# How Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) compares with the whole market and its popular alternatives

> Source: EasyCompare research, https://easycompare.io/research/hpe
> 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 HPE alone. It places HPE (Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company) 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 HPE stands in the market, and of the alternatives worth a closer look.

Period covered: HPE's full trading record, from October 2015 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:** Over the past 6 months, HPE rose 103% against 9.1% for the S&P 500 and 11.2% for the Nasdaq 100. On the flip side, HPE is 23.6% below its high, bear-market territory, while the S&P 500 sits 1.3% below a record.
- **Stock or market?:** HPE's 26.3% gain over the past 3 months far outran its industry: the computer hardware ETF VGT (Vanguard Information Technology ETF) rose 6.3%. The S&P 500 rose 3.9%. Its computer hardware peers did not move as one over the past 3 months: SMCI (Super Micro Computer) rose 36.3%, while CSCO (Cisco Systems) fell 3.2%.
- **Past 1 to 3 years:** HPE has run far ahead of the market, rising 150% 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 (296% against 89.3%).
- **Long term:** HPE turned $10,000 into $58,300 over the past decade, against $42,100 in the S&P 500. HPE's 10-year return of 483% puts it ahead of 85% of the stocks worth at least $300 million with that much history. The S&P 500 returned 321%.
- **In a crash:** In the 2022 bear market, HPE held up better than CSCO (Cisco Systems), DELL and ANET; only IBM (International Business Machines) fell less. Even so, HPE fell further than the S&P 500 in three of the last three sell-offs, including the Covid crash (45.3% against 33.7%).
- **Diversification:** Against the S&P 500, HPE has a correlation of 0.56 over 5 years, more closely than 84% of stocks worth at least $300 million. Next to an index fund it is some diversification, but not a hedge. Over 10 years, HPE's beta versus the S&P 500 was 1.31: in the S&P 500's rising months it gained 1.2 times as much as the index, and in falling months it lost 1.0 times as much.
- **Better options**
  - **Popular alternatives:** AVGO (Broadcom) earned more for the risk it took than HPE over the past 5 years, and its worst fall in 10 years was 48.3%, against 56.9% for HPE.
  - **Nearby categories and themes:** ASX (ASE Technology Holding, semiconductors) earned more than HPE over the past 5 years with similar volatility: 48.8% a year at 43.0% volatility, against 32.9% a year at 42.2%.
  - **Whole market:** Few investments have done better on both counts: only 29 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than HPE with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them LLY (Eli Lilly and Company), GE (GE Aerospace) and PBR (Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. - Petrobras).

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

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

- $10,000 invested in HPE at the end of September 2016 would have grown to $63,955 by September 2026, more than the $41,286 it would have become in SPY, an S&P 500 fund.
- All eight other investments on the chart ended ahead of HPE, and NVDA finished highest, at $1,367,620.

## HPE 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.

- HPE is still 23.6% below its all-time high.
- HPE's deepest decline since it began trading in 2015 was 56.9%, from March 2018 to March 2020. It took 22 months from the low to climb back to its old high.
- Over ten full calendar years, HPE's best was 2016, when it returned 54.2%, and its worst was 2020, when it lost 21.9%. It lost money in two of those years.

- Type: Stock, Technology (Computer Hardware)
- Trading since: October 19, 2015
- Market value: $74B
- Volatility (5 years): 42.2%; Sharpe ratio: 0.89
- Worst decline ever: −56.9%, from March 6, 2018 to March 23, 2020; back at its high by January 7, 2022

| Period | HPE total return |
| --- | --- |
| 1 month | −9.1% |
| 3 months | +26.3% |
| 6 months | +103% |
| year to date | +135% |
| 1 year | +150% |
| 3 years | +296% |
| 5 years | +315% |
| 10 years | +483% |

## HPE against the whole market

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

### How does HPE rank among all stocks?

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

- HPE's 1-year return ranks in the top 2% of the 3,287 stocks worth at least $300 million with 1 year of history.

| Measure | HPE | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1-year return | +150% | 73 of 3,287 (top 3%) |
| 3-year return | +296% | 228 of 3,017 (top 8%) |
| 5-year return | +315% | 155 of 2,893 (top 6%) |
| 10-year return | +483% | 323 of 2,202 (top 15%) |
| Volatility, 5 years | 42.2% | 1,564 of 2,893 (top 55%) |
| Sharpe ratio, 5 years | 0.89 | 183 of 2,893 (top 7%) |
| Worst decline, past 10 years | −56.9% | 757 of 2,187 (top 35%) |

### What has beaten HPE 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).

- 29 stocks worth at least $500 million sit in the green region: each earned more than HPE over the past 5 years with smaller price swings. That is fewer than 1% of the 3,633 screened. Few investments beat it on both counts.
- Among those with at least half HPE's swings, CAH has the best return for its risk: 42.1% a year at 24.7% volatility, 41% less than HPE's 42.2%, and a Sharpe ratio (return above cash per unit of volatility) of 1.55 against 0.89 for HPE. PBR-A earned the most, 51.8% a year, while still swinging less than HPE (37.5% against 42.2%).

