# How Illinois Tool Works (ITW) compares with the whole market and its popular alternatives

> Source: EasyCompare research, https://easycompare.io/research/itw
> 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 ITW alone. It places ITW (Illinois Tool Works Inc.) 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 ITW stands in the market, and of the alternatives worth a closer look.

Period covered: ITW'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 6 months, ITW rose 2.1% against 9.1% for the S&P 500 and 11.2% for the Nasdaq 100. Its industrial machinery peers split over the past 6 months: EMR (Emerson Electric) rose 10.1%, while DOV (Dover) fell 10.7%.
- **Stock or market?:** ITW held up far better than its industry: it rose 1.9% over the past 3 months while the industrial machinery ETF XLI (State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF) fell 6.1%. The S&P 500 rose 3.9%. Its industrial machinery peers did not move as one over the past 3 months: EMR (Emerson Electric) rose 17.9%, while ROK (Rockwell Automation) fell 6.4%.
- **Past 1 to 3 years:** ITW has trailed the market, rising 11.7% 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 (32.1% against 89.3%). The last two calendar years both went the same way: ITW fell 0.4% in 2025, against 15.8% for the S&P 500 and 17.9% for the Nasdaq 100.
- **Long term:** ITW turned $10,000 into $30,800 over the past decade, against $42,100 in the S&P 500.
- **In a crash:** The Covid crash took 37.9% off ITW, against 33.7% for the S&P 500. That was more than XYL (Xylem, 35.9%) but less than PH (Parker-Hannifin, 54.7%). ITW fell further than the S&P 500 in three of the last three sell-offs, including the Covid crash (37.9% against 33.7%).
- **Diversification:** ITW is more of the same, not a cushion: a correlation of 0.66 with the S&P 500 over 5 years and 0.67 with the total US market, more closely than 96% of stocks worth at least $300 million. Over 10 years, ITW's beta versus the S&P 500 was 1.04: in the S&P 500's rising months it gained 94% as much as the index, and in falling months it lost 1.2 times as much.
- **Better options**
  - **Popular alternatives:** FAST (Fastenal) earned more for the risk it took than ITW over the past 5 years, and its worst fall in 10 years was 30.7%, against 37.9% for ITW.
  - **Nearby categories and themes:** PPA (Invesco Aerospace & Defense ETF, aerospace & defense) earned more than ITW with less volatility over the past 5 years: 16.3% a year at 18.9% volatility, against 6.7% a year at 21.4%.
  - **Versus the S&P 500:** Simply owning the S&P 500 would have done better over the past 5 years: 12.7% a year at 17.1% volatility, against 6.7% at 21.4% for ITW.

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

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

- $10,000 invested in ITW at the end of September 1997 would have grown to $188,355 by September 2026, more 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 ITW, and ROK finished highest, at $1,295,740.

## ITW 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.

- ITW's deepest decline since it began trading in 1986 was 54.9%, from October 2007 to March 2009. It took 22 months from the low to climb back to its old high.
- Over 29 full calendar years, ITW's best was 1997, when it returned 51.9%, and its worst was 2008, when it lost 32.7%. It lost money in ten of those years.
- ITW is 6.9% below its all-time high.

- Type: Stock, Industrials (Industrial - Machinery)
- Trading since: October 17, 1986
- Market value: $78B
- Volatility (5 years): 21.4%; Sharpe ratio: 0.41
- Worst decline ever: −54.9%, from October 12, 2007 to March 5, 2009; back at its high by January 12, 2011

| Period | ITW total return |
| --- | --- |
| 1 month | +3.5% |
| 3 months | +1.9% |
| 6 months | +2.1% |
| year to date | +12.3% |
| 1 year | +11.7% |
| 3 years | +32.1% |
| 5 years | +38.4% |
| 10 years | +208% |

## ITW against the whole market

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

### How does ITW rank among all stocks?

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

- ITW's worst decline of the past 10 years ranks in the top 5% of the 2,187 stocks worth at least $300 million, where the top fell the least.

| Measure | ITW | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1-year return | +11.7% | 1,520 of 3,287 (top 47%) |
| 3-year return | +32.1% | 1,815 of 3,017 (top 61%) |
| 5-year return | +38.4% | 1,236 of 2,893 (top 43%) |
| 10-year return | +208% | 833 of 2,202 (top 38%) |
| Volatility, 5 years | 21.4% | 133 of 2,893 (top 5%) |
| Sharpe ratio, 5 years | 0.41 | 1,200 of 2,893 (top 42%) |
| Worst decline, past 10 years | −37.9% | 99 of 2,187 (top 5%) |

