# How HEICO (HEI) compares with the whole market and its popular alternatives

> Source: EasyCompare research, https://easycompare.io/research/hei
> 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 HEI alone. It places HEI (HEICO Corporation) against 20+ popular alternatives, its neighboring categories and the entire market of over 10,000 U.S.-listed stocks and ETFs, and surfaces what has done better on consistent outperformance, return for the risk taken, behavior in real market crashes and diversification. The result is a clearer view of where HEI stands in the market, and of the alternatives worth a closer look.

Period covered: HEI'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:** Over the past 3 months, HEI fell 10.3% while the S&P 500 rose 3.9%. Its aerospace & defense peers were far apart over the past 3 months, from RTX (down 0.2%) to HWM (Howmet Aerospace, down 22.1%).
- **Stock or market?:** Not a move of its own: the aerospace & defense ETF ITA (iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF) fell 10.0% over the past 3 months, with GE (GE Aerospace, down 12.0%) and HWM (Howmet Aerospace, down 22.1%), while the S&P 500 rose 3.9%. Its aerospace & defense peers did not move as one over the past 3 months: RTX fell 0.2%, while HWM fell 22.1%.
- **Past 1 to 3 years:** HEI has gone against the market, falling 2.4% over the past year while the S&P 500 rose 15.8%. That said, it finished ahead of the S&P 500 in both 2024 and 2025.
- **Long term:** HEI turned $10,000 into $90,900 over the past decade, against $42,100 in the S&P 500. HEI's 10-year return of 809% puts it ahead of 93% of the stocks worth at least $300 million with that much history. The S&P 500 returned 321%.
- **In a crash:** HEI fell harder than the S&P 500 in six of seven sell-offs. The 2022 bear market was the exception: HEI fell 18.8%, less than the S&P 500's 24.5%.
- **Diversification:** Against the S&P 500, HEI has a correlation of 0.61 over 5 years, more closely than 92% of stocks worth at least $300 million. Next to an index fund it is more of the same, not a cushion. That said, over 10 years, HEI's beta versus the S&P 500 was 1.15: in the S&P 500's rising months it gained 1.2 times as much as the index, and in falling months it lost 85% as much.
- **Better options**
  - **Nearby categories and themes:** WAB (Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies, industrial machinery) earned more than HEI with less volatility over the past 5 years: 25.6% a year at 26.2% volatility, against 17.3% a year at 27.8%.
  - **Whole market:** Few investments have done better on both counts: only 65 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than HEI with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them WMT (Walmart), ABBV (AbbVie) and CVX (Chevron).

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

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

- $10,000 invested in HEI at the end of September 1997 would have grown to $1,347,388 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 HEI, and AAPL finished highest, at $20,534,853.

## HEI 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.

- HEI's deepest decline since it began trading in 1986 was 75.4%, from May 1998 to April 2003. It took about three years from the low to climb back to its old high.
- Over 29 full calendar years, HEI's best was 1997, when it returned 78.9%, and its worst was 1999, when it lost 30.8%. It lost money in five of those years.
- HEI is 18.5% below its all-time high.

- Type: Stock, Industrials (Aerospace & Defense)
- Trading since: October 17, 1986
- Market value: $43B
- Volatility (5 years): 27.8%; Sharpe ratio: 0.71
- Worst decline ever: −75.4%, from May 5, 1998 to April 30, 2003; back at its high by February 16, 2006

| Period | HEI total return |
| --- | --- |
| 1 month | +0.7% |
| 3 months | −10.3% |
| 6 months | +4.5% |
| year to date | −7.3% |
| 1 year | −2.4% |
| 3 years | +93.4% |
| 5 years | +122% |
| 10 years | +809% |

## HEI against the whole market

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

### How does HEI rank among all stocks?

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

- HEI's 10-year return ranks in the top 7% of the 2,202 stocks worth at least $300 million with 10 years of history.

| Measure | HEI | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1-year return | −2.4% | 2,084 of 3,287 (top 64%) |
| 3-year return | +93.4% | 975 of 3,017 (top 33%) |
| 5-year return | +122% | 565 of 2,893 (top 20%) |
| 10-year return | +809% | 151 of 2,202 (top 7%) |
| Volatility, 5 years | 27.8% | 534 of 2,893 (top 19%) |
| Sharpe ratio, 5 years | 0.71 | 437 of 2,893 (top 16%) |
| Worst decline, past 10 years | −57.7% | 794 of 2,187 (top 37%) |