### Is there a better investment than HPE?

The table below lists investments that beat HPE 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 HPE's popular alternatives, AVGO earned more for the risk it took than HPE over the past 5 years, and its worst fall in 10 years was 48.3%, against 56.9% for HPE.
- Looking beyond its popular alternatives, ASX (semiconductors) earned more than HPE over the past 5 years with similar volatility: 48.8% a year at 43.0% volatility, against 32.9% a year at 42.2%.
- Few investments have done better on both counts: only 29 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than HPE with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them LLY, GE and PBR.

The 15 strongest of 29 investments that beat HPE 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 HPE | Better on |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| HPE: Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company (this page) |  | +32.9% | 42.2% | 0.89 | −56.9% | +483% |  |  |
| [LLY](https://easycompare.io/research/lly): Eli Lilly and Company | Pharmaceuticals | +40.7% | 32.8% | 1.21 | −34.5% | +1,807% | 0.12 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [MPC](https://easycompare.io/research/mpc): Marathon Petroleum Corporation | Oil & Gas | +51.2% | 33.4% | 1.41 | −79.7% | +1,387% | 0.26 | 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% | -0.10 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [PWR](https://easycompare.io/research/pwr): Quanta Services, Inc. | Engineering & Construction | +39.3% | 37.2% | 1.08 | −45.5% | +2,045% | 0.22 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| ESLT: Elbit Systems Ltd. | Aerospace & Defense | +39.8% | 34.6% | 1.15 | −35.4% | +765% | -0.12 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [CAH](https://easycompare.io/research/cah): Cardinal Health, Inc. | Health Care Distribution | +42.1% | 24.7% | 1.55 | −46.1% | +349% | 0.01 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| [VLO](https://easycompare.io/research/vlo): Valero Energy Corporation | Oil & Gas | +44.2% | 36.9% | 1.18 | −71.9% | +1,061% | 0.30 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher return in most periods |
| DHT: DHT Holdings, Inc. | Marine Shipping | +38.7% | 39.0% | 1.04 | −39.7% | +1,050% | -0.05 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| USLM: United States Lime & Minerals, Inc. | Construction Materials | +35.6% | 36.1% | 1.03 | −45.9% | +803% | 0.24 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| EME: EMCOR Group, Inc. | Engineering & Construction | +43.0% | 35.3% | 1.20 | −48.0% | +1,202% | 0.19 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| COKE: Coca-Cola Consolidated, Inc. | Food & Beverages | +41.2% | 38.0% | 1.10 | −51.7% | +1,569% | -0.09 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| [PBR-A](https://easycompare.io/research/pbr-a): Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. - Petrobras | Integrated Oil & Gas | +51.8% | 37.5% | 1.31 | −71.7% | +768% | -0.03 | Higher return, lower volatility |
| [HWM](https://easycompare.io/research/hwm): Howmet Aerospace Inc. | Aerospace & Defense | +47.3% | 32.5% | 1.36 | −68.9% | +1,028% | 0.18 | Higher return, lower volatility |
| ODC: Oil-Dri Corporation of America | Chemicals - Specialty | +35.9% | 36.9% | 1.02 | −48.9% | +460% | 0.13 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| [GE](https://easycompare.io/research/ge): GE Aerospace | Aerospace & Defense | +36.0% | 31.0% | 1.15 | −80.9% | +139% | 0.29 | Higher return, lower volatility |

## HPE against its popular alternatives

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

### How do HPE'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 HPE over the past 5 years with smaller price swings, so every higher return on the map came with a bumpier ride.
- Over the past 5 years, HPE returned 32.9% a year, more than the S&P 500's 12.7%, with higher volatility (42.2% against 17.1%).

