# How Honda Motor (HMC) compares with the whole market and its popular alternatives

> Source: EasyCompare research, https://easycompare.io/research/hmc
> 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 HMC alone. It places HMC (Honda Motor Co., Ltd.) 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 HMC stands in the market, and of the alternatives worth a closer look.

Period covered: HMC'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:** HMC has run far ahead of the market, rising 35.1% over the past 6 months against 9.1% for the S&P 500 and 11.2% for the Nasdaq 100.
- **Stock or market?:** More than an industry move: HMC rose 21.6% over the past 3 months, against 1.0% for the consumer discretionary sector ETF XLY (State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR ETF). The S&P 500 rose 3.9%. Last month cut against the tape: HMC rose 5.3% while the S&P 500 fell 0.6%.
- **Past 1 to 3 years:** Over the past year, HMC rose 12.4% against 15.8% for the S&P 500 and 17.9% for the Nasdaq 100. The same gap shows up over 3 years (17.7% against 89.3%). HMC finished behind the S&P 500 in both 2024 and 2025.
- **Long term:** HMC turned $10,000 into $16,300 over the past decade, against $42,100 in the S&P 500.
- **In a crash:** Across seven sell-offs, HMC has typically fallen 1.2 times as far as the S&P 500. That said, in the 2022 bear market, HMC held up better than TSLA (Tesla), TM and RACE; only VFS (VinFast Auto) and PII fell less.
- **Diversification:** Against the S&P 500, HMC has a correlation of 0.31 over 5 years, less closely than 68% of stocks worth at least $300 million. Next to an index fund it is some diversification, but not a hedge. Over 10 years HMC took more of the market's losses than of its gains: 51% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 71% of its losses in falling ones, with a beta of 0.62.
- **Better options**
  - **Nearby categories and themes:** NEU (NewMarket, specialty chemicals) and SXT (Sensient Technologies, specialty chemicals) earned more than HMC over the past 5 years with similar volatility: NEU returned 21.0% a year at 26.8% volatility, against 6.1% a year at 27.5%.
  - **Whole market:** 707 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than HMC with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them VTI (Vanguard Morningstar Total Stock Market ETF), VOO (Vanguard S&P 500 ETF) and BRK-B (Berkshire Hathaway).

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

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

- $10,000 invested in HMC at the end of September 1997 would have grown to $33,757 by September 2026, less than the $132,907 it would have become in SPY, an S&P 500 fund.
- Six of the eight other investments on the chart ended ahead of HMC, and PII finished highest, at $147,720.

## HMC 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.

- HMC's deepest decline since it began trading in 1986 was 53.8%, from February 2007 to December 2008. It took 24 months from the low to climb back to its old high.
- HMC is trading within 1% of its all-time high.
- Over 29 full calendar years, HMC's best was 2009, when it returned 59.8%, and its worst was 2008, when it lost 34.4%. It lost money in 11 of those years.

- Type: Stock, Consumer Discretionary (Auto - Manufacturers)
- Trading since: October 17, 1986
- Market value: $44B
- Volatility (5 years): 27.5%; Sharpe ratio: 0.35
- Worst decline ever: −53.8%, from February 14, 2007 to December 4, 2008; back at its high by December 17, 2010

| Period | HMC total return |
| --- | --- |
| 1 month | +5.3% |
| 3 months | +21.6% |
| 6 months | +35.1% |
| year to date | +17.4% |
| 1 year | +12.4% |
| 3 years | +17.7% |
| 5 years | +34.5% |
| 10 years | +63.3% |

## HMC against the whole market

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

### How does HMC rank among all stocks?

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

- HMC's worst decline of the past 10 years ranks in the top 9% of the 2,187 stocks worth at least $300 million, where the top fell the least.

| Measure | HMC | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1-year return | +12.4% | 1,492 of 3,287 (top 46%) |
| 3-year return | +17.7% | 2,054 of 3,017 (top 69%) |
| 5-year return | +34.5% | 1,291 of 2,893 (top 45%) |
| 10-year return | +63.3% | 1,519 of 2,202 (top 69%) |
| Volatility, 5 years | 27.5% | 516 of 2,893 (top 18%) |
| Sharpe ratio, 5 years | 0.35 | 1,387 of 2,893 (top 48%) |
| Worst decline, past 10 years | −42.0% | 204 of 2,187 (top 10%) |