### What has beaten HEI 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).

- 40 stocks and 25 ETFs worth at least $500 million sit in the green region: each earned more than HEI over the past 5 years with smaller price swings. That is 2% of the 3,633 screened. Few investments beat it on both counts.
- Among those with at least half HEI's swings, CAH has the best return for its risk: 42.1% a year at 24.7% volatility, 11% less than HEI's 27.8%, and a Sharpe ratio (return above cash per unit of volatility) of 1.55 against 0.71 for HEI.
- Among HEI's popular alternatives, RTX is in the region. RTX earned 18.6% a year against 17.3% a year for HEI, at 24.3% volatility, 12% less than HEI's 27.8%.

### Is there a better investment than HEI?

The table below lists investments that beat HEI 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 HEI's popular alternatives, RTX earned more than HEI with less volatility over the past 5 years: 18.6% a year at 24.3% volatility, against 17.3% a year at 27.8%.
- Looking beyond its popular alternatives, WAB (industrial machinery) earned more than HEI with less volatility over the past 5 years: 25.6% a year at 26.2% volatility, against 17.3% a year at 27.8%.
- Few investments have done better on both counts: only 65 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than HEI with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them WMT, ABBV and CVX.

The 15 strongest of 65 investments that beat HEI 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 HEI | Better on |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| HEI: HEICO Corporation (this page) |  | +17.3% | 27.8% | 0.71 | −57.7% | +809% |  |  |
| [CAH](https://easycompare.io/research/cah): Cardinal Health, Inc. | Health Care Distribution | +42.1% | 24.7% | 1.55 | −46.1% | +349% | 0.38 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [WMT](https://easycompare.io/research/wmt): Walmart Inc. | Discount Retail | +20.8% | 22.6% | 0.96 | −25.7% | +508% | 0.17 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [ABBV](https://easycompare.io/research/abbv): AbbVie Inc. | Pharmaceuticals | +26.1% | 23.4% | 1.11 | −45.1% | +603% | 0.10 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | International Equity | +26.6% | 19.1% | 1.34 | −39.1% | +428% | 0.32 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [PM](https://easycompare.io/research/pm): Philip Morris International Inc. | Tobacco | +21.0% | 23.4% | 0.94 | −42.9% | +242% | 0.40 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [MCK](https://easycompare.io/research/mck): McKesson Corporation | Health Care Distribution | +38.7% | 25.0% | 1.44 | −38.1% | +586% | 0.21 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [GILD](https://easycompare.io/research/gild): Gilead Sciences, Inc. | Biotechnology | +22.8% | 24.9% | 0.95 | −30.5% | +200% | 0.13 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [BNY](https://easycompare.io/research/bny): Bank of New York Mellon Corp | Banks | +22.7% | 24.4% | 0.97 | −50.5% | +341% | 0.45 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [XLK](https://easycompare.io/research/xlk): State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF | Technology Equity | +19.4% | 26.0% | 0.82 | −33.6% | +767% | 0.53 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [CM](https://easycompare.io/research/cm): Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce | Banks | +19.2% | 21.6% | 0.93 | −47.3% | +395% | 0.31 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [TRV](https://easycompare.io/research/trv): The Travelers Companies, Inc. | Property & Casualty Insurance | +22.4% | 22.3% | 1.02 | −46.3% | +347% | 0.25 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [GWW](https://easycompare.io/research/gww): W.W. Grainger, Inc. | Industrial Distribution | +26.3% | 24.9% | 1.07 | −41.6% | +654% | 0.54 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [ETR](https://easycompare.io/research/etr): Entergy Corporation | Electric Utilities | +19.2% | 22.4% | 0.90 | −42.0% | +311% | 0.11 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [CCEP](https://easycompare.io/research/ccep): Coca-Cola Europacific Partners PLC | Food & Beverages | +19.7% | 23.2% | 0.90 | −48.8% | +292% | 0.26 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| CBOE: Cboe Global Markets, Inc. | Capital Markets | +21.5% | 25.1% | 0.91 | −43.2% | +463% | 0.33 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |

## HEI against its popular alternatives

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

### How do HEI'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.

- Only RTX was both more rewarding and calmer than HEI over the past 5 years, earning a higher annual return with lower volatility.
- Over the past 5 years, HEI returned 17.2% a year, more than the S&P 500's 12.7%, with higher volatility (27.8% against 17.1%).