### Has HPE consistently beaten its popular alternatives?

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

- Only one of the 19 popular alternatives, DELL, outperformed HPE in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes.
- AVGO and ANET earned more for the risk they took than HPE (a higher Sharpe ratio) and fell less in their worst decline of the past 10 years.
- NVDA outperformed HPE over all three long-term periods but in only one of the five short-term ones, so HPE has had the better of it lately.

| Investment | 1Y return | 3Y return | 5Y return | 10Y return | Periods ahead of HPE | Verdict | Sharpe |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| HPE: Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company (this page) | +150% | +296% | +315% | +483% |  |  | 0.89 |
| [DELL](https://easycompare.io/research/dell): Dell Technologies Inc. | +217% | +636% | +800% | +3,701% | 3/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | consistent | 1.08 |
| [NVDA](https://easycompare.io/research/nvda): NVIDIA Corporation | +18.8% | +425% | +884% | +13,019% | 1/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 1.14 |
| [AMD](https://easycompare.io/research/amd): Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. | +122% | +425% | +359% | +7,583% | 1/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.82 |
| [STX](https://easycompare.io/research/stx): Seagate Technology Holdings plc | +217% | +975% | +866% | +2,698% | 1/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 1.18 |
| [WDC](https://easycompare.io/research/wdc): Western Digital Corporation | +200% | +1,030% | +759% | +911% | 1/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 1.07 |
| [AVGO](https://easycompare.io/research/avgo): Broadcom Inc. | −3.5% | +305% | +617% | +2,380% | 1/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 1.11 |
| SMCI: Super Micro Computer, Inc. | −41.0% | +30.6% | +817% | +1,383% | 1/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.94 |
| QUBT: Quantum Computing, Inc. | −62.4% | +656% | +20.1% | +5,317% | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.63 |
| [ANET](https://easycompare.io/research/anet): Arista Networks, Inc. | +23.7% | +289% | +634% | +3,439% | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 1.06 |
| [MSFT](https://easycompare.io/research/msft): Microsoft Corporation | +3.8% | +66.6% | +80.3% | +946% | 2/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.56 |
| [NTAP](https://easycompare.io/research/ntap): NetApp, Inc. | +81.9% | +198% | +159% | +691% | 2/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.71 |
| RGTI: Rigetti Computing, Inc. | −73.1% | +872% | +16.4% | — | 0/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.65 |
| HPQ: HP Inc. | +18.6% | +35.8% | +31.9% | +207% | 2/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.33 |
| LOGI: Logitech International S.A. | +0.8% | +65.4% | +32.1% | +489% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.34 |
| [CSCO](https://easycompare.io/research/csco): Cisco Systems, Inc. | +53.8% | +118% | +118% | +374% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.73 |
| [IBM](https://easycompare.io/research/ibm): International Business Machines Corporation | −12.5% | +93.5% | +116% | +151% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.66 |
| NTNX: Nutanix, Inc. | −0.1% | +90.0% | +88.3% | +139% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.50 |
| [INTC](https://easycompare.io/research/intc): Intel Corp. | +141% | +167% | +79.8% | +219% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.49 |
| IONQ: IonQ, Inc. | −47.8% | +148% | +199% | — | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.71 |

### How did HPE do year by year?

This table shows each investment's total return in every full calendar year since 2016, along with where HPE ranked among its popular alternatives each year.

- Among its popular alternatives, NVDA came out ahead of HPE most often, in eight of the ten years both traded.
- HPE finished ahead of the S&P 500 in four of its ten full calendar years.
- Ranked against its popular alternatives each year, HPE finished in the top quarter in two of ten years and in the bottom quarter in three. In 2025, it ranked 13 of 20.

| Year | HPE | SPY |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2025 | +15.5% | +17.7% |
| 2024 | +29.1% | +24.9% |
| 2023 | +9.7% | +26.2% |
| 2022 | +4.5% | −18.2% |
| 2021 | +37.4% | +28.7% |
| 2020 | −21.9% | +18.3% |
| 2019 | +23.7% | +31.2% |
| 2018 | −5.7% | −4.6% |
| 2017 | +8.6% | +21.7% |
| 2016 | +54.2% | +12.0% |

## Risk and diversification

How HPE 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 HPE's worst declines?