### What has beaten HMC 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).

- 191 stocks and 516 ETFs worth at least $500 million sit in the green region: each earned more than HMC over the past 5 years with smaller price swings. That is 19% of the 3,633 screened.
- Among those with at least half HMC's swings, CAH has the best return for its risk: 42.1% a year at 24.7% volatility, 10% less than HMC's 27.5%, and a Sharpe ratio (return above cash per unit of volatility) of 1.55 against 0.35 for HMC.

### Is there a better investment than HMC?

The table below lists investments that beat HMC 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 HMC's popular alternatives, RACE earned more than HMC over the past 5 years with similar volatility: 13.3% a year at 30.0% volatility, against 6.1% a year at 27.5%.
- Looking beyond its popular alternatives, NEU (specialty chemicals) and SXT (specialty chemicals) earned more than HMC over the past 5 years with similar volatility: NEU returned 21.0% a year at 26.8% volatility, against 6.1% a year at 27.5%.
- Across the whole market, 707 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than HMC with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them VTI, VOO and BRK-B.

The 15 strongest of 707 investments that beat HMC 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 HMC | Better on |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| HMC: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (this page) |  | +6.1% | 27.5% | 0.35 | −42.0% | +63.3% |  |  |
| CIBR: First Trust Nasdaq Cybersecurity ETF | Cybersecurity | +14.1% | 26.1% | 0.64 | −33.9% | +454% | 0.34 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [AMGN](https://easycompare.io/research/amgn): Amgen Inc. | Biotechnology | +19.6% | 24.9% | 0.85 | −24.9% | +266% | 0.25 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [GLD](https://easycompare.io/research/gld): SPDR Gold Shares | Gold | +17.7% | 18.9% | 0.96 | −26.4% | +213% | 0.17 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [CL](https://easycompare.io/research/cl): Colgate-Palmolive Company | Household & Personal Products | +7.2% | 19.2% | 0.46 | −29.0% | +68.8% | 0.18 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [ABBV](https://easycompare.io/research/abbv): AbbVie Inc. | Pharmaceuticals | +26.1% | 23.4% | 1.11 | −45.1% | +603% | 0.19 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher return in most periods |
| CHT: Chunghwa Telecom Co., Ltd. | Integrated Telecommunications | +7.7% | 13.3% | 0.63 | −23.8% | +101% | 0.20 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; 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% | 0.31 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| [SHEL](https://easycompare.io/research/shel): Shell plc | Integrated Oil & Gas | +21.0% | 24.8% | 0.90 | −67.2% | +233% | 0.05 | Higher return, lower volatility; 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% | 0.00 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher return in most periods |
| [VOO](https://easycompare.io/research/voo): Vanguard S&P 500 ETF | US Large-Cap Equity | +12.8% | 16.9% | 0.80 | −34.0% | +324% | 0.31 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| XLP: State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF | Consumer Staples | +7.2% | 13.8% | 0.57 | −24.5% | +121% | 0.27 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [WMT](https://easycompare.io/research/wmt): Walmart Inc. | Discount Retail | +20.8% | 22.6% | 0.96 | −25.7% | +508% | 0.05 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| [BRK-B](https://easycompare.io/research/brk-b): Berkshire Hathaway Inc. | Insurance | +13.4% | 17.1% | 0.82 | −29.6% | +274% | 0.27 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| [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 |
| [V](https://easycompare.io/research/v): Visa Inc. | Payment Processing | +12.8% | 22.9% | 0.64 | −36.4% | +429% | 0.30 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |

## HMC against its popular alternatives

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

### How do HMC'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.

- None of the 19 popular alternatives earned more than HMC over the past 5 years with smaller price swings, so every higher return on the map came with a bumpier ride.
- 13 of the 19 popular alternatives earned less than HMC over the past 5 years while swinging more, the weaker corner of the map.
- Over the past 5 years, HMC returned 6.1% a year, less than the S&P 500's 12.7%, with higher volatility (27.5% against 17.1%).

