# How Ford Motor (F) compares with the whole market and its popular alternatives

> Source: EasyCompare research, https://easycompare.io/research/f
> 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 F alone. It places F (Ford Motor Company) against 18 popular alternatives, its neighboring categories and the entire market of over 10,000 U.S.-listed stocks and ETFs, and surfaces what has done better on consistent outperformance, return for the risk taken, behavior in real market crashes and diversification. The result is a clearer view of where F stands in the market, and of the alternatives worth a closer look.

Period covered: F'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:** The slide is F's own: it is 34.7% below its high, against 1.3% for the S&P 500. Over the past 3 months, F fell 12.2% while the S&P 500 rose 3.9%.
- **Stock or market?:** The weakness is F's own: it fell 12.2% over the past 3 months while the consumer discretionary sector ETF XLY (State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR ETF) rose 1.0%. The S&P 500 rose 3.9%. Its automobile peers did not move as one over the past 3 months: TM (Toyota Motor) rose 12.0%, while RIVN (Rivian Automotive) fell 27.9%.
- **Past 1 to 3 years:** F has trailed the market, rising 6.0% over the past year against 15.8% for the S&P 500 and 17.9% for the Nasdaq 100. The same gap shows up over 3 years (25.9% against 89.3%). On the flip side, F lagged its automobile peers in 2023, then moved up the pack in 2025.
- **Long term:** F turned $10,000 into $17,200 over the past decade, against $42,100 in the S&P 500. F finished ahead of the S&P 500 in eight of its 29 calendar years.
- **In a crash:** Across seven sell-offs, F has typically fallen 1.7 times as far as the S&P 500. The 2022 bear market took 55.6% off F, against 24.5% for the S&P 500. That was more than TSLA (Tesla, 45.4%) but less than RIVN (Rivian Automotive, 79.7%).
- **Diversification:** Against the S&P 500, F has a correlation of 0.67 over 5 years, more closely than 97% of stocks worth at least $300 million. Next to an index fund it is more of the same, not a cushion.
- **Better options**
  - **Popular alternatives:** RACE (Ferrari), TM (Toyota Motor) and GM (General Motors) earned more than F with less volatility over the past 5 years. RACE returned 13.3% a year at 30.0% volatility, against 0.6% a year at 39.2%.
  - **Nearby categories and themes:** ECL (Ecolab, specialty chemicals) and NEU (NewMarket, specialty chemicals) earned more than F with less volatility over the past 5 years. ECL returned 6.7% a year at 24.1% volatility, against 0.6% a year at 39.2%.
  - **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 0.6% at 39.2% for F.

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

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

- $10,000 invested in F at the end of September 1997 would have grown to $18,497 by September 2026, less than the $132,907 it would have become in SPY, an S&P 500 fund.
- All five other investments on the chart ended ahead of F, and BWA finished highest, at $132,696.

## F 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.

- F is still 34.7% below its all-time high.
- F's deepest decline since it began trading in 1986 was 95.7%, from May 1999 to November 2008. It took about 13 years from the low to climb back to its old high.
- Over 29 full calendar years, F's best was 2009, when it returned 336%, and its worst was 2008, when it lost 66.0%. It lost money in 16 of those years.

- Type: Stock, Consumer Discretionary (Auto - Manufacturers)
- Trading since: October 17, 1986
- Market value: $48B
- Volatility (5 years): 39.2%; Sharpe ratio: 0.21
- Worst decline ever: −95.7%, from May 3, 1999 to November 19, 2008; back at its high by November 8, 2021

| Period | F total return |
| --- | --- |
| 1 month | −7.8% |
| 3 months | −12.2% |
| 6 months | −3.5% |
| year to date | −5.9% |
| 1 year | +6.0% |
| 3 years | +25.9% |
| 5 years | +3.0% |
| 10 years | +71.8% |

## F against the whole market

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

### How does F rank among all stocks?

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

- F lands in the broad middle of the market on every measure here. F is among the steadier stocks: its price swings rank in the top 49% of the 2,893 stocks worth at least $300 million, where the top is the calmest.

