# How PepsiCo (PEP) compares with the whole market and its popular alternatives

> Source: EasyCompare research, https://easycompare.io/research/pep
> 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 PEP alone. It places PEP (PepsiCo, 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 PEP stands in the market, and of the alternatives worth a closer look.

Period covered: PEP'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:** PEP has gone against the market, falling 12.8% over the past 6 months while the S&P 500 rose 9.1%. PEP is 22.8% below its high, bear-market territory, while the S&P 500 sits 1.3% below a record.
- **Stock or market?:** PEP was flat over the past 3 months, 4.1 points behind the food & beverages ETF XLP (State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF), which rose 4.1%. The S&P 500 rose 3.9%. Its food & beverage peers did not move as one over the past 3 months: KDP (Keurig Dr Pepper) rose 14.6%, while GIS (General Mills) fell 9.4%.
- **Past 1 to 3 years:** Over the past year, PEP fell 9.2% while the S&P 500 rose 15.8%. The same gap shows up over 3 years (6.7% against 89.3%). PEP finished behind the S&P 500 in both 2024 and 2025.
- **Long term:** PEP turned $10,000 into $17,300 over the past decade, against $42,100 in the S&P 500.
- **In a crash:** Across seven sell-offs, PEP has typically lost about 66% as much as the S&P 500. In the 2022 bear market, PEP fell 11.9%, against 24.5% for the S&P 500, and less than food & beverage peers such as KO (Coca-Cola, 16.7%).
- **Diversification:** Against the S&P 500, PEP has a correlation of 0.34 over 5 years, less closely than 62% of stocks worth at least $300 million. Next to an index fund it is some diversification, but not a hedge. Over 10 years, PEP's beta versus the S&P 500 was 0.48: 48% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 65% of its losses in falling ones.
- **Better options**
  - **Nearby categories and themes:** CCEP (Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, food & beverages) and BUD (Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV, alcoholic beverages) were ahead of PEP in most short and long periods.
  - **Whole market:** 553 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than PEP 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 PEP have grown?

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

- $10,000 invested in PEP at the end of September 1997 would have grown to $64,589 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 PEP, and MNST finished highest, at $45,663,831.

## PEP 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.

- PEP is still 22.8% below its all-time high.
- PEP's deepest decline since it began trading in 1986 was 40.4%, from January 2008 to March 2009. It took about three years from the low to climb back to its old high.
- Over 29 full calendar years, PEP's best was 2000, when it returned 42.6%, and its worst was 2008, when it lost 26.0%. It lost money in eight of those years.

- Type: Stock, Consumer Staples (Beverages - Non-Alcoholic)
- Trading since: October 17, 1986
- Market value: $183B
- Volatility (5 years): 19.1%; Sharpe ratio: 0.07
- Worst decline ever: −40.4%, from January 10, 2008 to March 9, 2009; back at its high by June 18, 2012

| Period | PEP total return |
| --- | --- |
| 1 month | +3.4% |
| 3 months | 0.0% |
| 6 months | −12.8% |
| year to date | −2.9% |
| 1 year | −9.2% |
| 3 years | −6.7% |
| 5 years | −2.3% |
| 10 years | +72.6% |

## PEP against the whole market

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

### How does PEP rank among all stocks?

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

- PEP's worst decline of the past 10 years ranks in the top 1% of the 2,187 stocks worth at least $300 million, where the top fell the least.
- PEP's 3-year return ranks in the bottom 19% of the 3,017 stocks worth at least $300 million with 3 years of history.

| Measure | PEP | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1-year return | −9.2% | 2,320 of 3,287 (top 71%) |
| 3-year return | −6.7% | 2,433 of 3,017 (top 81%) |
| 5-year return | −2.3% | 1,758 of 2,893 (top 61%) |
| 10-year return | +72.6% | 1,460 of 2,202 (top 67%) |
| Volatility, 5 years | 19.1% | 70 of 2,893 (top 3%) |
| Sharpe ratio, 5 years | 0.07 | 2,192 of 2,893 (top 76%) |
| Worst decline, past 10 years | −30.3% | 22 of 2,187 (top 2%) |

### What has beaten PEP 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).

- 24 stocks and 529 ETFs worth at least $500 million sit in the green region: each earned more than PEP over the past 5 years with smaller price swings. That is 15% of the 3,633 screened.
- Among those with at least half PEP's swings, LVHI has the best return for its risk: 17.0% a year at 11.1% volatility, 42% less than PEP's 19.1%, and a Sharpe ratio (return above cash per unit of volatility) of 1.48 against 0.07 for PEP.
- Among PEP's popular alternatives, KO is in the region. KO earned 14.7% a year against a loss of 0.5% a year for PEP, at 16.8% volatility, 12% less than PEP's 19.1%.