### Has HMC consistently beaten its popular alternatives?

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

- None of the 20 popular alternatives outperformed HMC in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes. The closest was BWA.
- RACE earned more for the risk it took than HMC (a higher Sharpe ratio) and fell less in its worst decline of the past 10 years.
- RACE outperformed HMC over all three long-term periods but in none of the five short-term ones, so HMC has had the better of it lately.

| Investment | 1Y return | 3Y return | 5Y return | 10Y return | Periods ahead of HMC | Verdict | Sharpe |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| HMC: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (this page) | +12.4% | +17.7% | +34.5% | +63.3% |  |  | 0.35 |
| BWA: BorgWarner Inc. | +37.9% | +57.7% | +55.9% | +121% | 2/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.43 |
| [GM](https://easycompare.io/research/gm): General Motors Company | +34.0% | +168% | +39.5% | +193% | 1/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.36 |
| [RACE](https://easycompare.io/research/race): Ferrari N.V. | +1.6% | +36.1% | +86.6% | +711% | 0/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.57 |
| ALV: Autoliv, Inc. | +2.7% | +32.1% | +42.4% | +111% | 0/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.38 |
| MGA: Magna International Inc. | +53.0% | +46.9% | −6.2% | +120% | 2/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.14 |
| [TSLA](https://easycompare.io/research/tsla): Tesla, Inc. | −16.5% | +76.3% | +29.5% | +2,716% | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.39 |
| [TM](https://easycompare.io/research/tm): Toyota Motor Corporation | +1.5% | +24.1% | +27.8% | +129% | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.32 |
| [F](https://easycompare.io/research/f): Ford Motor Company | +6.0% | +25.9% | +3.0% | +71.8% | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.21 |
| HOG: Harley-Davidson, Inc. | +5.3% | −2.3% | −16.9% | −37.7% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.11 |
| GNTX: Gentex Corporation | −17.9% | −26.1% | −36.2% | +49.2% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.21 |
| STLA: Stellantis N.V. | −59.5% | −73.3% | −69.7% | +39.2% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.35 |
| PII: Polaris Inc. | −17.0% | −34.6% | −49.5% | −10.3% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.10 |
| APTV: Aptiv PLC | −46.0% | −51.0% | −73.3% | −10.6% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.43 |
| LCID: Lucid Group, Inc. | −83.6% | −92.4% | −98.7% | — | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.62 |
| LI: Li Auto Inc. | −47.0% | −62.6% | −61.8% | — | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.00 |
| NIO: NIO Inc. | −51.4% | −54.7% | −91.4% | — | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.34 |
| 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 |  | — |
| VFS: VinFast Auto Ltd. | −12.5% | −46.7% | −70.6% | — | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.26 |
| XPEV: XPeng Inc. | −53.8% | −26.2% | −76.9% | — | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.00 |

### How did HMC do year by year?

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

- Among its popular alternatives, RACE came out ahead of HMC most often, in eight of the ten years both traded.
- HMC finished ahead of the S&P 500 in 13 of its 29 full calendar years, and behind it in each of the last two.
- Ranked against its popular alternatives each year, HMC finished in the top quarter in six of 29 years and in the bottom quarter in seven. In 2025, it ranked 13 of 21.

| Year | HMC | SPY |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2025 | +7.7% | +17.7% |
| 2024 | −3.8% | +24.9% |
| 2023 | +39.8% | +26.2% |
| 2022 | −16.6% | −18.2% |
| 2021 | +4.0% | +28.7% |
| 2020 | +2.9% | +18.3% |
| 2019 | +11.0% | +31.2% |
| 2018 | −19.8% | −4.6% |
| 2017 | +20.2% | +21.7% |
| 2016 | −5.8% | +12.0% |

## Risk and diversification

How HMC 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 HMC's worst declines?