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

- In all five of HPE's worst declines, the S&P 500 held up better over the same dates.
- Not every decline was the market's doing: HPE fell 26.4% from June to July 2026, while the S&P 500 slipped only 1.7%.
- The longest climb back to a previous high took 22 months, after HPE fell 56.9% from March 2018 to March 2020.

| Decline | Peak | Low | Back at the high | SPY over the same dates | Market event |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| −56.9% | March 6, 2018 | March 23, 2020 | January 7, 2022 | −14.7% | late-2018 sell-off |
| −48.3% | January 22, 2025 | April 8, 2025 | September 10, 2025 | −17.9% |  |
| −30.5% | March 29, 2022 | September 30, 2022 | June 15, 2023 | −22.0% | 2022 bear market |
| −28.8% | October 23, 2015 | January 20, 2016 | March 16, 2016 | −10.0% | 2015 China and oil sell-off |
| −26.4% | June 2, 2026 | July 2, 2026 | August 12, 2026 | −1.7% |  |

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

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

- HPE fell further than the S&P 500 in all five crashes it has traded through. The clearest case was the Covid crash, when HPE fell 45.3% and the S&P 500 fell 33.7%.
- Among its popular alternatives, STX held up best, falling less than HPE in four of the five crashes they both traded through.
- HPE began trading after the 2008 financial crisis, but 13 of its popular alternatives lived through it. The mildest fall among them was IBM's 44.3%, against 55.2% for the S&P 500.

| Crash | Dates | HPE fall | SPY fall |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Dot-com bust | March 10, 2000 to October 9, 2002 | not trading | −47.5% |
| Global financial crisis | October 9, 2007 to March 9, 2009 | not trading | −55.2% |
| Flash crash | May 6, 2010 to May 7, 2010 | not trading | −1.5% |
| Euro debt crisis | July 22, 2011 to October 3, 2011 | not trading | −17.9% |
| China devaluation & oil rout | August 10, 2015 to February 11, 2016 | not trading | −12.8% |
| Volmageddon | February 2, 2018 to February 9, 2018 | −9.6% | −6.5% |
| Q4 2018 selloff | September 21, 2018 to December 24, 2018 | −27.4% | −19.3% |
| COVID crash | February 19, 2020 to March 23, 2020 | −45.3% | −33.7% |
| 2022 bear market | January 4, 2022 to October 12, 2022 | −30.5% | −24.5% |
| SVB / regional bank stress | March 8, 2023 to March 13, 2023 | −7.2% | −3.4% |

### How closely does HPE 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, HPE captured 116% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 102% of its losses in falling months, with a beta of 1.31. It amplified the market's moves in both directions.
- DELL took just 43% of the S&P 500's losses, against 102% for HPE, while still keeping 154% of its gains.
- Eight of the 17 popular alternatives had a higher capture ratio (upside capture divided by downside capture) than HPE's 1.14, led by DELL, STX and ANET.

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

| Investment | Upside capture | Downside capture | Beta |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| HPE: Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company (this page) | 116% | 102% | 1.31 |
| [DELL](https://easycompare.io/research/dell): Dell Technologies Inc. | 154% | 43.0% | 1.13 |
| [NVDA](https://easycompare.io/research/nvda): NVIDIA Corporation | 248% | 140% | 1.83 |
| [AMD](https://easycompare.io/research/amd): Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. | 254% | 179% | 2.25 |
| [STX](https://easycompare.io/research/stx): Seagate Technology Holdings plc | 169% | 88.0% | 1.58 |
| [WDC](https://easycompare.io/research/wdc): Western Digital Corporation | 171% | 163% | 1.87 |
| [AVGO](https://easycompare.io/research/avgo): Broadcom Inc. | 158% | 86.0% | 1.19 |
| SMCI: Super Micro Computer, Inc. | 189% | 168% | 1.74 |
| QUBT: Quantum Computing, Inc. | 257% | 207% | 3.79 |
| [ANET](https://easycompare.io/research/anet): Arista Networks, Inc. | 174% | 91.0% | 1.40 |
| [MSFT](https://easycompare.io/research/msft): Microsoft Corporation | 127% | 91.0% | 0.96 |
| [NTAP](https://easycompare.io/research/ntap): NetApp, Inc. | 147% | 147% | 1.38 |
| HPQ: HP Inc. | 106% | 137% | 1.11 |
| LOGI: Logitech International S.A. | 112% | 106% | 1.01 |
| [CSCO](https://easycompare.io/research/csco): Cisco Systems, Inc. | 101% | 96.0% | 0.97 |
| [IBM](https://easycompare.io/research/ibm): International Business Machines Corporation | 89.0% | 121% | 0.95 |
| NTNX: Nutanix, Inc. | 68.0% | 91.0% | 1.20 |
| [INTC](https://easycompare.io/research/intc): Intel Corp. | 98.0% | 100% | 1.43 |