### Is there a better investment than PEP?

The table below lists investments that beat PEP 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 PEP's popular alternatives, KO earned more than PEP with less volatility over the past 5 years: 14.7% a year at 16.8% volatility, against a loss of 0.5% a year at 19.1%.
- Looking beyond its popular alternatives, CCEP (food & beverages) and BUD (alcoholic beverages) were ahead of PEP in most short and long periods.
- Across the whole market, 553 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than PEP with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them VTI, VOO and BRK-B.

The 15 strongest of 553 investments that beat PEP 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 PEP | Better on |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| PEP: PepsiCo, Inc. (this page) |  | −0.5% | 19.1% | 0.07 | −30.3% | +72.6% |  |  |
| [SGOV](https://easycompare.io/research/sgov): iShares 0-3 Month Treasury Bond ETF | Treasury Bonds | +3.8% | 0.3% | 13.25 | −0.3% | — | -0.10 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| JAAA: Janus Henderson AAA CLO ETF | CLO Bonds | +5.1% | 1.7% | 2.98 | −2.6% | — | -0.04 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| BALT: Innovator Defined Wealth Shield ETF | Crypto | +6.3% | 3.3% | 1.85 | −4.9% | — | 0.24 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| VRIG: Invesco Variable Rate Investment Grade ETF | Bonds | +4.7% | 1.3% | 3.51 | −13.1% | +40.5% | -0.02 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| FLRT: Pacer Aristotle Pacific Floating Rate High Income ETF | Financials | +6.0% | 2.3% | 2.55 | −21.0% | +58.0% | 0.11 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| FLOT: iShares Floating Rate Bond ETF | Floating Rate Bonds | +4.5% | 1.8% | 2.48 | −13.5% | +35.9% | -0.09 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [VTIP](https://easycompare.io/research/vtip): Vanguard Short-Term Inflation-Protected Securities ETF | Treasury Bonds | +2.7% | 2.9% | 0.94 | −6.3% | +32.7% | 0.33 | 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% | — | 0.40 | 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% | — | 0.35 | 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% | — | 0.30 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [BSV](https://easycompare.io/research/bsv): Vanguard Short-Term Bond ETF | Short-Term Bonds | +1.7% | 2.8% | 0.63 | −8.5% | +20.5% | 0.21 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [VCSH](https://easycompare.io/research/vcsh): Vanguard Short-Term Corporate Bond ETF | Investment Grade Bonds | +2.3% | 2.9% | 0.80 | −12.9% | +28.6% | 0.24 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [JEPI](https://easycompare.io/research/jepi): JPMorgan Equity Premium Income ETF | Equity Income | +7.5% | 11.0% | 0.71 | −13.7% | — | 0.63 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| VNLA: Janus Henderson Short Duration Income ETF | Bonds | +4.0% | 1.1% | 3.77 | −4.5% | — | 0.08 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| FLTR: VanEck IG Floating Rate ETF | Multi-Asset | +4.8% | 2.1% | 2.20 | −17.8% | +41.8% | -0.11 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |

## PEP against its popular alternatives

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

### How do PEP'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 KO was both more rewarding and calmer than PEP over the past 5 years, earning a higher annual return with lower volatility.
- Over the past 5 years, PEP returned -0.5% a year, less than the S&P 500's 12.7%, with higher volatility (19.1% against 17.1%).