| Measure | F | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1-year return | +6.0% | 1,741 of 3,287 (top 53%) |
| 3-year return | +25.9% | 1,931 of 3,017 (top 65%) |
| 5-year return | +3.0% | 1,695 of 2,893 (top 59%) |
| 10-year return | +71.8% | 1,466 of 2,202 (top 67%) |
| Volatility, 5 years | 39.2% | 1,409 of 2,893 (top 49%) |
| Sharpe ratio, 5 years | 0.21 | 1,816 of 2,893 (top 63%) |
| Worst decline, past 10 years | −64.7% | 1,082 of 2,187 (top 50%) |

### What has beaten F 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).

- 857 stocks and 803 ETFs worth at least $500 million sit in the green region: each earned more than F over the past 5 years with smaller price swings. That is 46% of the 3,633 screened.
- Among those with at least half F's swings, CAH has the best return for its risk: 42.1% a year at 24.7% volatility, 37% less than F's 39.2%, and a Sharpe ratio (return above cash per unit of volatility) of 1.55 against 0.21 for F. MPC earned the most, 51.2% a year, while still swinging less than F (33.4% against 39.2%).
- Among F's popular alternatives, RACE, BWA and ALV are in the region. RACE earned 13.3% a year against 0.6% a year for F, at 30.0% volatility, 23% less than F's 39.2%.

### Is there a better investment than F?

The table below lists investments that beat F 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 F's popular alternatives, RACE, TM and GM earned more than F with less volatility over the past 5 years. RACE returned 13.3% a year at 30.0% volatility, against 0.6% a year at 39.2%.
- Looking beyond its popular alternatives, ECL (specialty chemicals) and NEU (specialty chemicals) earned more than F with less volatility over the past 5 years. ECL returned 6.7% a year at 24.1% volatility, against 0.6% a year at 39.2%.
- Simply owning the S&P 500 would have done better over the past 5 years: 12.7% a year at 17.1% volatility, against 0.6% at 39.2% for F.

The 15 strongest of 1,660 investments that beat F 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 F | Better on |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| F: Ford Motor Company (this page) |  | +0.6% | 39.2% | 0.21 | −64.7% | +71.8% |  |  |
| [RY](https://easycompare.io/research/ry): Royal Bank of Canada | Banks | +17.3% | 18.2% | 0.97 | −40.0% | +352% | 0.39 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [GOOG](https://easycompare.io/research/goog): Alphabet Inc. | Internet Services | +19.0% | 32.0% | 0.71 | −44.6% | +752% | 0.31 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [MSFT](https://easycompare.io/research/msft): Microsoft Corporation | Software | +12.5% | 28.2% | 0.56 | −37.1% | +946% | 0.45 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [LLY](https://easycompare.io/research/lly): Eli Lilly and Company | Pharmaceuticals | +40.7% | 32.8% | 1.21 | −34.5% | +1,807% | 0.19 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [VTI](https://easycompare.io/research/vti): Vanguard Morningstar Total Stock Market ETF | US Total Market | +11.5% | 17.5% | 0.71 | −35.0% | +302% | 0.67 | 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% | 0.67 | 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% | 0.18 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [BRK-B](https://easycompare.io/research/brk-b): Berkshire Hathaway Inc. | Insurance | +13.4% | 17.1% | 0.82 | −29.6% | +274% | 0.34 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [JNJ](https://easycompare.io/research/jnj): Johnson & Johnson | Pharmaceuticals | +12.7% | 17.9% | 0.76 | −27.4% | +196% | 0.04 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [V](https://easycompare.io/research/v): Visa Inc. | Payment Processing | +12.8% | 22.9% | 0.64 | −36.4% | +429% | 0.34 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [KO](https://easycompare.io/research/ko): The Coca-Cola Company | Food & Beverages | +14.7% | 16.8% | 0.91 | −37.0% | +204% | 0.20 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [VXUS](https://easycompare.io/research/vxus): Vanguard Total International Stock ETF | International Equity | +8.2% | 16.4% | 0.57 | −36.0% | +140% | 0.55 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [CSCO](https://easycompare.io/research/csco): Cisco Systems, Inc. | Communications Equipment | +16.8% | 26.1% | 0.73 | −42.0% | +374% | 0.60 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [MRK](https://easycompare.io/research/mrk): Merck & Co., Inc. | Pharmaceuticals | +16.3% | 24.8% | 0.74 | −43.4% | +241% | 0.19 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [VTV](https://easycompare.io/research/vtv): Vanguard Morningstar Value ETF | US Large-Cap Value | +12.1% | 13.7% | 0.90 | −36.8% | +235% | 0.57 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |

## F against its popular alternatives

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

### How do F'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 17 popular alternatives, led by RACE, BWA and ALV, were both more rewarding and calmer than F over the past 5 years, earning a higher annual return with lower volatility.
- Over the past 5 years, F returned 0.6% a year, less than the S&P 500's 12.7%, with higher volatility (39.2% against 17.1%).

### Has F consistently beaten its popular alternatives?

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

- Five of the 18 popular alternatives, led by RACE, BWA and ALV, outperformed F in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes.
- RACE, BWA and ALV outperformed F in every long-term period and in all but one short-term period, the most consistent record in the group.
- RACE, BWA and ALV earned more for the risk they took than F (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 F | Verdict | Sharpe |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| F: Ford Motor Company (this page) | +6.0% | +25.9% | +3.0% | +71.8% |  |  | 0.21 |
| [RACE](https://easycompare.io/research/race): Ferrari N.V. | +1.6% | +36.1% | +86.6% | +711% | 4/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.57 |
| BWA: BorgWarner Inc. | +37.9% | +57.7% | +55.9% | +121% | 4/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.43 |
| ALV: Autoliv, Inc. | +2.7% | +32.1% | +42.4% | +111% | 4/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.38 |
| [GM](https://easycompare.io/research/gm): General Motors Company | +34.0% | +168% | +39.5% | +193% | 3/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | consistent | 0.36 |
| MGA: Magna International Inc. | +53.0% | +46.9% | −6.2% | +120% | 5/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 0.14 |
| [TSLA](https://easycompare.io/research/tsla): Tesla, Inc. | −16.5% | +76.3% | +29.5% | +2,716% | 2/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.39 |
| [TM](https://easycompare.io/research/tm): Toyota Motor Corporation | +1.5% | +24.1% | +27.8% | +129% | 2/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.32 |
| [HMC](https://easycompare.io/research/hmc): Honda Motor Co., Ltd. | +12.4% | +17.7% | +34.5% | +63.3% | 5/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.35 |
| LEA: Lear Corporation | +24.2% | −1.9% | −22.5% | +26.2% | 3/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.02 |
| LI: Li Auto Inc. | −47.0% | −62.6% | −61.8% | — | 2/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.00 |
| APTV: Aptiv PLC | −46.0% | −51.0% | −73.3% | −10.6% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.43 |
| NIO: NIO Inc. | −51.4% | −54.7% | −91.4% | — | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.34 |
| VFS: VinFast Auto Ltd. | −12.5% | −46.7% | −70.6% | — | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.26 |
| XPEV: XPeng Inc. | −53.8% | −26.2% | −76.9% | — | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.00 |
| STLA: Stellantis N.V. | −59.5% | −73.3% | −69.7% | +39.2% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.35 |
| LCID: Lucid Group, Inc. | −83.6% | −92.4% | −98.7% | — | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.62 |
| PSNY: Polestar Automotive Holding UK PLC | −85.1% | −94.7% | −98.8% | — | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.67 |
| RIVN: Rivian Automotive, Inc. | −5.0% | −25.7% | — | — | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | — |

### How did F do year by year?

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

- Among its popular alternatives, RACE came out ahead of F most often, in eight of the ten years both traded.
- Ranked against its popular alternatives each year, F finished in the top quarter in six of 29 years and in the bottom quarter in ten. In 2025, it ranked 5 of 19.
- F finished ahead of the S&P 500 in eight of its 29 full calendar years.

| Year | F | SPY |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2025 | +42.3% | +17.7% |
| 2024 | −13.1% | +24.9% |
| 2023 | +15.9% | +26.2% |
| 2022 | −42.2% | −18.2% |
| 2021 | +137% | +28.7% |
| 2020 | −3.9% | +18.3% |
| 2019 | +29.7% | +31.2% |
| 2018 | −34.4% | −4.6% |
| 2017 | +8.8% | +21.7% |
| 2016 | −8.0% | +12.0% |

## Risk and diversification

How F 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 F's worst declines?