### What diversifies HPE?

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 HPE into MCK would have cut the portfolio's volatility by 20% over the past 5 years and raised its annual return (+38.7% for HPE alone, +40.1% for the mix).
- FIX made money in two of the two calendar years in which HPE lost money.
- Among large ETFs, LVHI, DXJ and EMLP have moved largely independently of HPE over the past 5 years, with correlations of 0.28 or lower, and each still earned a positive 5-year return.

| Investment | Correlation with HPE | 5Y return | Volatility | Sharpe | Rose in HPE's 2 down years |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| LVHI: Franklin International Low Volatility High Dividend Index ETF | 0.15 | +119% | 11.1% | 1.48 | 0 of 2 |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | 0.28 | +225% | 19.1% | 1.34 | 1 of 2 |
| EMLP: First Trust North American Energy Infrastructure Fund | 0.13 | +101% | 14.5% | 1.04 | 0 of 2 |
| HDV: iShares Core High Dividend ETF | 0.19 | +83.3% | 13.0% | 1.00 | 0 of 2 |
| FTLS: First Trust Long/Short Equity ETF | 0.47 | +62.9% | 10.4% | 0.99 | 1 of 2 |
| DBEF: Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Hedged Equity ETF | 0.38 | +85.0% | 13.8% | 0.96 | 1 of 2 |
| [GLD](https://easycompare.io/research/gld): SPDR Gold Shares | -0.19 | +126% | 18.9% | 0.96 | 1 of 2 |
| [XLE](https://easycompare.io/research/xle): State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF | 0.14 | +177% | 25.5% | 0.93 | 0 of 2 |

## Common questions

### What was HPE's worst drawdown?

HPE's deepest decline since it began trading in 2015 was 56.9%, from March 2018 to March 2020. It took 22 months from the low to climb back to its old high. Because HPE launched in October 2015, that record does not include the dot-com bust, the 2008 financial crisis or two other sell-offs.

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

Over ten full calendar years, HPE's best year was 2016, when it returned 54.2%. Its worst was 2020, with a return of -21.9%.

### Is there a better investment than HPE?

Among HPE's popular alternatives, AVGO earned more for the risk it took than HPE over the past 5 years, and its worst fall in 10 years was 48.3%, against 56.9% for HPE. Looking beyond its popular alternatives, ASX (semiconductors) earned more than HPE over the past 5 years with similar volatility: 48.8% a year at 43.0% volatility, against 32.9% a year at 42.2%.

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

Yes. HPE's volatility over the past 5 years was 42.2%, 2.5 times the S&P 500's 17.1%. Volatility measures how widely returns swing around their average: in roughly two years out of three, HPE's return lands within 42.2% 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 HPE's Sharpe ratio?

HPE's Sharpe ratio over the past 5 years was 0.89, against 0.79 for the S&P 500, so HPE earned more for each unit of risk than an index fund did. The Sharpe ratio is the return earned above cash for each unit of volatility: two investments with the same return are not equal if one got there with far bigger swings.

### How correlated is HPE with the S&P 500?

Over the past 5 years, HPE's monthly returns had a correlation of 0.56 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 HPE instead: the lower it is, the more that option would diversify a HPE holding.

### What are the best alternatives to HPE?

Of the 19 popular alternatives we compared, one outperformed HPE in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes, with dividends reinvested: DELL.

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

HPE finished ahead of the S&P 500 (SPY) in four of ten full calendar years. In 2025, it returned +15.5%, against +17.7% for the index.

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

HPE fell less than the S&P 500 (SPY) in none of the five major crashes it has traded through, and further in five. The clearest case was the Covid crash, when HPE fell 45.3% and the S&P 500 fell 33.7%.

### What diversifies HPE?

These had a low correlation with HPE over the past 5 years and still earned a positive 5-year return: among large ETFs, LVHI (correlation 0.15), DXJ (correlation 0.28) and EMLP (correlation 0.13); among large stocks, CAH (correlation 0.01), CLS (correlation 0.31) and FIX (correlation 0.17). A correlation near zero means the two have moved largely independently.

## More research

- [Dell Technologies (DELL) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/dell)
- [NVIDIA (NVDA) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/nvda)
- [Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/amd)
- [Seagate Technology (STX) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/stx)
- [Western Digital (WDC) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/wdc)
- [Broadcom (AVGO) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/avgo)
- [Arista Networks (ANET) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/anet)
- [Microsoft (MSFT) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/msft)
- [NetApp (NTAP) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/ntap)
- [Cisco Systems (CSCO) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/csco)
- [International Business Machines (IBM) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/ibm)
- [Intel (INTC) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/intc)

## Explore further

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