### Has PEP consistently beaten its popular alternatives?

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

- 13 of the 23 popular alternatives, led by COST, WMT and KDP, outperformed PEP in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes.
- COST, WMT and KDP outperformed PEP in every long-term period and in all but one short-term period, the most consistent record in the group.
- WMT and MDLZ earned more for the risk they took than PEP (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 PEP | Verdict | Sharpe |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| PEP: PepsiCo, Inc. (this page) | −9.2% | −6.7% | −2.3% | +72.6% |  |  | 0.07 |
| [COST](https://easycompare.io/research/cost): Costco Wholesale Corporation | +6.9% | +87.2% | +123% | +685% | 5/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.82 |
| [WMT](https://easycompare.io/research/wmt): Walmart Inc. | +11.0% | +130% | +158% | +508% | 5/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.96 |
| [KDP](https://easycompare.io/research/kdp): Keurig Dr Pepper Inc. | +28.7% | +31.9% | +13.4% | +281% | 5/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.23 |
| [KO](https://easycompare.io/research/ko): The Coca-Cola Company | +40.2% | +86.8% | +98.2% | +204% | 5/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.91 |
| [KR](https://easycompare.io/research/kr): The Kroger Co. | −6.9% | +52.6% | +78.5% | +151% | 5/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.56 |
| [MDLZ](https://easycompare.io/research/mdlz): Mondelez International, Inc. | +5.5% | +9.2% | +21.5% | +93.4% | 5/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.29 |
| [MNST](https://easycompare.io/research/mnst): Monster Beverage Corporation | +34.9% | +88.2% | +121% | +285% | 4/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.77 |
| [ADM](https://easycompare.io/research/adm): Archer-Daniels-Midland Company | +31.1% | +22.1% | +42.9% | +156% | 3/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | consistent | 0.40 |
| PRMB: Primo Brands Corporation | −7.8% | +64.5% | +41.2% | +79.7% | 3/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | consistent | 0.38 |
| FIZZ: National Beverage Corp. | +6.7% | −5.6% | −21.8% | +108% | 5/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | -0.02 |
| BALL: Ball Corporation | +33.6% | +51.5% | −25.9% | +78.6% | 5/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | -0.04 |
| SJM: The J. M. Smucker Company | +28.1% | +29.3% | +26.7% | +37.2% | 5/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 0.32 |
| COCO: The Vita Coco Company, Inc. | +48.4% | +152% | +357% | — | 4/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 0.82 |
| HSY: The Hershey Company | −6.2% | −2.9% | +6.7% | +127% | 2/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.17 |
| UTZ: Utz Brands, Inc. | +17.3% | +30.5% | −2.1% | — | 4/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.21 |
| CELH: Celsius Holdings, Inc. | −53.5% | −44.5% | −4.3% | +4,120% | 3/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.32 |
| JJSF: J&J Snack Foods Corp. | −8.8% | −41.5% | −37.8% | −16.0% | 3/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.19 |
| KHC: The Kraft Heinz Company | −0.9% | −10.0% | −16.9% | −56.7% | 3/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.04 |
| MKC: McCormick & Company, Incorporated | −27.3% | −13.5% | −33.6% | +24.3% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.20 |
| GIS: General Mills, Inc. | −26.8% | −38.8% | −34.5% | −19.1% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.26 |
| HRL: Hormel Foods Corporation | −9.6% | −25.6% | −41.4% | −28.0% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.31 |
| CAG: Conagra Brands, Inc. | −15.9% | −35.9% | −44.7% | −42.0% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.36 |
| CPB: Campbell Soup Company | −31.9% | −42.6% | −41.2% | −46.6% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.29 |

### How did PEP do year by year?

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

- PEP finished ahead of the S&P 500 in 11 of its 29 full calendar years, and behind it in each of the last three.
- Among its popular alternatives, MNST came out ahead of PEP most often, in 21 of the 29 years both traded.
- Ranked against its popular alternatives each year, PEP finished in the top quarter in three of 29 years and in the bottom quarter in four. In 2025, it ranked 9 of 24.

| Year | PEP | SPY |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2025 | −1.8% | +17.7% |
| 2024 | −7.6% | +24.9% |
| 2023 | −3.3% | +26.2% |
| 2022 | +6.8% | −18.2% |
| 2021 | +20.5% | +28.7% |
| 2020 | +11.7% | +18.3% |
| 2019 | +27.4% | +31.2% |
| 2018 | −4.8% | −4.6% |
| 2017 | +17.8% | +21.7% |
| 2016 | +7.8% | +12.0% |

## Risk and diversification

How PEP 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 PEP's worst declines?

