# How Ross Stores (ROST) compares with the whole market and its popular alternatives

> Source: EasyCompare research, https://easycompare.io/research/rost
> 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 ROST alone. It places ROST (Ross Stores, Inc.) against 18 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 ROST stands in the market, and of the alternatives worth a closer look.

Period covered: ROST'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:** Its specialty retail peers split over the past 6 months: ANF (Abercrombie & Fitch) rose 66.3%, while BURL (Burlington Stores) fell 25.6%. Over the past 6 months, ROST rose 4.3% against 9.1% for the S&P 500 and 11.2% for the Nasdaq 100.
- **Stock or market?:** ROST rose 0.8% over the past 3 months, in line with the specialty retail ETF XRT (State Street SPDR S&P Retail ETF), which fell 1.2%. The S&P 500 rose 3.9%. Its specialty retail peers did not move as one over the past 3 months: ANF (Abercrombie & Fitch) rose 71.3%, while BURL (Burlington Stores) fell 26.5%.
- **Past 1 to 3 years:** ROST has run far ahead of the market, rising 51.9% 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 (111% against 89.3%).
- **Long term:** The past 5 years have been the better stretch: ROST rose 129% against 81.7% for the S&P 500, after trailing over the decade. That said, ROST turned $10,000 into $41,200 over the past decade, against $42,100 in the S&P 500.
- **In a crash:** Across seven sell-offs, ROST has typically fallen 1.2 times as far as the S&P 500. In the Covid crash, ROST fell 51.4%, against 33.7% for the S&P 500. That was more than TJX (TJX Companies, 42.5%) but less than GAP (64.0%).
- **Diversification:** Against the S&P 500, ROST has a correlation of 0.46 over 5 years, more closely than 65% of stocks worth at least $300 million. Next to an index fund it is some diversification, but not a hedge.
- **Better options**
  - **Popular alternatives:** WMT (Walmart) and TJX (TJX Companies) earned more than ROST with less volatility over the past 5 years. WMT returned 20.8% a year at 22.6% volatility, against 18.1% a year at 29.5%.
  - **Nearby categories and themes:** ORLY (O'Reilly Automotive, specialty retail) and AZO (AutoZone, specialty retail) fell less than ROST in each recent sell-off and kept up with it over the past decade.
  - **Whole market:** Few investments have done better on both counts: only 62 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than ROST with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them WMT (Walmart), XOM (Exxonmobil) and ABBV (AbbVie).

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

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

- $10,000 invested in ROST at the end of September 1997 would have grown to $1,414,437 by September 2026, more than the $132,907 it would have become in SPY, an S&P 500 fund.
- Five of the eight other investments on the chart ended ahead of ROST, and AAPL finished highest, at $20,534,853.

## ROST 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.

- ROST's deepest decline since it began trading in 1986 was 82.2%, from October 1989 to November 1990. It took about five years from the low to climb back to its old high.
- Over 29 full calendar years, ROST's best was 2001, when it returned 91.0%, and its worst was 2007, when it lost 12.0%. It lost money in four of those years.
- ROST is 6.9% below its all-time high.

- Type: Stock, Consumer Discretionary (Apparel - Retail)
- Trading since: October 17, 1986
- Market value: $76B
- Volatility (5 years): 29.5%; Sharpe ratio: 0.71
- Worst decline ever: −82.2%, from October 12, 1989 to November 1, 1990; back at its high by February 22, 1996

| Period | ROST total return |
| --- | --- |
| 1 month | +2.6% |
| 3 months | +0.8% |
| 6 months | +4.3% |
| year to date | +30.6% |
| 1 year | +51.9% |
| 3 years | +111% |
| 5 years | +129% |
| 10 years | +312% |

## ROST against the whole market

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

### How does ROST rank among all stocks?

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

- On return for the risk taken (the Sharpe ratio), ROST ranks in the top 15% of the 2,893 stocks worth at least $300 million.