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

- In all three of F's worst declines, the S&P 500 held up better over the same dates.
- Not every decline was the market's doing: F fell 56.6% from January 2022 to April 2025, while the S&P 500 rose 12.0%.
- The slowest recovery came after F fell 95.7% from May 1999 to November 2008; it did not regain that peak until November 2021, 13 years later.

| Decline | Peak | Low | Back at the high | SPY over the same dates | Market event |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| −95.7% | May 3, 1999 | November 19, 2008 | November 8, 2021 | −30.0% | dot-com bust |
| −57.6% | February 8, 1989 | December 5, 1991 | May 4, 1993 | — |  |
| −56.6% | January 14, 2022 | April 8, 2025 | not yet | +12.0% | 2022 bear market |
| −39.0% | August 25, 1987 | October 26, 1987 | February 7, 1989 | — |  |
| −34.6% | July 30, 1998 | October 5, 1998 | January 6, 1999 | −13.3% |  |

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

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

- F fell further than the S&P 500 in nine of the ten crashes it has traded through. The clearest case was the 2022 bear market, when F fell 55.6% and the S&P 500 fell 24.5%.
- Among its popular alternatives, TM held up best, falling less than F in all ten crashes they both traded through.

| Crash | Dates | F fall | SPY fall |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Dot-com bust | March 10, 2000 to October 9, 2002 | −75.5% | −47.5% |
| Global financial crisis | October 9, 2007 to March 9, 2009 | −86.3% | −55.2% |
| Flash crash | May 6, 2010 to May 7, 2010 | −2.4% | −1.5% |
| Euro debt crisis | July 22, 2011 to October 3, 2011 | −29.6% | −17.9% |
| China devaluation & oil rout | August 10, 2015 to February 11, 2016 | −25.7% | −12.8% |
| Volmageddon | February 2, 2018 to February 9, 2018 | −4.5% | −6.5% |
| Q4 2018 selloff | September 21, 2018 to December 24, 2018 | −21.1% | −19.3% |
| COVID crash | February 19, 2020 to March 23, 2020 | −50.0% | −33.7% |
| 2022 bear market | January 4, 2022 to October 12, 2022 | −55.6% | −24.5% |
| SVB / regional bank stress | March 8, 2023 to March 13, 2023 | −7.3% | −3.4% |

### How closely does F 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.

- Eight of the 11 popular alternatives had a higher capture ratio (upside capture divided by downside capture) than F's 0.63, led by RACE, TSLA and TM.
- RACE took just 56% of the S&P 500's losses, against 167% for F, while still keeping 101% of its gains.
- Over the past 10 years, F captured 105% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 167% of its losses in falling months, with a beta of 1.51. It amplified the market's moves in both directions.

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

| Investment | Upside capture | Downside capture | Beta |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| F: Ford Motor Company (this page) | 105% | 167% | 1.51 |
| [RACE](https://easycompare.io/research/race): Ferrari N.V. | 101% | 56.0% | 0.92 |
| BWA: BorgWarner Inc. | 109% | 157% | 1.31 |
| ALV: Autoliv, Inc. | 109% | 169% | 1.60 |
| [GM](https://easycompare.io/research/gm): General Motors Company | 107% | 135% | 1.31 |
| MGA: Magna International Inc. | 110% | 166% | 1.50 |
| [TSLA](https://easycompare.io/research/tsla): Tesla, Inc. | 182% | 129% | 1.91 |
| [TM](https://easycompare.io/research/tm): Toyota Motor Corporation | 62.0% | 72.0% | 0.56 |
| [HMC](https://easycompare.io/research/hmc): Honda Motor Co., Ltd. | 51.0% | 71.0% | 0.62 |
| LEA: Lear Corporation | 91.0% | 165% | 1.40 |
| APTV: Aptiv PLC | 106% | 219% | 1.80 |
| STLA: Stellantis N.V. | 124% | 215% | 1.61 |