### What has beaten ITW 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).

- 30 stocks and 371 ETFs worth at least $500 million sit in the green region: each earned more than ITW over the past 5 years with smaller price swings. That is 11% of the 3,633 screened.
- Among those with at least half ITW's swings, LVHI has the best return for its risk: 17.0% a year at 11.1% volatility, 48% less than ITW's 21.4%, and a Sharpe ratio (return above cash per unit of volatility) of 1.48 against 0.41 for ITW. DXJ earned the most, 26.6% a year, while still swinging less than ITW (19.1% against 21.4%).
- None of ITW's popular alternatives made it, but PPA (aerospace & defense) did: 16.3% a year at 18.9% volatility, 12% less than ITW's 21.4%.

### Is there a better investment than ITW?

The table below lists investments that beat ITW 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 ITW's popular alternatives, FAST earned more for the risk it took than ITW over the past 5 years, and its worst fall in 10 years was 30.7%, against 37.9% for ITW.
- Looking beyond its popular alternatives, PPA (aerospace & defense) earned more than ITW with less volatility over the past 5 years: 16.3% a year at 18.9% volatility, against 6.7% a year at 21.4%.
- Simply owning the S&P 500 would have done better over the past 5 years: 12.7% a year at 17.1% volatility, against 6.7% at 21.4% for ITW.

The 15 strongest of 401 investments that beat ITW 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 ITW | Better on |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| ITW: Illinois Tool Works Inc. (this page) |  | +6.7% | 21.4% | 0.41 | −37.9% | +208% |  |  |
| [VIG](https://easycompare.io/research/vig): Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF | US Dividend Equity | +10.4% | 14.1% | 0.78 | −31.7% | +258% | 0.80 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [BRK-B](https://easycompare.io/research/brk-b): Berkshire Hathaway Inc. | Insurance | +13.4% | 17.1% | 0.82 | −29.6% | +274% | 0.59 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [JNJ](https://easycompare.io/research/jnj): Johnson & Johnson | Pharmaceuticals | +12.7% | 17.9% | 0.76 | −27.4% | +196% | 0.48 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| LVHI: Franklin International Low Volatility High Dividend Index ETF | International Equity | +17.0% | 11.1% | 1.48 | −32.4% | +194% | 0.70 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [DFAC](https://easycompare.io/research/dfac): Dimensional - US Core Equity 2 ETF | US Total Market | +11.4% | 17.0% | 0.72 | −23.1% | — | 0.75 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| PJUL: Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF | Broad Market | +10.5% | 8.6% | 1.20 | −18.2% | — | 0.67 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| FJAN: FT Vest U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - January | Multi-Asset | +11.1% | 10.5% | 1.05 | −13.6% | — | 0.63 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [VTV](https://easycompare.io/research/vtv): Vanguard Morningstar Value ETF | US Large-Cap Value | +12.1% | 13.7% | 0.90 | −36.8% | +235% | 0.82 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [ED](https://easycompare.io/research/ed): Consolidated Edison, Inc. | Electric Utilities | +12.0% | 18.8% | 0.70 | −30.9% | +114% | 0.44 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [XLV](https://easycompare.io/research/xlv): State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF | Health Care Equity | +8.4% | 15.3% | 0.60 | −28.4% | +202% | 0.62 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| CHT: Chunghwa Telecom Co., Ltd. | Integrated Telecommunications | +7.7% | 13.3% | 0.63 | −23.8% | +101% | 0.14 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| DFIV: Dimensional - International Value ETF | International Equity | +14.8% | 16.4% | 0.93 | −25.4% | — | 0.68 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| AVLV: Avantis U.S. Large Cap Value ETF | US Large-Cap Value | +14.0% | 16.9% | 0.86 | −19.5% | — | 0.80 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| OEF: iShares S&P 100 ETF | US Large-Cap Equity | +14.3% | 17.8% | 0.84 | −31.4% | +367% | 0.56 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [SCHD](https://easycompare.io/research/schd): Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF | US Dividend Equity | +9.7% | 14.3% | 0.72 | −33.4% | +252% | 0.79 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |

## ITW against its popular alternatives

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

### How do ITW'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 24 popular alternatives earned more than ITW 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, ITW returned 6.7% a year, less than the S&P 500's 12.7%, with higher volatility (21.4% against 17.1%).