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

- In four of PEP's five worst declines, the S&P 500 held up better over the same dates.
- Not every decline was the market's doing: PEP fell 30.3% from May 2023 to May 2025, while the S&P 500 rose 46.7%.
- The slowest recovery came after PEP fell 40.4% from January 2008 to March 2009; it did not regain that peak until June 2012, three years later.

| Decline | Peak | Low | Back at the high | SPY over the same dates | Market event |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| −40.4% | January 10, 2008 | March 9, 2009 | June 18, 2012 | −50.6% | 2008 financial crisis |
| −37.4% | April 3, 1998 | August 31, 1998 | June 14, 2000 | −14.4% |  |
| −33.0% | April 19, 2002 | July 22, 2002 | February 23, 2004 | −26.9% | dot-com bust |
| −30.3% | May 12, 2023 | May 14, 2025 | not yet | +46.7% |  |
| −29.1% | March 31, 1993 | July 28, 1994 | April 24, 1995 | +3.9% |  |

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

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

- PEP fell less than the S&P 500 in nine of the ten crashes it has traded through. The clearest case was the 2008 financial crisis, when PEP fell 40.4% and the S&P 500 fell 55.2%.
- Among its popular alternatives, GIS held up best, falling less than PEP in seven of the ten crashes they both traded through.

| Crash | Dates | PEP fall | SPY fall |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Dot-com bust | March 10, 2000 to October 9, 2002 | −33.0% | −47.5% |
| Global financial crisis | October 9, 2007 to March 9, 2009 | −40.4% | −55.2% |
| Flash crash | May 6, 2010 to May 7, 2010 | −0.2% | −1.5% |
| Euro debt crisis | July 22, 2011 to October 3, 2011 | −8.3% | −17.9% |
| China devaluation & oil rout | August 10, 2015 to February 11, 2016 | −10.2% | −12.8% |
| Volmageddon | February 2, 2018 to February 9, 2018 | −7.2% | −6.5% |
| Q4 2018 selloff | September 21, 2018 to December 24, 2018 | −12.3% | −19.3% |
| COVID crash | February 19, 2020 to March 23, 2020 | −28.3% | −33.7% |
| 2022 bear market | January 4, 2022 to October 12, 2022 | −11.9% | −24.5% |
| SVB / regional bank stress | March 8, 2023 to March 13, 2023 | −0.8% | −3.4% |

### How closely does PEP 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, PEP captured 48% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 65% of its losses in falling months, with a beta of 0.48. Its share of the market's losses was larger than its share of the gains.
- WMT took just 36% of the S&P 500's losses, against 65% for PEP, while still keeping 74% of its gains.
- Ten of the 21 popular alternatives had a higher capture ratio (upside capture divided by downside capture) than PEP's 0.75, led by WMT, COST and KDP.

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

| Investment | Upside capture | Downside capture | Beta |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| PEP: PepsiCo, Inc. (this page) | 48.0% | 65.0% | 0.48 |
| [COST](https://easycompare.io/research/cost): Costco Wholesale Corporation | 93.0% | 50.0% | 0.77 |
| [WMT](https://easycompare.io/research/wmt): Walmart Inc. | 74.0% | 36.0% | 0.53 |
| [KDP](https://easycompare.io/research/kdp): Keurig Dr Pepper Inc. | 59.0% | 38.0% | 0.56 |
| [KO](https://easycompare.io/research/ko): The Coca-Cola Company | 57.0% | 44.0% | 0.47 |
| [KR](https://easycompare.io/research/kr): The Kroger Co. | 49.0% | 36.0% | 0.40 |
| [MDLZ](https://easycompare.io/research/mdlz): Mondelez International, Inc. | 45.0% | 55.0% | 0.52 |
| [MNST](https://easycompare.io/research/mnst): Monster Beverage Corporation | 87.0% | 87.0% | 0.80 |
| [ADM](https://easycompare.io/research/adm): Archer-Daniels-Midland Company | 72.0% | 79.0% | 0.75 |
| PRMB: Primo Brands Corporation | 71.0% | 96.0% | 1.05 |
| FIZZ: National Beverage Corp. | 73.0% | 99.0% | 0.94 |
| BALL: Ball Corporation | 51.0% | 73.0% | 0.74 |
| SJM: The J. M. Smucker Company | 25.0% | 38.0% | 0.30 |
| HSY: The Hershey Company | 38.0% | 25.0% | 0.24 |
| CELH: Celsius Holdings, Inc. | 195% | 127% | 1.54 |
| JJSF: J&J Snack Foods Corp. | 32.0% | 82.0% | 0.50 |
| KHC: The Kraft Heinz Company | 19.0% | 100% | 0.58 |
| MKC: McCormick & Company, Incorporated | 53.0% | 96.0% | 0.57 |
| GIS: General Mills, Inc. | 22.0% | 65.0% | 0.27 |
| HRL: Hormel Foods Corporation | 6.0% | 37.0% | 0.15 |
| CAG: Conagra Brands, Inc. | 25.0% | 90.0% | 0.42 |
| CPB: Campbell Soup Company | 6.0% | 58.0% | 0.30 |

