# How Ferguson (FERG) compares with the whole market and its popular alternatives

> Source: EasyCompare research, https://easycompare.io/research/ferg
> 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 FERG alone. It places FERG (Ferguson plc) against 19 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 FERG stands in the market, and of the alternatives worth a closer look.

Period covered: FERG's full trading record, from November 2006 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

- **Right now:** FERG has gone against the market, falling 13.1% over the past 6 months while the S&P 500 rose 9.1%. Not every peer went the same way. Over the past 6 months, GWW (W.W. Grainger) rose 15.3% and WSO (Watsco) fell 29.8%.
- **Stock or market?:** FERG fell 0.5% over the past 3 months, 5.6 points ahead of the industrial distribution ETF XLI (State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF), which fell 6.1%. The S&P 500 rose 3.9%. Its industrial distribution peers did not move as one over the past 3 months: FAST (Fastenal) rose 16.0%, while WSO (Watsco) fell 17.7%.
- **Past 1 to 3 years:** Over the past year, FERG fell 4.7% while the S&P 500 rose 15.8%. The same gap shows up over 3 years (55.4% against 89.3%).
- **Long term:** FERG turned $10,000 into $51,800 over the past decade, against $42,100 in the S&P 500. On the flip side, over 5 years FERG trailed the index: 70.0% against 81.7%.
- **In a crash:** Across six sell-offs, FERG has typically fallen 1.7 times as far as the S&P 500. In the Covid crash, FERG fell 54.7%, against 33.7% for the S&P 500. That was more than GWW (W.W. Grainger, 32.5%) but less than WCC (WESCO International, 67.8%).
- **Diversification:** Against the S&P 500, FERG has a correlation of 0.58 over 5 years, more closely than 87% of stocks worth at least $300 million. Next to an index fund it is some diversification, but not a hedge. Over 10 years, FERG's beta versus the S&P 500 was 1.25: in the S&P 500's rising months it gained 1.2 times as much as the index, and in falling months it lost 1.2 times as much.
- **Better options**
  - **Nearby categories and themes:** TJX (TJX Companies, specialty retail) and JCI (Johnson Controls International, building products) earned more than FERG with less volatility over the past 5 years. TJX returned 19.9% a year at 22.3% volatility, against 11.2% a year at 30.7%.
  - **Whole market:** 366 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than FERG with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them AAPL (Apple), MSFT (Microsoft) and VOO (Vanguard S&P 500 ETF).

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

This chart tracks a hypothetical $10,000 investment in FERG over the past 17 years, with dividends reinvested, alongside the same amount in the S&P 500, investments that ended ahead of FERG over the same span and FERG's popular alternatives, among those that traded for the entire period.

- $10,000 invested in FERG at the end of September 2009 would have grown to $156,677 by September 2026, more than the $97,560 it would have become in SPY, an S&P 500 fund.
- Five of the eight other investments on the chart ended ahead of FERG, and FIX finished highest, at $1,686,054.

## FERG 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.

- FERG's deepest decline since it began trading in 2006 was 92.4%, from February 2007 to March 2009. It took about ten years from the low to climb back to its old high.
- Over 17 full calendar years, FERG's best was 2012, when it returned 68.3%, and its worst was 2022, when it lost 27.2%. It lost money in six of those years.
- FERG is 14.5% below its all-time high.

- Type: Stock, Industrials (Industrial - Distribution)
- Trading since: November 8, 2006
- Market value: $44B
- Volatility (5 years): 30.7%; Sharpe ratio: 0.50
- Worst decline ever: −92.4%, from February 6, 2007 to March 9, 2009; back at its high by September 21, 2018

| Period | FERG total return |
| --- | --- |
| 1 month | +5.1% |
| 3 months | −0.5% |
| 6 months | −13.1% |
| year to date | +2.1% |
| 1 year | −4.7% |
| 3 years | +55.4% |
| 5 years | +70.0% |
| 10 years | +418% |

## FERG against the whole market

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

### How does FERG rank among all stocks?

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

- FERG's 10-year return ranks in the top 18% of the 2,202 stocks worth at least $300 million with 10 years of history.