### Has ITW consistently beaten its popular alternatives?

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

- Six of the 25 popular alternatives, led by FAST, EMR and NDSN, outperformed ITW in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes.
- FAST, EMR and NDSN outperformed ITW in every long-term period and in all but one short-term period, the most consistent record in the group.
- FAST earned more for the risk it took than ITW (a higher Sharpe ratio) and fell less in its worst decline of the past 10 years.

| Investment | 1Y return | 3Y return | 5Y return | 10Y return | Periods ahead of ITW | Verdict | Sharpe |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| ITW: Illinois Tool Works Inc. (this page) | +11.7% | +32.1% | +38.4% | +208% |  |  | 0.41 |
| [FAST](https://easycompare.io/research/fast): Fastenal Company | +22.8% | +92.7% | +108% | +576% | 5/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.72 |
| [EMR](https://easycompare.io/research/emr): Emerson Electric Co. | +25.0% | +84.9% | +82.1% | +309% | 5/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.57 |
| NDSN: Nordson Corporation | +40.5% | +57.7% | +40.9% | +262% | 5/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.40 |
| [GWW](https://easycompare.io/research/gww): W.W. Grainger, Inc. | +38.7% | +98.1% | +221% | +654% | 4/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 1.07 |
| WTS: Watts Water Technologies, Inc. | +28.1% | +113% | +104% | +539% | 4/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.65 |
| [AME](https://easycompare.io/research/ame): AMETEK, Inc. | +32.8% | +78.1% | +96.1% | +481% | 4/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.72 |
| [ROK](https://easycompare.io/research/rok): Rockwell Automation, Inc. | +22.9% | +68.9% | +45.6% | +335% | 2/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.40 |
| [PH](https://easycompare.io/research/ph): Parker-Hannifin Corporation | +28.7% | +161% | +235% | +789% | 1/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.99 |
| [ETN](https://easycompare.io/research/etn): Eaton Corporation plc | +2.3% | +104% | +153% | +657% | 1/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.74 |
| LECO: Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. | +10.0% | +57.7% | +93.5% | +389% | 1/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.62 |
| SPXC: SPX Technologies, Inc. | −11.2% | +108% | +168% | +728% | 0/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.72 |
| DOV: Dover Corporation | +17.9% | +51.3% | +24.2% | +320% | 2/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.30 |
| FLS: Flowserve Corporation | +38.1% | +97.4% | +104% | +94.5% | 2/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.57 |
| SNA: Snap-on Incorporated | +10.4% | +56.9% | +83.2% | +195% | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.63 |
| SWK: Stanley Black & Decker, Inc. | +42.0% | +36.2% | −39.7% | +2.0% | 5/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | -0.07 |
| GGG: Graco Inc. | −0.1% | +20.3% | +18.5% | +263% | 2/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.26 |
| IR: Ingersoll Rand Inc. | +0.3% | +30.4% | +47.6% | — | 1/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.41 |
| IEX: IDEX Corporation | +41.9% | +26.1% | +14.1% | +205% | 5/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.23 |
| FTV: Fortive Corporation | +18.9% | +11.7% | +6.3% | +98.0% | 2/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.18 |
| [HON](https://easycompare.io/research/hon): Honeywell International Inc. | +6.8% | +27.0% | +7.5% | +160% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.18 |
| XYL: Xylem Inc. | −27.4% | +18.7% | −11.7% | +143% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.04 |
| [F](https://easycompare.io/research/f): Ford Motor Company | +6.0% | +25.9% | +3.0% | +71.8% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.21 |
| PNR: Pentair plc | −51.0% | −12.3% | −23.3% | +57.3% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.03 |
| MIDD: The Middleby Corporation | +2.2% | +18.8% | −21.5% | +18.7% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.03 |
| ESAB: ESAB Corporation | −46.7% | +1.3% | — | — | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | — |

### How did ITW do year by year?

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

- ITW finished ahead of the S&P 500 in 15 of its 29 full calendar years, and behind it in each of the last three.
- Ranked against its popular alternatives each year, ITW finished in the top quarter in five of 29 years and in the bottom quarter in two. In 2025, it ranked 17 of 26.
- Among its popular alternatives, IR came out ahead of ITW most often, in five of the eight years both traded.

| Year | ITW | SPY |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2025 | −0.4% | +17.7% |
| 2024 | −1.0% | +24.9% |
| 2023 | +21.6% | +26.2% |
| 2022 | −8.5% | −18.2% |
| 2021 | +23.6% | +28.7% |
| 2020 | +16.4% | +18.3% |
| 2019 | +45.6% | +31.2% |
| 2018 | −22.1% | −4.6% |
| 2017 | +38.9% | +21.7% |
| 2016 | +35.0% | +12.0% |

## Risk and diversification

How ITW 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 ITW's worst declines?