### Has HEI consistently beaten its popular alternatives?

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

- Four of the 22 popular alternatives, led by ATI, DCO and MOG-A, outperformed HEI in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes.
- ATI outperformed HEI in every long-term period and in all but one short-term period, the most consistent record in the group.
- CW and RTX earned more for the risk they took than HEI (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 HEI | Verdict | Sharpe |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| HEI: HEICO Corporation (this page) | −2.4% | +93.4% | +122% | +809% |  |  | 0.71 |
| ATI: ATI Inc. | +125% | +415% | +1,008% | +929% | 4/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 1.34 |
| DCO: Ducommun Incorporated | +74.1% | +261% | +236% | +706% | 4/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 0.88 |
| MOG-A: Moog Inc. | +77.4% | +228% | +375% | +595% | 4/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 1.14 |
| [RTX](https://easycompare.io/research/rtx): RTX Corporation | +22.1% | +183% | +135% | +317% | 3/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 0.83 |
| [HWM](https://easycompare.io/research/hwm): Howmet Aerospace Inc. | +10.2% | +391% | +594% | +1,028% | 2/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 1.36 |
| WWD: Woodward, Inc. | +29.1% | +165% | +191% | +488% | 2/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.82 |
| [GE](https://easycompare.io/research/ge): GE Aerospace | −0.4% | +261% | +366% | +139% | 2/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 1.15 |
| CW: Curtiss-Wright Corporation | −11.6% | +148% | +283% | +512% | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 1.08 |
| [DAL](https://easycompare.io/research/dal): Delta Air Lines, Inc. | +25.5% | +146% | +97.6% | +109% | 4/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.54 |
| CR: Crane Company | +7.9% | +143% | +125% | +283% | 3/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.65 |
| AIR: AAR Corp. | +18.8% | +71.7% | +196% | +224% | 2/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.78 |
| BWXT: BWX Technologies, Inc. | −35.0% | +79.8% | +145% | +289% | 0/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.70 |
| UAL: United Airlines Holdings, Inc. | −3.5% | +179% | +113% | +72.8% | 0/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.55 |
| [LMT](https://easycompare.io/research/lmt): Lockheed Martin Corporation | +11.3% | +33.8% | +69.0% | +204% | 4/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.56 |
| [HON](https://easycompare.io/research/hon): Honeywell International Inc. | +6.8% | +27.0% | +7.5% | +160% | 4/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.18 |
| HXL: Hexcel Corporation | +45.6% | +44.9% | +62.4% | +122% | 3/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.46 |
| [TDG](https://easycompare.io/research/tdg): TransDigm Group Incorporated | −12.2% | +62.5% | +114% | +543% | 2/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.69 |
| [NOC](https://easycompare.io/research/noc): Northrop Grumman Corporation | −9.8% | +15.6% | +44.5% | +188% | 2/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.41 |
| [BA](https://easycompare.io/research/ba): The Boeing Company | −12.2% | +5.8% | −11.9% | +52.4% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.12 |
| [LHX](https://easycompare.io/research/lhx): L3Harris Technologies, Inc. | −13.0% | +49.6% | +13.0% | +229% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.22 |
| KRMN: Karman Holdings Inc. | −55.2% | — | — | — | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | — |
| LOAR: Loar Holdings Inc. | −23.9% | — | — | — | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | — |

### How did HEI do year by year?

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

- None of the 20 popular alternatives came out ahead of HEI in most of the years they have in common.
- Ranked against its popular alternatives each year, HEI finished in the top quarter in 12 of 29 years and in the bottom quarter in two. In 2025, it ranked 10 of 22.
- HEI finished ahead of the S&P 500 in 19 of its 29 full calendar years, and ahead of it in each of the last two.

| Year | HEI | SPY |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2025 | +36.2% | +17.7% |
| 2024 | +33.1% | +24.9% |
| 2023 | +16.6% | +26.2% |
| 2022 | +6.7% | −18.2% |
| 2021 | +9.1% | +28.7% |
| 2020 | +16.2% | +18.3% |
| 2019 | +47.5% | +31.2% |
| 2018 | +28.6% | −4.6% |
| 2017 | +53.0% | +21.7% |
| 2016 | +42.3% | +12.0% |

## Risk and diversification

How HEI 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 HEI's worst declines?