| Measure | FERG | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1-year return | −4.7% | 2,174 of 3,287 (top 67%) |
| 3-year return | +55.4% | 1,459 of 3,017 (top 49%) |
| 5-year return | +70.0% | 903 of 2,893 (top 32%) |
| 10-year return | +418% | 396 of 2,202 (top 18%) |
| Volatility, 5 years | 30.7% | 800 of 2,893 (top 28%) |
| Sharpe ratio, 5 years | 0.50 | 928 of 2,893 (top 33%) |
| Worst decline, past 10 years | −55.4% | 691 of 2,187 (top 32%) |

### What has beaten FERG 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).

- 177 stocks and 189 ETFs worth at least $500 million sit in the green region: each earned more than FERG over the past 5 years with smaller price swings. That is 10% of the 3,633 screened.
- Among those with at least half FERG's swings, CAH has the best return for its risk: 42.1% a year at 24.7% volatility, 19% less than FERG's 30.7%, and a Sharpe ratio (return above cash per unit of volatility) of 1.55 against 0.50 for FERG.
- Among FERG's popular alternatives, GWW, TT and FAST are in the region. GWW earned 26.3% a year against 11.2% a year for FERG, at 24.9% volatility, 19% less than FERG's 30.7%.

### Is there a better investment than FERG?

The table below lists investments that beat FERG 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 FERG's popular alternatives, GWW, TT and FAST earned more than FERG with less volatility over the past 5 years. GWW returned 26.3% a year at 24.9% volatility, against 11.2% a year at 30.7%.
- Looking beyond its popular alternatives, TJX (specialty retail) and JCI (building products) earned more than FERG with less volatility over the past 5 years. TJX returned 19.9% a year at 22.3% volatility, against 11.2% a year at 30.7%.
- Across the whole market, 366 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than FERG with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them AAPL, MSFT and VOO.

The 15 strongest of 366 investments that beat FERG 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 FERG | Better on |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| FERG: Ferguson plc (this page) |  | +11.2% | 30.7% | 0.50 | −55.4% | +418% |  |  |
| [WMT](https://easycompare.io/research/wmt): Walmart Inc. | Discount Retail | +20.8% | 22.6% | 0.96 | −25.7% | +508% | 0.30 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [JPM](https://easycompare.io/research/jpm): JPMorgan Chase & Co. | Banks | +17.3% | 24.3% | 0.78 | −43.6% | +537% | 0.54 | 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 |
| [COST](https://easycompare.io/research/cost): Costco Wholesale Corporation | Discount Retail | +17.4% | 22.9% | 0.82 | −31.4% | +685% | 0.41 | 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% | 0.45 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [MA](https://easycompare.io/research/ma): Mastercard Incorporated | Payment Processing | +12.4% | 23.8% | 0.61 | −41.0% | +541% | 0.40 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [VGT](https://easycompare.io/research/vgt): Vanguard Information Technology ETF | Technology Equity | +18.4% | 26.0% | 0.78 | −35.1% | +779% | 0.41 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; 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% | 0.07 | 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% | 0.46 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [CTAS](https://easycompare.io/research/ctas): Cintas Corporation | Business Services | +16.5% | 23.1% | 0.78 | −48.4% | +808% | 0.43 | 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 |
| [RY](https://easycompare.io/research/ry): Royal Bank of Canada | Banks | +17.3% | 18.2% | 0.97 | −40.0% | +352% | 0.40 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [MSI](https://easycompare.io/research/msi): Motorola Solutions, Inc. | Communications Equipment | +14.8% | 23.6% | 0.71 | −32.8% | +625% | 0.33 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [SCHG](https://easycompare.io/research/schg): Schwab U.S. Large-Cap Growth ETF | US Large-Cap Growth | +13.1% | 22.4% | 0.67 | −34.5% | +451% | 0.47 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [AME](https://easycompare.io/research/ame): AMETEK, Inc. | Electronic Instruments | +14.4% | 22.1% | 0.72 | −42.7% | +481% | 0.70 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |

## FERG against its popular alternatives

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

### How do FERG'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 19 popular alternatives, led by AIT, GWW and TT, were both more rewarding and calmer than FERG over the past 5 years, earning a higher annual return with lower volatility.
- Over the past 5 years, FERG returned 11.2% a year, less than the S&P 500's 12.7%, with higher volatility (30.7% against 17.1%).