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

- In all four of HMC's worst declines, the S&P 500 held up better over the same dates.
- Not every decline was the market's doing: HMC fell 45.2% from November 2013 to March 2020, while the S&P 500 rose 40.3%.
- The slowest recovery came after HMC fell 52.0% from July 1988 to January 1991; it did not regain that peak until May 1994, three years later.

| Decline | Peak | Low | Back at the high | SPY over the same dates | Market event |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| −53.8% | February 14, 2007 | December 4, 2008 | December 17, 2010 | −39.4% | 2008 financial crisis |
| −52.0% | July 28, 1988 | January 30, 1991 | May 25, 1994 | — |  |
| −45.2% | November 22, 2013 | March 23, 2020 | June 14, 2023 | +40.3% | 2015 China and oil sell-off |
| −41.1% | April 6, 1999 | September 21, 2001 | May 1, 2002 | −24.3% | dot-com bust |
| −36.9% | February 18, 2011 | November 23, 2011 | November 18, 2013 | −12.1% | 2011 euro debt crisis |

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

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

- Among its popular alternatives, VFS held up best, falling less than HMC in all two crashes they both traded through.
- HMC fell less than the S&P 500 in six of the ten crashes it has traded through. The clearest case was the dot-com bust, when HMC fell 40.4% and the S&P 500 fell 47.5%.

| Crash | Dates | HMC fall | SPY fall |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Dot-com bust | March 10, 2000 to October 9, 2002 | −40.4% | −47.5% |
| Global financial crisis | October 9, 2007 to March 9, 2009 | −50.5% | −55.2% |
| Flash crash | May 6, 2010 to May 7, 2010 | −0.9% | −1.5% |
| Euro debt crisis | July 22, 2011 to October 3, 2011 | −29.7% | −17.9% |
| China devaluation & oil rout | August 10, 2015 to February 11, 2016 | −29.4% | −12.8% |
| Volmageddon | February 2, 2018 to February 9, 2018 | −4.9% | −6.5% |
| Q4 2018 selloff | September 21, 2018 to December 24, 2018 | −16.8% | −19.3% |
| COVID crash | February 19, 2020 to March 23, 2020 | −27.3% | −33.7% |
| 2022 bear market | January 4, 2022 to October 12, 2022 | −29.9% | −24.5% |
| SVB / regional bank stress | March 8, 2023 to March 13, 2023 | −3.1% | −3.4% |

### How closely does HMC 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, HMC captured 51% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 71% of its losses in falling months, with a beta of 0.62. Its share of the market's losses was larger than its share of the gains.
- RACE took just 56% of the S&P 500's losses, against 71% for HMC, while still keeping 101% of its gains.
- Four of the 13 popular alternatives had a higher capture ratio (upside capture divided by downside capture) than HMC's 0.71, led by RACE, TSLA and TM.

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

| Investment | Upside capture | Downside capture | Beta |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| HMC: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (this page) | 51.0% | 71.0% | 0.62 |
| BWA: BorgWarner Inc. | 109% | 157% | 1.31 |
| [GM](https://easycompare.io/research/gm): General Motors Company | 107% | 135% | 1.31 |
| [RACE](https://easycompare.io/research/race): Ferrari N.V. | 101% | 56.0% | 0.92 |
| ALV: Autoliv, Inc. | 109% | 169% | 1.60 |
| 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 |
| [F](https://easycompare.io/research/f): Ford Motor Company | 105% | 167% | 1.51 |
| HOG: Harley-Davidson, Inc. | 68.0% | 167% | 1.39 |
| GNTX: Gentex Corporation | 63.0% | 98.0% | 0.92 |
| STLA: Stellantis N.V. | 124% | 215% | 1.61 |
| PII: Polaris Inc. | 113% | 223% | 1.61 |
| APTV: Aptiv PLC | 106% | 219% | 1.80 |

### What diversifies HMC?

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 HMC into EMLP would have cut the portfolio's volatility by 19% over the past 5 years and raised its annual return (+4.3% for HMC alone, +7.0% for the mix).
- Among large ETFs, LVHI, EMLP and HDV have moved largely independently of HMC over the past 5 years, with correlations of 0.38 or lower, and each still earned a positive 5-year return.
- MCK made money in seven of the 11 calendar years in which HMC lost money.