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

- In all four of HEI's worst declines, the S&P 500 held up better over the same dates.
- Not every decline was the market's doing: HEI fell 40.8% from July to August 1996, while the S&P 500 rose 2.1%.
- The slowest recovery came after HEI fell 69.3% from February 1987 to August 1990; it did not regain that peak until March 1996, six years later.

| Decline | Peak | Low | Back at the high | SPY over the same dates | Market event |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| −75.4% | May 5, 1998 | April 30, 2003 | February 16, 2006 | −12.2% | dot-com bust |
| −69.3% | February 9, 1987 | August 31, 1990 | March 13, 1996 | — |  |
| −61.4% | December 26, 2007 | March 2, 2009 | September 20, 2010 | −51.7% | 2008 financial crisis |
| −57.7% | August 29, 2019 | March 18, 2020 | June 4, 2021 | −17.2% | Covid crash |
| −40.8% | July 8, 1996 | August 12, 1996 | December 30, 1996 | +2.1% |  |

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

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

- HEI fell further than the S&P 500 in eight of the ten crashes it has traded through. The clearest case was the Covid crash, when HEI fell 52.4% and the S&P 500 fell 33.7%.
- Among its popular alternatives, LMT held up best, falling less than HEI in nine of the ten crashes they both traded through.

| Crash | Dates | HEI fall | SPY fall |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Dot-com bust | March 10, 2000 to October 9, 2002 | −53.9% | −47.5% |
| Global financial crisis | October 9, 2007 to March 9, 2009 | −61.4% | −55.2% |
| Flash crash | May 6, 2010 to May 7, 2010 | −3.0% | −1.5% |
| Euro debt crisis | July 22, 2011 to October 3, 2011 | −27.3% | −17.9% |
| China devaluation & oil rout | August 10, 2015 to February 11, 2016 | −14.6% | −12.8% |
| Volmageddon | February 2, 2018 to February 9, 2018 | −7.3% | −6.5% |
| Q4 2018 selloff | September 21, 2018 to December 24, 2018 | −22.6% | −19.3% |
| COVID crash | February 19, 2020 to March 23, 2020 | −52.4% | −33.7% |
| 2022 bear market | January 4, 2022 to October 12, 2022 | −18.8% | −24.5% |
| SVB / regional bank stress | March 8, 2023 to March 13, 2023 | −3.7% | −3.4% |

### How closely does HEI 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.

- Over the past 10 years, HEI captured 118% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 85% of its losses in falling months, with a beta of 1.15. Its share of the market's gains was larger than its share of the losses.
- Only NOC had a higher capture ratio (upside capture divided by downside capture) than HEI's 1.39, out of 20 popular alternatives with the same record.
- CW took just 77% of the S&P 500's losses, against 85% for HEI, while still keeping 103% of its gains.

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

| Investment | Upside capture | Downside capture | Beta |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| HEI: HEICO Corporation (this page) | 118% | 85.0% | 1.15 |
| ATI: ATI Inc. | 141% | 116% | 1.37 |
| DCO: Ducommun Incorporated | 128% | 112% | 1.32 |
| MOG-A: Moog Inc. | 119% | 101% | 1.20 |
| [RTX](https://easycompare.io/research/rtx): RTX Corporation | 94.0% | 91.0% | 0.89 |
| [HWM](https://easycompare.io/research/hwm): Howmet Aerospace Inc. | 142% | 115% | 1.41 |
| WWD: Woodward, Inc. | 111% | 100% | 1.27 |
| [GE](https://easycompare.io/research/ge): GE Aerospace | 85.0% | 106% | 1.21 |
| CW: Curtiss-Wright Corporation | 103% | 77.0% | 1.20 |
| [DAL](https://easycompare.io/research/dal): Delta Air Lines, Inc. | 107% | 149% | 1.34 |
| CR: Crane Company | 104% | 115% | 1.34 |
| AIR: AAR Corp. | 105% | 124% | 1.43 |
| BWXT: BWX Technologies, Inc. | 82.0% | 68.0% | 0.87 |
| UAL: United Airlines Holdings, Inc. | 107% | 158% | 1.41 |
| [LMT](https://easycompare.io/research/lmt): Lockheed Martin Corporation | 58.0% | 48.0% | 0.52 |
| [HON](https://easycompare.io/research/hon): Honeywell International Inc. | 90.0% | 118% | 1.00 |
| HXL: Hexcel Corporation | 94.0% | 135% | 1.27 |
| [TDG](https://easycompare.io/research/tdg): TransDigm Group Incorporated | 112% | 97.0% | 1.25 |
| [NOC](https://easycompare.io/research/noc): Northrop Grumman Corporation | 49.0% | 32.0% | 0.35 |
| [BA](https://easycompare.io/research/ba): The Boeing Company | 93.0% | 152% | 1.42 |
| [LHX](https://easycompare.io/research/lhx): L3Harris Technologies, Inc. | 72.0% | 65.0% | 0.70 |