### Has FERG consistently beaten its popular alternatives?

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

- Seven of the 19 popular alternatives, led by TT, DXPE and FAST, outperformed FERG in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes.
- TT, DXPE and FAST outperformed FERG in every long-term period and in all but one short-term period, the most consistent record in the group.
- FIX, GWW and TT earned more for the risk they took than FERG (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 FERG | Verdict | Sharpe |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| FERG: Ferguson plc (this page) | −4.7% | +55.4% | +70.0% | +418% |  |  | 0.50 |
| [TT](https://easycompare.io/research/tt): Trane Technologies plc | +11.3% | +154% | +178% | +955% | 4/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.88 |
| DXPE: DXP Enterprises, Inc. | +48.8% | +425% | +419% | +610% | 4/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.95 |
| [FAST](https://easycompare.io/research/fast): Fastenal Company | +22.8% | +92.7% | +108% | +576% | 4/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.72 |
| WTS: Watts Water Technologies, Inc. | +28.1% | +113% | +104% | +539% | 4/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.65 |
| WCC: WESCO International, Inc. | +57.1% | +179% | +176% | +505% | 4/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.68 |
| AIT: Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. | +33.4% | +120% | +250% | +742% | 3/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | consistent | 0.98 |
| [GWW](https://easycompare.io/research/gww): W.W. Grainger, Inc. | +38.7% | +98.1% | +221% | +654% | 3/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | consistent | 1.07 |
| [FIX](https://easycompare.io/research/fix): Comfort Systems USA, Inc. | +67.3% | +819% | +1,636% | +5,305% | 2/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 1.46 |
| GIC: Global Industrial Co | +31.2% | +49.6% | +29.5% | +995% | 5/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.33 |
| MSM: MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. | +54.6% | +48.6% | +86.7% | +184% | 5/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.63 |
| BXC: BlueLinx Holdings Inc. | +4.4% | +5.0% | +49.3% | +824% | 4/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.42 |
| DSGR: Distribution Solutions Group, Inc. | +18.5% | +20.8% | +34.9% | +268% | 4/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.35 |
| DNOW: Dnow Inc. | +10.3% | +38.5% | +67.4% | −28.1% | 4/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.46 |
| [CARR](https://easycompare.io/research/carr): Carrier Global Corporation | −1.1% | +21.2% | +11.6% | — | 3/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.23 |
| AOS: A. O. Smith Corporation | −12.8% | −5.4% | −1.8% | +46.1% | 2/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.12 |
| SITE: SiteOne Landscape Supply, Inc. | −20.4% | −29.6% | −54.7% | +202% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.18 |
| WSO: Watsco, Inc. | −17.4% | −5.5% | +20.6% | +196% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.28 |
| POOL: Pool Corporation | −40.1% | −43.8% | −60.2% | +113% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.35 |
| CNM: Core & Main, Inc. | −21.0% | +38.9% | +69.6% | — | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.47 |

### How did FERG do year by year?

This table shows each investment's total return in every full calendar year since 2009, along with where FERG ranked among its popular alternatives each year.

- Ranked against its popular alternatives each year, FERG finished in the top quarter in five of 17 years and in the bottom quarter in two. In 2025, it ranked 5 of 20.
- FERG finished ahead of the S&P 500 in seven of its 17 full calendar years.
- Among its popular alternatives, FIX came out ahead of FERG most often, in 11 of the 17 years both traded.

| Year | FERG | SPY |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2025 | +29.9% | +17.7% |
| 2024 | −8.6% | +24.9% |
| 2023 | +55.1% | +26.2% |
| 2022 | −27.2% | −18.2% |
| 2021 | +56.4% | +28.7% |
| 2020 | +31.9% | +18.3% |
| 2019 | +49.6% | +31.2% |
| 2018 | −10.3% | −4.6% |
| 2017 | +21.9% | +21.7% |
| 2016 | +11.8% | +12.0% |

## Risk and diversification

How FERG 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 FERG's worst declines?

