |
| [VIG](https://easycompare.io/research/vig): Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF | +13.7% | +67.0% | +64.0% | +258% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.78 |
| DVY: iShares Select Dividend ETF | +16.9% | +69.9% | +58.4% | +172% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.69 |
| DON: WisdomTree U.S. MidCap Dividend Fund | +11.6% | +51.5% | +43.7% | +139% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.51 |
| FVD: First Trust Value Line Dividend Index Fund | +10.2% | +45.3% | +34.3% | +134% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.53 |
| SPYD: State Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 High Dividend ETF | +14.1% | +61.6% | +44.4% | +125% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.54 |
| [BND](https://easycompare.io/research/bnd): Vanguard Total Bond Market ETF | −2.1% | +15.7% | −1.8% | +13.2% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.03 |
| [JEPI](https://easycompare.io/research/jepi): JPMorgan Equity Premium Income ETF | +8.7% | +38.1% | +43.3% | — | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.71 |

### How did DGRO do year by year?

This table shows each investment's total return in every full calendar year since 2015, along with where DGRO ranked among its popular alternatives each year.

- DGRO finished ahead of the S&P 500 in four of its 11 full calendar years, and behind it in each of the last three.
- Ranked against its popular alternatives each year, DGRO finished in the top quarter in four of 11 years and in the bottom quarter in no. In 2025, it ranked 4 of 25.
- Among its popular alternatives, FDVV came out ahead of DGRO most often, in six of the nine years both traded.

| Year | DGRO | SPY |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2025 | +15.7% | +17.7% |
| 2024 | +16.6% | +24.9% |
| 2023 | +10.5% | +26.2% |
| 2022 | −7.9% | −18.2% |
| 2021 | +26.6% | +28.7% |
| 2020 | +9.5% | +18.3% |
| 2019 | +29.9% | +31.2% |
| 2018 | −2.4% | −4.6% |
| 2017 | +23.0% | +21.7% |
| 2016 | +15.2% | +12.0% |

## Risk and diversification

How DGRO 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 DGRO's worst declines?

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

- In four of DGRO's five worst declines, it fell less than the S&P 500 did over the same dates.
- The longest climb back to a previous high took 15 months, after DGRO fell 19.3% from January to September 2022.

| Decline | Peak | Low | Back at the high | SPY over the same dates | Market event |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| −35.1% | February 12, 2020 | March 23, 2020 | November 9, 2020 | −33.5% | Covid crash |
| −19.3% | January 4, 2022 | September 30, 2022 | December 14, 2023 | −24.3% | 2022 bear market |
| −16.7% | September 21, 2018 | December 24, 2018 | April 4, 2019 | −19.3% | late-2018 sell-off |
| −14.0% | November 29, 2024 | April 8, 2025 | June 30, 2025 | −17.1% |  |
| −11.3% | May 20, 2015 | August 25, 2015 | March 30, 2016 | −11.6% | 2015 China and oil sell-off |

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

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

- Among its popular alternatives, BND held up best, falling less than DGRO in all six crashes they both traded through.
- DGRO began trading after the 2008 financial crisis, but 11 of its popular alternatives lived through it. The mildest fall among them was BND's 9.3%, against 55.2% for the S&P 500.
- DGRO fell less than the S&P 500 in three of the six crashes it has traded through. The clearest case was the 2022 bear market, when DGRO fell 19.3% and the S&P 500 fell 24.5%.

| Crash | Dates | DGRO 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 | −10.6% | −12.8% |
| Volmageddon | February 2, 2018 to February 9, 2018 | −6.3% | −6.5% |
| Q4 2018 selloff | September 21, 2018 to December 24, 2018 | −16.7% | −19.3% |
| COVID crash | February 19, 2020 to March 23, 2020 | −34.8% | −33.7% |
| 2022 bear market | January 4, 2022 to October 12, 2022 | −19.3% | −24.5% |
| SVB / regional bank stress | March 8, 2023 to March 13, 2023 | −3.4% | −3.4% |

### How closely does DGRO 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 DGRW and VIG had a higher capture ratio (upside capture divided by downside capture) than DGRO's 0.98, out of 22 popular alternatives with the same record.
- HDV took just 80% of the S&P 500's losses, against 90% for DGRO, while still keeping 71% of its gains.
- Over the past 10 years, DGRO captured 88% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 90% of its losses in falling months, with a beta of 0.86. Its share of the market's losses was slightly larger than its share of the gains.