### What diversifies PEP?

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 PEP into DXJ would have cut the portfolio's volatility by 14% over the past 5 years and raised its annual return (-0.2% for PEP alone, +5.0% for the mix).
- Among large ETFs, DXJ, MLPX and SMH have moved largely independently of PEP over the past 5 years, with correlations of 0.43 or lower, and each still earned a positive 5-year return.
- FIX made money in five of the eight calendar years in which PEP lost money.

| Investment | Correlation with PEP | 5Y return | Volatility | Sharpe | Rose in PEP's 8 down years |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | 0.34 | +225% | 19.1% | 1.34 | 3 of 8 |
| MLPX: Global X - MLP & Energy Infrastructure ETF | 0.43 | +135% | 19.7% | 0.97 | 3 of 8 |
| [SMH](https://easycompare.io/research/smh): VanEck Semiconductor ETF | 0.01 | +323% | 36.9% | 0.97 | 3 of 8 |
| DBEF: Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Hedged Equity ETF | 0.46 | +85.0% | 13.8% | 0.96 | 3 of 8 |
| [GLD](https://easycompare.io/research/gld): SPDR Gold Shares | 0.31 | +126% | 18.9% | 0.96 | 4 of 8 |
| SPMO: Invesco S&P 500 Momentum ETF | 0.12 | +136% | 20.8% | 0.93 | 3 of 8 |
| [XLE](https://easycompare.io/research/xle): State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF | 0.49 | +177% | 25.5% | 0.93 | 3 of 8 |
| DFIV: Dimensional - International Value ETF | 0.47 | +99.4% | 16.4% | 0.93 | 3 of 8 |

## Common questions

### What was PEP's worst drawdown?

PEP's deepest decline since it began trading in 1986 was 40.4%, from January 2008 to March 2009. It took about three years from the low to climb back to its old high.

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

Over 29 full calendar years, PEP's best year was 2000, when it returned 42.6%. Its worst was 2008, with a return of -26.0%.

### Is there a better investment than PEP?

Among PEP's popular alternatives, KO earned more than PEP with less volatility over the past 5 years: 14.7% a year at 16.8% volatility, against a loss of 0.5% a year at 19.1%. Looking beyond its popular alternatives, CCEP (food & beverages) and BUD (alcoholic beverages) were ahead of PEP in most short and long periods.

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

Yes. PEP's volatility over the past 5 years was 19.1%, 1.1 times the S&P 500's 17.1%. Volatility measures how widely returns swing around their average: in roughly two years out of three, PEP's return lands within 19.1% 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 PEP's Sharpe ratio?

PEP's Sharpe ratio over the past 5 years was 0.07, against 0.79 for the S&P 500, so PEP 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 PEP with the S&P 500?

Over the past 5 years, PEP's monthly returns had a correlation of 0.34 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 PEP instead: the lower it is, the more that option would diversify a PEP holding.

### What are the best alternatives to PEP?

Of the 23 popular alternatives we compared, 13 outperformed PEP in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes, with dividends reinvested: COST, WMT and KDP.

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

PEP finished ahead of the S&P 500 (SPY) in 11 of 29 full calendar years. In 2025, it returned -1.8%, against +17.7% for the index.

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

PEP fell less than the S&P 500 (SPY) in nine of the ten major crashes it has traded through, and further in one. The clearest case was the 2008 financial crisis, when PEP fell 40.4% and the S&P 500 fell 55.2%.

### What diversifies PEP?

These had a low correlation with PEP over the past 5 years and still earned a positive 5-year return: among large ETFs, DXJ (correlation 0.34), MLPX (correlation 0.43) and SMH (correlation 0.01); among large stocks, CAH (correlation 0.24), CLS (correlation 0.03) and FIX (correlation 0.29). A correlation near zero means the two have moved largely independently.

## More research

- [Costco Wholesale (COST) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/cost)
- [Walmart (WMT) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/wmt)
- [Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/kdp)
- [Coca-Cola (KO) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/ko)
- [Kroger (KR) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/kr)
- [Mondelez International (MDLZ) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/mdlz)
- [Monster Beverage (MNST) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/mnst)
- [Archer-Daniels-Midland (ADM) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/adm)
- [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)

## Explore further

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