### What diversifies HEI?

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 HEI into GLD would have cut the portfolio's volatility by 18% over the past 5 years and raised its annual return (+18.2% for HEI alone, +19.1% for the mix).
- Among large ETFs, LVHI, DXJ and EMLP have moved largely independently of HEI over the past 5 years, with correlations of 0.46 or lower, and each still earned a positive 5-year return.
- Among large stocks, CAH, CLS and FIX have moved largely independently of HEI over the past 5 years, with correlations of 0.38 or lower, and each still earned a positive 5-year return.

| Investment | Correlation with HEI | 5Y return | Volatility | Sharpe | Rose in HEI's 5 down years |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| LVHI: Franklin International Low Volatility High Dividend Index ETF | 0.35 | +119% | 11.1% | 1.48 | 0 of 5 |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | 0.32 | +225% | 19.1% | 1.34 | 1 of 5 |
| EMLP: First Trust North American Energy Infrastructure Fund | 0.46 | +101% | 14.5% | 1.04 | 0 of 5 |
| FTLS: First Trust Long/Short Equity ETF | 0.44 | +62.9% | 10.4% | 0.99 | 1 of 5 |
| EWP: iShares MSCI Spain ETF | 0.41 | +140% | 20.3% | 0.97 | 0 of 5 |
| [SMH](https://easycompare.io/research/smh): VanEck Semiconductor ETF | 0.40 | +323% | 36.9% | 0.97 | 0 of 5 |
| [GLD](https://easycompare.io/research/gld): SPDR Gold Shares | 0.06 | +126% | 18.9% | 0.96 | 1 of 5 |
| [XLE](https://easycompare.io/research/xle): State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF | 0.25 | +177% | 25.5% | 0.93 | 2 of 5 |

## Common questions

### What was HEI's worst drawdown?

HEI's deepest decline since it began trading in 1986 was 75.4%, from May 1998 to April 2003. It took about three years from the low to climb back to its old high.

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

Over 29 full calendar years, HEI's best year was 1997, when it returned 78.9%. Its worst was 1999, with a return of -30.8%.

### Is there a better investment than HEI?

Among HEI's popular alternatives, RTX earned more than HEI with less volatility over the past 5 years: 18.6% a year at 24.3% volatility, against 17.3% a year at 27.8%. Looking beyond its popular alternatives, WAB (industrial machinery) earned more than HEI with less volatility over the past 5 years: 25.6% a year at 26.2% volatility, against 17.3% a year at 27.8%.

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

Yes. HEI's volatility over the past 5 years was 27.8%, 1.6 times the S&P 500's 17.1%. Volatility measures how widely returns swing around their average: in roughly two years out of three, HEI's return lands within 27.8% 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 HEI's Sharpe ratio?

HEI's Sharpe ratio over the past 5 years was 0.71, against 0.79 for the S&P 500, so HEI 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 HEI with the S&P 500?

Over the past 5 years, HEI's monthly returns had a correlation of 0.61 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 HEI instead: the lower it is, the more that option would diversify a HEI holding.

### What are the best alternatives to HEI?

Of the 22 popular alternatives we compared, four outperformed HEI in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes, with dividends reinvested: ATI, DCO and MOG-A.

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

HEI finished ahead of the S&P 500 (SPY) in 19 of 29 full calendar years. In 2025, it returned +36.2%, against +17.7% for the index.

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

HEI fell less than the S&P 500 (SPY) in one of the ten major crashes it has traded through, and further in eight. The clearest case was the Covid crash, when HEI fell 52.4% and the S&P 500 fell 33.7%.

### What diversifies HEI?

These had a low correlation with HEI over the past 5 years and still earned a positive 5-year return: among large ETFs, LVHI (correlation 0.35), DXJ (correlation 0.32) and EMLP (correlation 0.46); among large stocks, CAH (correlation 0.38), CLS (correlation 0.14) and FIX (correlation 0.33). 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/hei
- All research pages: https://easycompare.io/llms.txt
- Compare the entire market against HEI live: https://betterthanspy.com/?b=HEI&utm_source=easycompare&utm_medium=research