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

- In all five of FERG's worst declines, the S&P 500 held up better over the same dates.
- The slowest recovery came after FERG fell 92.4% from February 2007 to March 2009; it did not regain that peak until September 2018, ten years later.

| Decline | Peak | Low | Back at the high | SPY over the same dates | Market event |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| −92.4% | February 6, 2007 | March 9, 2009 | September 21, 2018 | −51.0% | 2008 financial crisis |
| −55.4% | February 13, 2020 | March 23, 2020 | September 29, 2020 | −33.5% | Covid crash |
| −43.3% | January 3, 2022 | October 20, 2022 | December 5, 2023 | −22.6% | 2022 bear market |
| −32.9% | December 4, 2024 | April 8, 2025 | July 1, 2025 | −17.8% |  |
| −27.8% | September 27, 2018 | January 3, 2019 | October 22, 2019 | −15.5% | late-2018 sell-off |

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

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

- FERG fell further than the S&P 500 in seven of the nine crashes it has traded through. The clearest case was the 2008 financial crisis, when FERG fell 87.9% and the S&P 500 fell 55.2%.
- Among its popular alternatives, FAST held up best, falling less than FERG in seven of the nine crashes they both traded through.
- FERG began trading after the dot-com bust, but 14 of its popular alternatives lived through it. The mildest fall among them was DSGR's 22.6%, against 47.5% for the S&P 500.

| Crash | Dates | FERG 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 | −87.9% | −55.2% |
| Flash crash | May 6, 2010 to May 7, 2010 | 0.0% | −1.5% |
| Euro debt crisis | July 22, 2011 to October 3, 2011 | −28.7% | −17.9% |
| China devaluation & oil rout | August 10, 2015 to February 11, 2016 | −28.8% | −12.8% |
| Volmageddon | February 2, 2018 to February 9, 2018 | 0.0% | −6.5% |
| Q4 2018 selloff | September 21, 2018 to December 24, 2018 | −27.3% | −19.3% |
| COVID crash | February 19, 2020 to March 23, 2020 | −54.7% | −33.7% |
| 2022 bear market | January 4, 2022 to October 12, 2022 | −42.4% | −24.5% |
| SVB / regional bank stress | March 8, 2023 to March 13, 2023 | −4.1% | −3.4% |

### How closely does FERG 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.

- Ten of the 17 popular alternatives had a higher capture ratio (upside capture divided by downside capture) than FERG's 0.96, led by FIX, GIC and TT.
- GIC took just 62% of the S&P 500's losses, against 122% for FERG, while still keeping 113% of its gains.
- Over the past 10 years, FERG captured 118% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 122% of its losses in falling months, with a beta of 1.25. 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 |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| FERG: Ferguson plc (this page) | 118% | 122% | 1.25 |
| [TT](https://easycompare.io/research/tt): Trane Technologies plc | 115% | 69.0% | 1.10 |
| DXPE: DXP Enterprises, Inc. | 171% | 201% | 1.77 |
| [FAST](https://easycompare.io/research/fast): Fastenal Company | 106% | 87.0% | 0.98 |
| WTS: Watts Water Technologies, Inc. | 102% | 80.0% | 1.02 |
| WCC: WESCO International, Inc. | 165% | 194% | 1.96 |
| AIT: Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. | 111% | 75.0% | 1.13 |
| [GWW](https://easycompare.io/research/gww): W.W. Grainger, Inc. | 113% | 95.0% | 1.12 |
| [FIX](https://easycompare.io/research/fix): Comfort Systems USA, Inc. | 180% | 71.0% | 1.38 |
| GIC: Global Industrial Co | 113% | 62.0% | 0.66 |
| MSM: MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. | 83.0% | 96.0% | 0.95 |
| BXC: BlueLinx Holdings Inc. | 151% | 151% | 1.67 |
| DSGR: Distribution Solutions Group, Inc. | 95.0% | 94.0% | 0.78 |
| DNOW: Dnow Inc. | 75.0% | 168% | 1.43 |
| AOS: A. O. Smith Corporation | 82.0% | 139% | 1.12 |
| SITE: SiteOne Landscape Supply, Inc. | 116% | 161% | 1.31 |
| WSO: Watsco, Inc. | 74.0% | 74.0% | 0.93 |
| POOL: Pool Corporation | 82.0% | 116% | 0.95 |