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

| Investment | Upside capture | Downside capture | Beta |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| DGRO: iShares Core Dividend Growth ETF (this page) | 88.0% | 90.0% | 0.86 |
| [VTV](https://easycompare.io/research/vtv): Vanguard Morningstar Value ETF | 86.0% | 91.0% | 0.86 |
| RDVY: First Trust Rising Dividend Achievers ETF | 107% | 112% | 1.10 |
| [QUAL](https://easycompare.io/research/qual): iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF | 98.0% | 102% | 1.00 |
| DGRW: WisdomTree U.S. Quality Dividend Growth Fund | 91.0% | 93.0% | 0.88 |
| FDVV: Fidelity High Dividend ETF | 92.0% | 98.0% | 0.95 |
| HDV: iShares Core High Dividend ETF | 71.0% | 80.0% | 0.71 |
| DHS: WisdomTree U.S. High Dividend Fund | 71.0% | 81.0% | 0.74 |
| DLN: WisdomTree U.S. LargeCap Dividend Fund | 85.0% | 89.0% | 0.85 |
| [VYM](https://easycompare.io/research/vym): Vanguard High Dividend Yield ETF | 81.0% | 88.0% | 0.82 |
| [SCHD](https://easycompare.io/research/schd): Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF | 86.0% | 91.0% | 0.82 |
| USMV: iShares MSCI USA Min Vol Factor ETF | 70.0% | 75.0% | 0.70 |
| NOBL: ProShares - S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats ETF | 80.0% | 97.0% | 0.84 |
| CDC: VictoryShares US EQ Income Enhanced Volatility Wtd ETF | 66.0% | 69.0% | 0.61 |
| SDY: State Street SPDR S&P Dividend ETF | 75.0% | 91.0% | 0.80 |
| DGRS: WisdomTree U.S. SmallCap Quality Dividend Growth Fund | 91.0% | 122% | 1.09 |
| PEY: Invesco High Yield Equity Dividend Achievers ETF | 74.0% | 93.0% | 0.83 |
| [VIG](https://easycompare.io/research/vig): Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF | 85.0% | 86.0% | 0.84 |
| DVY: iShares Select Dividend ETF | 76.0% | 88.0% | 0.81 |
| DON: WisdomTree U.S. MidCap Dividend Fund | 84.0% | 110% | 1.01 |
| FVD: First Trust Value Line Dividend Index Fund | 68.0% | 82.0% | 0.72 |
| SPYD: State Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 High Dividend ETF | 78.0% | 103% | 0.91 |
| [BND](https://easycompare.io/research/bnd): Vanguard Total Bond Market ETF | 13.0% | 19.0% | 0.15 |

### What diversifies DGRO?

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 DGRO into DBMF would have cut the portfolio's volatility by 22% over the past 5 years and raised its annual return (+11.0% for DGRO alone, +11.2% for the mix).
- Among large ETFs, GLD, DBMF and DBA have moved largely independently of DGRO over the past 5 years, with correlations of 0.26 or lower, and each still earned a positive 5-year return.
- MPC made money in two of the three calendar years in which DGRO lost money.

| Investment | Correlation with DGRO | 5Y return | Volatility | Sharpe | Rose in DGRO's 3 down years |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [GLD](https://easycompare.io/research/gld): SPDR Gold Shares | 0.26 | +126% | 18.9% | 0.96 | 0 of 3 |
| DBMF: iMGP DBi Managed Futures Strategy ETF | -0.24 | +59.7% | 12.4% | 0.82 | 1 of 3 |
| DBA: Invesco DB Agriculture Fund | 0.25 | +66.4% | 13.8% | 0.81 | 1 of 3 |
| GDX: VanEck Gold Miners ETF | 0.38 | +181% | 38.2% | 0.73 | 0 of 3 |
| USO: United States Oil Fund, LP | 0.06 | +176% | 37.7% | 0.73 | 1 of 3 |
| FLSP: Franklin Systematic Style Premia ETF | 0.12 | +49.8% | 13.4% | 0.68 | 1 of 3 |
| PDBC: Invesco Optimum Yield Diversified Commodity Strategy No K-1 ETF | 0.19 | +73.9% | 19.3% | 0.67 | 1 of 3 |
| EWZ: iShares MSCI Brazil ETF | 0.43 | +100% | 27.7% | 0.64 | 1 of 3 |

## Common questions

### What was DGRO's worst drawdown?

DGRO's deepest decline since it began trading in 2014 was 35.1%, from February to March 2020. It took eight months from the low to climb back to its old high. Because DGRO launched in June 2014, that record does not include the dot-com bust, the 2008 financial crisis or two other sell-offs.

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

Over 11 full calendar years, DGRO's best year was 2019, when it returned 29.9%. Its worst was 2022, with a return of -7.9%.

### Is there a better investment than DGRO?

Among DGRO's popular alternatives, HDV earned more than DGRO with less volatility over the past 5 years: 12.9% a year at 13.0% volatility, against 10.9% a year at 13.7%. Looking beyond its popular alternatives, PVAL (US large-cap value) and AVLV (US large-cap value) were ahead of DGRO in most short and long periods.

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

No. DGRO's volatility over the past 5 years was 13.7%, 80% of the S&P 500's 17.1%. Volatility measures how widely returns swing around their average: in roughly two years out of three, DGRO's return lands within 13.7% 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 DGRO's Sharpe ratio?

DGRO's Sharpe ratio over the past 5 years was 0.83, against 0.79 for the S&P 500, so DGRO 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 DGRO with the S&P 500?

Over the past 5 years, DGRO's monthly returns had a correlation of 0.88 with the S&P 500. Correlation runs from 1 (moving in lockstep) through 0 (unrelated) to −1 (moving in opposite directions). They move almost in lockstep, so holding both adds little diversification. In the table, the correlation column measures each option against DGRO instead: the lower it is, the more that option would diversify a DGRO holding.

### What are the best alternatives to DGRO?

Of the 24 popular alternatives we compared, one outperformed DGRO in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes, with dividends reinvested: VTV.

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

DGRO finished ahead of the S&P 500 (SPY) in four of 11 full calendar years. In 2025, it returned +15.7%, against +17.7% for the index.

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

DGRO fell less than the S&P 500 (SPY) in three of the six major crashes it has traded through, and further in one. The clearest case was the 2022 bear market, when DGRO fell 19.3% and the S&P 500 fell 24.5%.

### What diversifies DGRO?

These had a low correlation with DGRO over the past 5 years and still earned a positive 5-year return: among large ETFs, GLD (correlation 0.26), DBMF (correlation -0.24) and DBA (correlation 0.25); among large stocks, CAH (correlation 0.40), CLS (correlation 0.36) and MCK (correlation 0.34). A correlation near zero means the two have moved largely independently.

## More research

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## Explore further

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