| Investment | Correlation with HMC | 5Y return | Volatility | Sharpe | Rose in HMC's 11 down years |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| LVHI: Franklin International Low Volatility High Dividend Index ETF | 0.38 | +119% | 11.1% | 1.48 | 2 of 11 |
| EMLP: First Trust North American Energy Infrastructure Fund | 0.03 | +101% | 14.5% | 1.04 | 4 of 11 |
| HDV: iShares Core High Dividend ETF | 0.24 | +83.3% | 13.0% | 1.00 | 4 of 11 |
| [SMH](https://easycompare.io/research/smh): VanEck Semiconductor ETF | 0.24 | +323% | 36.9% | 0.97 | 5 of 11 |
| DBEF: Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Hedged Equity ETF | 0.45 | +85.0% | 13.8% | 0.96 | 3 of 11 |
| [GLD](https://easycompare.io/research/gld): SPDR Gold Shares | 0.17 | +126% | 18.9% | 0.96 | 5 of 11 |
| SPMO: Invesco S&P 500 Momentum ETF | 0.19 | +136% | 20.8% | 0.93 | 2 of 11 |
| [XLE](https://easycompare.io/research/xle): State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF | 0.05 | +177% | 25.5% | 0.93 | 6 of 11 |

## Common questions

### What was HMC's worst drawdown?

HMC's deepest decline since it began trading in 1986 was 53.8%, from February 2007 to December 2008. It took 24 months from the low to climb back to its old high.

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

Over 29 full calendar years, HMC's best year was 2009, when it returned 59.8%. Its worst was 2008, with a return of -34.4%.

### Is there a better investment than HMC?

Among HMC's popular alternatives, RACE earned more than HMC over the past 5 years with similar volatility: 13.3% a year at 30.0% volatility, against 6.1% a year at 27.5%. Looking beyond its popular alternatives, NEU (specialty chemicals) and SXT (specialty chemicals) earned more than HMC over the past 5 years with similar volatility: NEU returned 21.0% a year at 26.8% volatility, against 6.1% a year at 27.5%.

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

Yes. HMC's volatility over the past 5 years was 27.5%, 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, HMC's return lands within 27.5% 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 HMC's Sharpe ratio?

HMC's Sharpe ratio over the past 5 years was 0.35, against 0.79 for the S&P 500, so HMC 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 HMC with the S&P 500?

Over the past 5 years, HMC's monthly returns had a correlation of 0.31 with the S&P 500. Correlation runs from 1 (moving in lockstep) through 0 (unrelated) to −1 (moving in opposite directions). They are only loosely linked, which makes it a real diversifier next to an index fund. In the table, the correlation column measures each option against HMC instead: the lower it is, the more that option would diversify a HMC holding.

### What are the best alternatives to HMC?

None of the 20 popular alternatives we compared outperformed HMC in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes, which says more about HMC's strength than about its alternatives.

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

HMC finished ahead of the S&P 500 (SPY) in 13 of 29 full calendar years. In 2025, it returned +7.7%, against +17.7% for the index.

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

HMC fell less than the S&P 500 (SPY) in six of the ten major crashes it has traded through, and further in three. The clearest case was the dot-com bust, when HMC fell 40.4% and the S&P 500 fell 47.5%.

### What diversifies HMC?

These had a low correlation with HMC over the past 5 years and still earned a positive 5-year return: among large ETFs, LVHI (correlation 0.38), EMLP (correlation 0.03) and HDV (correlation 0.24); among large stocks, CAH (correlation 0.12), CLS (correlation 0.10) and FIX (correlation 0.08). A correlation near zero means the two have moved largely independently.

## More research

- [General Motors (GM) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/gm)
- [Ferrari (RACE) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/race)
- [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)
- [Ford Motor (F) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/f)
- [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/hmc
- All research pages: https://easycompare.io/llms.txt
- Compare the entire market against HMC live: https://betterthanspy.com/?b=HMC&utm_source=easycompare&utm_medium=research