### What diversifies F?

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 F into GLD would have cut the portfolio's volatility by 19% over the past 5 years and raised its annual return (+3.0% for F alone, +7.5% for the mix).
- Among large ETFs, LVHI, DXJ and EMLP have moved largely independently of F over the past 5 years, with correlations of 0.48 or lower, and each still earned a positive 5-year return.
- FIX made money in 11 of the 16 calendar years in which F lost money.

| Investment | Correlation with F | 5Y return | Volatility | Sharpe | Rose in F's 16 down years |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| LVHI: Franklin International Low Volatility High Dividend Index ETF | 0.43 | +119% | 11.1% | 1.48 | 2 of 16 |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | 0.48 | +225% | 19.1% | 1.34 | 5 of 16 |
| EMLP: First Trust North American Energy Infrastructure Fund | 0.38 | +101% | 14.5% | 1.04 | 3 of 16 |
| EWP: iShares MSCI Spain ETF | 0.37 | +140% | 20.3% | 0.97 | 5 of 16 |
| [GLD](https://easycompare.io/research/gld): SPDR Gold Shares | 0.11 | +126% | 18.9% | 0.96 | 8 of 16 |
| [XLE](https://easycompare.io/research/xle): State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF | 0.30 | +177% | 25.5% | 0.93 | 10 of 16 |
| EWT: iShares MSCI Taiwan ETF | 0.43 | +153% | 24.2% | 0.89 | 8 of 16 |
| AMLP: Alerian MLP ETF | 0.37 | +111% | 18.9% | 0.89 | 4 of 16 |

## Common questions

### What was F's worst drawdown?

F's deepest decline since it began trading in 1986 was 95.7%, from May 1999 to November 2008. It took about 13 years from the low to climb back to its old high.

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

Over 29 full calendar years, F's best year was 2009, when it returned 336%. Its worst was 2008, with a return of -66.0%.

### Is there a better investment than F?

Among F's popular alternatives, RACE, TM and GM earned more than F with less volatility over the past 5 years. RACE returned 13.3% a year at 30.0% volatility, against 0.6% a year at 39.2%. Looking beyond its popular alternatives, ECL (specialty chemicals) and NEU (specialty chemicals) earned more than F with less volatility over the past 5 years. ECL returned 6.7% a year at 24.1% volatility, against 0.6% a year at 39.2%.

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

Yes. F's volatility over the past 5 years was 39.2%, 2.3 times the S&P 500's 17.1%. Volatility measures how widely returns swing around their average: in roughly two years out of three, F's return lands within 39.2% 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 F's Sharpe ratio?

F's Sharpe ratio over the past 5 years was 0.21, against 0.79 for the S&P 500, so F 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 F with the S&P 500?

Over the past 5 years, F's monthly returns had a correlation of 0.67 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 F instead: the lower it is, the more that option would diversify a F holding.

### What are the best alternatives to F?

Of the 18 popular alternatives we compared, five outperformed F in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes, with dividends reinvested: RACE, BWA and ALV.

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

F finished ahead of the S&P 500 (SPY) in eight of 29 full calendar years. In 2025, it returned +42.3%, against +17.7% for the index.

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

F fell less than the S&P 500 (SPY) in one of the ten major crashes it has traded through, and further in nine. The clearest case was the 2022 bear market, when F fell 55.6% and the S&P 500 fell 24.5%.

### What diversifies F?

These had a low correlation with F over the past 5 years and still earned a positive 5-year return: among large ETFs, LVHI (correlation 0.43), DXJ (correlation 0.48) and EMLP (correlation 0.38); among large stocks, CAH (correlation 0.28), CLS (correlation 0.23) and FIX (correlation 0.34). A correlation near zero means the two have moved largely independently.

## More research

- [Ferrari (RACE) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/race)
- [General Motors (GM) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/gm)
- [Tesla (TSLA) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/tsla)
- [Toyota Motor (TM) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/tm)
- [Honda Motor (HMC) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/hmc)
- [Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF (SCHD) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/schd)
- [NVIDIA (NVDA) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/nvda)
- [Apple (AAPL) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/aapl)
- [Alphabet (GOOG) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/goog)
- [Microsoft (MSFT) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/msft)
- [Amazon.com (AMZN) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/amzn)
- [Vanguard Morningstar Total Stock Market ETF (VTI) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/vti)

## Explore further

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