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

- In all four of ITW's worst declines, the S&P 500 held up better over the same dates.
- The slowest recovery came after ITW fell 47.6% from August to October 1987; it did not regain that peak until February 1990, two years later.

| Decline | Peak | Low | Back at the high | SPY over the same dates | Market event |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| −54.9% | October 12, 2007 | March 5, 2009 | January 12, 2011 | −54.7% | 2008 financial crisis |
| −47.6% | August 11, 1987 | October 20, 1987 | February 28, 1990 | — |  |
| −38.3% | June 30, 1999 | September 21, 2001 | November 25, 2003 | −27.2% | dot-com bust |
| −37.9% | February 20, 2020 | March 23, 2020 | July 27, 2020 | −33.4% | Covid crash |
| −36.7% | May 14, 1998 | September 11, 1998 | February 23, 1999 | −8.6% |  |

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

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

- Among its popular alternatives, FAST held up best, falling less than ITW in seven of the ten crashes they both traded through.
- ITW fell further than the S&P 500 in five of the ten crashes it has traded through. The clearest case was the 2011 euro debt crisis, when ITW fell 29.0% and the S&P 500 fell 17.9%.

| Crash | Dates | ITW fall | SPY fall |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Dot-com bust | March 10, 2000 to October 9, 2002 | −30.8% | −47.5% |
| Global financial crisis | October 9, 2007 to March 9, 2009 | −54.9% | −55.2% |
| Flash crash | May 6, 2010 to May 7, 2010 | −1.1% | −1.5% |
| Euro debt crisis | July 22, 2011 to October 3, 2011 | −29.0% | −17.9% |
| China devaluation & oil rout | August 10, 2015 to February 11, 2016 | −14.0% | −12.8% |
| Volmageddon | February 2, 2018 to February 9, 2018 | −8.4% | −6.5% |
| Q4 2018 selloff | September 21, 2018 to December 24, 2018 | −19.3% | −19.3% |
| COVID crash | February 19, 2020 to March 23, 2020 | −37.9% | −33.7% |
| 2022 bear market | January 4, 2022 to October 12, 2022 | −28.0% | −24.5% |
| SVB / regional bank stress | March 8, 2023 to March 13, 2023 | −2.9% | −3.4% |

### How closely does ITW 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.

- 13 of the 23 popular alternatives had a higher capture ratio (upside capture divided by downside capture) than ITW's 0.81, led by ETN, WTS and FAST.
- WTS took just 80% of the S&P 500's losses, against 116% for ITW, while still keeping 102% of its gains.
- Over the past 10 years, ITW captured 94% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 116% of its losses in falling months, with a beta of 1.04. Its share of the market's losses was larger than its share of the gains.

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

| Investment | Upside capture | Downside capture | Beta |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| ITW: Illinois Tool Works Inc. (this page) | 94.0% | 116% | 1.04 |
| [FAST](https://easycompare.io/research/fast): Fastenal Company | 106% | 87.0% | 0.98 |
| [EMR](https://easycompare.io/research/emr): Emerson Electric Co. | 124% | 153% | 1.39 |
| NDSN: Nordson Corporation | 102% | 112% | 0.98 |
| [GWW](https://easycompare.io/research/gww): W.W. Grainger, Inc. | 113% | 95.0% | 1.12 |
| WTS: Watts Water Technologies, Inc. | 102% | 80.0% | 1.02 |
| [AME](https://easycompare.io/research/ame): AMETEK, Inc. | 111% | 101% | 1.15 |
| [ROK](https://easycompare.io/research/rok): Rockwell Automation, Inc. | 122% | 138% | 1.46 |
| [PH](https://easycompare.io/research/ph): Parker-Hannifin Corporation | 141% | 126% | 1.43 |
| [ETN](https://easycompare.io/research/etn): Eaton Corporation plc | 114% | 80.0% | 1.16 |
| LECO: Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. | 118% | 122% | 1.20 |
| SPXC: SPX Technologies, Inc. | 141% | 130% | 1.33 |
| DOV: Dover Corporation | 114% | 133% | 1.27 |
| FLS: Flowserve Corporation | 119% | 188% | 1.49 |
| SNA: Snap-on Incorporated | 86.0% | 93.0% | 0.99 |
| SWK: Stanley Black & Decker, Inc. | 101% | 198% | 1.30 |
| GGG: Graco Inc. | 90.0% | 92.0% | 0.78 |
| IEX: IDEX Corporation | 97.0% | 121% | 1.03 |
| FTV: Fortive Corporation | 88.0% | 133% | 1.10 |
| [HON](https://easycompare.io/research/hon): Honeywell International Inc. | 90.0% | 118% | 1.00 |
| XYL: Xylem Inc. | 90.0% | 123% | 1.03 |
| [F](https://easycompare.io/research/f): Ford Motor Company | 105% | 167% | 1.51 |
| PNR: Pentair plc | 89.0% | 148% | 1.11 |
| MIDD: The Middleby Corporation | 100% | 190% | 1.52 |