### What diversifies FERG?

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 FERG into GLD would have cut the portfolio's volatility by 18% over the past 5 years and raised its annual return (+12.1% for FERG alone, +14.3% for the mix).
- Among large ETFs, LVHI, DXJ and EMLP have moved largely independently of FERG over the past 5 years, with correlations of 0.46 or lower, and each still earned a positive 5-year return.
- XLE made money in four of the six calendar years in which FERG lost money.

| Investment | Correlation with FERG | 5Y return | Volatility | Sharpe | Rose in FERG's 6 down years |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| LVHI: Franklin International Low Volatility High Dividend Index ETF | 0.44 | +119% | 11.1% | 1.48 | 2 of 6 |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | 0.27 | +225% | 19.1% | 1.34 | 4 of 6 |
| EMLP: First Trust North American Energy Infrastructure Fund | 0.46 | +101% | 14.5% | 1.04 | 2 of 6 |
| HDV: iShares Core High Dividend ETF | 0.45 | +83.3% | 13.0% | 1.00 | 2 of 6 |
| [SMH](https://easycompare.io/research/smh): VanEck Semiconductor ETF | 0.46 | +323% | 36.9% | 0.97 | 3 of 6 |
| [GLD](https://easycompare.io/research/gld): SPDR Gold Shares | 0.12 | +126% | 18.9% | 0.96 | 3 of 6 |
| SPMO: Invesco S&P 500 Momentum ETF | 0.45 | +136% | 20.8% | 0.93 | 1 of 6 |
| [XLE](https://easycompare.io/research/xle): State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF | 0.19 | +177% | 25.5% | 0.93 | 4 of 6 |

## Common questions

### What was FERG's worst drawdown?

FERG's deepest decline since it began trading in 2006 was 92.4%, from February 2007 to March 2009. It took about ten years from the low to climb back to its old high. Because FERG launched in November 2006, that record does not include the dot-com bust.

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

Over 17 full calendar years, FERG's best year was 2012, when it returned 68.3%. Its worst was 2022, with a return of -27.2%.

### Is there a better investment than FERG?

Among FERG's popular alternatives, GWW, TT and FAST earned more than FERG with less volatility over the past 5 years. GWW returned 26.3% a year at 24.9% volatility, against 11.2% a year at 30.7%. Looking beyond its popular alternatives, TJX (specialty retail) and JCI (building products) earned more than FERG with less volatility over the past 5 years. TJX returned 19.9% a year at 22.3% volatility, against 11.2% a year at 30.7%.

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

Yes. FERG's volatility over the past 5 years was 30.7%, 1.8 times the S&P 500's 17.1%. Volatility measures how widely returns swing around their average: in roughly two years out of three, FERG's return lands within 30.7% 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 FERG's Sharpe ratio?

FERG's Sharpe ratio over the past 5 years was 0.50, against 0.79 for the S&P 500, so FERG 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 FERG with the S&P 500?

Over the past 5 years, FERG's monthly returns had a correlation of 0.58 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 FERG instead: the lower it is, the more that option would diversify a FERG holding.

### What are the best alternatives to FERG?

Of the 19 popular alternatives we compared, seven outperformed FERG in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes, with dividends reinvested: TT, DXPE and FAST.

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

FERG finished ahead of the S&P 500 (SPY) in seven of 17 full calendar years. In 2025, it returned +29.9%, against +17.7% for the index.

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

FERG fell less than the S&P 500 (SPY) in two of the nine major crashes it has traded through, and further in seven. The clearest case was the 2008 financial crisis, when FERG fell 87.9% and the S&P 500 fell 55.2%.

### What diversifies FERG?

These had a low correlation with FERG over the past 5 years and still earned a positive 5-year return: among large ETFs, LVHI (correlation 0.44), DXJ (correlation 0.27) and EMLP (correlation 0.46); among large stocks, CAH (correlation 0.30), CLS (correlation 0.44) and MCK (correlation 0.29). 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/ferg
- All research pages: https://easycompare.io/llms.txt
- Compare the entire market against FERG live: https://betterthanspy.com/?b=FERG&utm_source=easycompare&utm_medium=research