### What diversifies ITW?

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 ITW into GLD would have cut the portfolio's volatility by 17% over the past 5 years and raised its annual return (+7.0% for ITW alone, +9.8% for the mix).
- Among large ETFs, DXJ, SMH and GLD have moved largely independently of ITW over the past 5 years, with correlations of 0.40 or lower, and each still earned a positive 5-year return.
- MCK made money in seven of the ten calendar years in which ITW lost money.

| Investment | Correlation with ITW | 5Y return | Volatility | Sharpe | Rose in ITW's 10 down years |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | 0.40 | +225% | 19.1% | 1.34 | 3 of 10 |
| [SMH](https://easycompare.io/research/smh): VanEck Semiconductor ETF | 0.34 | +323% | 36.9% | 0.97 | 4 of 10 |
| [GLD](https://easycompare.io/research/gld): SPDR Gold Shares | 0.12 | +126% | 18.9% | 0.96 | 5 of 10 |
| SPMO: Invesco S&P 500 Momentum ETF | 0.48 | +136% | 20.8% | 0.93 | 2 of 10 |
| [XLE](https://easycompare.io/research/xle): State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF | 0.49 | +177% | 25.5% | 0.93 | 6 of 10 |
| EWT: iShares MSCI Taiwan ETF | 0.29 | +153% | 24.2% | 0.89 | 3 of 10 |
| EDIV: State Street SPDR S&P Emerging Markets Dividend ETF | 0.46 | +69.9% | 13.8% | 0.84 | 2 of 10 |
| PTLC: Pacer Trendpilot US Large Cap ETF | 0.46 | +57.4% | 11.8% | 0.83 | 3 of 10 |

## Common questions

### What was ITW's worst drawdown?

ITW's deepest decline since it began trading in 1986 was 54.9%, from October 2007 to March 2009. It took 22 months from the low to climb back to its old high.

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

Over 29 full calendar years, ITW's best year was 1997, when it returned 51.9%. Its worst was 2008, with a return of -32.7%.

### Is there a better investment than ITW?

Among ITW's popular alternatives, FAST earned more for the risk it took than ITW over the past 5 years, and its worst fall in 10 years was 30.7%, against 37.9% for ITW. Looking beyond its popular alternatives, PPA (aerospace & defense) earned more than ITW with less volatility over the past 5 years: 16.3% a year at 18.9% volatility, against 6.7% a year at 21.4%.

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

Yes. ITW's volatility over the past 5 years was 21.4%, 1.2 times the S&P 500's 17.1%. Volatility measures how widely returns swing around their average: in roughly two years out of three, ITW's return lands within 21.4% 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 ITW's Sharpe ratio?

ITW's Sharpe ratio over the past 5 years was 0.41, against 0.79 for the S&P 500, so ITW 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 ITW with the S&P 500?

Over the past 5 years, ITW's monthly returns had a correlation of 0.66 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 ITW instead: the lower it is, the more that option would diversify a ITW holding.

### What are the best alternatives to ITW?

Of the 25 popular alternatives we compared, six outperformed ITW in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes, with dividends reinvested: FAST, EMR and NDSN.

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

ITW finished ahead of the S&P 500 (SPY) in 15 of 29 full calendar years. In 2025, it returned -0.4%, against +17.7% for the index.

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

ITW fell less than the S&P 500 (SPY) in one of the ten major crashes it has traded through, and further in five. The clearest case was the 2011 euro debt crisis, when ITW fell 29.0% and the S&P 500 fell 17.9%.

### What diversifies ITW?

These had a low correlation with ITW over the past 5 years and still earned a positive 5-year return: among large ETFs, DXJ (correlation 0.40), SMH (correlation 0.34) and GLD (correlation 0.12); among large stocks, CAH (correlation 0.37), CLS (correlation 0.20) and FIX (correlation 0.48). 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/itw
- All research pages: https://easycompare.io/llms.txt
- Compare the entire market against ITW live: https://betterthanspy.com/?b=ITW&utm_source=easycompare&utm_medium=research