| Measure | ROST | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1-year return | +51.9% | 529 of 3,287 (top 17%) |
| 3-year return | +111% | 839 of 3,017 (top 28%) |
| 5-year return | +129% | 531 of 2,893 (top 19%) |
| 10-year return | +312% | 554 of 2,202 (top 26%) |
| Volatility, 5 years | 29.5% | 682 of 2,893 (top 24%) |
| Sharpe ratio, 5 years | 0.71 | 432 of 2,893 (top 15%) |
| Worst decline, past 10 years | −51.4% | 511 of 2,187 (top 24%) |

### What has beaten ROST 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).

- 44 stocks and 18 ETFs worth at least $500 million sit in the green region: each earned more than ROST over the past 5 years with smaller price swings. That is 2% of the 3,633 screened. Few investments beat it on both counts.
- Among those with at least half ROST's swings, CAH has the best return for its risk: 42.1% a year at 24.7% volatility, 16% less than ROST's 29.5%, and a Sharpe ratio (return above cash per unit of volatility) of 1.55 against 0.71 for ROST.
- Among ROST's popular alternatives, WMT and TJX are in the region. WMT earned 20.8% a year against 18.1% a year for ROST, at 22.6% volatility, 24% less than ROST's 29.5%.

### Is there a better investment than ROST?

The table below lists investments that beat ROST 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 ROST's popular alternatives, WMT and TJX earned more than ROST with less volatility over the past 5 years. WMT returned 20.8% a year at 22.6% volatility, against 18.1% a year at 29.5%.
- Looking beyond its popular alternatives, ORLY (specialty retail) and AZO (specialty retail) fell less than ROST in each recent sell-off and kept up with it over the past decade.
- Few investments have done better on both counts: only 62 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than ROST with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them WMT, XOM and ABBV.

The 15 strongest of 62 investments that beat ROST 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 ROST | Better on |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| ROST: Ross Stores, Inc. (this page) |  | +18.1% | 29.5% | 0.71 | −51.4% | +312% |  |  |
| [PGR](https://easycompare.io/research/pgr): The Progressive Corporation | Property & Casualty Insurance | +21.3% | 25.6% | 0.89 | −30.3% | +816% | -0.01 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [XLK](https://easycompare.io/research/xlk): State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF | Technology Equity | +19.4% | 26.0% | 0.82 | −33.6% | +767% | 0.28 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [TRV](https://easycompare.io/research/trv): The Travelers Companies, Inc. | Property & Casualty Insurance | +22.4% | 22.3% | 1.02 | −46.3% | +347% | 0.24 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; 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% | 0.26 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| RS: Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co. | Metals & Mining | +24.8% | 28.1% | 0.93 | −40.8% | +626% | 0.39 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [ABBV](https://easycompare.io/research/abbv): AbbVie Inc. | Pharmaceuticals | +26.1% | 23.4% | 1.11 | −45.1% | +603% | -0.04 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | International Equity | +26.6% | 19.1% | 1.34 | −39.1% | +428% | 0.29 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [PM](https://easycompare.io/research/pm): Philip Morris International Inc. | Tobacco | +21.0% | 23.4% | 0.94 | −42.9% | +242% | 0.14 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [MCK](https://easycompare.io/research/mck): McKesson Corporation | Health Care Distribution | +38.7% | 25.0% | 1.44 | −38.1% | +586% | 0.19 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [GILD](https://easycompare.io/research/gild): Gilead Sciences, Inc. | Biotechnology | +22.8% | 24.9% | 0.95 | −30.5% | +200% | 0.20 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [COR](https://easycompare.io/research/cor): Cencora, Inc. | Health Care Distribution | +24.2% | 22.8% | 1.07 | −32.4% | +406% | 0.26 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| EWT: iShares MSCI Taiwan ETF | International Equity | +20.4% | 24.2% | 0.89 | −38.9% | +468% | 0.21 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| FLTW: Franklin FTSE Taiwan ETF | Technology | +21.8% | 24.3% | 0.94 | −38.0% | — | 0.21 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [MPLX](https://easycompare.io/research/mplx): MPLX Lp | Oil & Gas Midstream | +23.5% | 18.8% | 1.22 | −75.2% | +350% | 0.27 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher return in most periods |
| [ETR](https://easycompare.io/research/etr): Entergy Corporation | Electric Utilities | +19.2% | 22.4% | 0.90 | −42.0% | +311% | 0.19 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Smaller losses in recent crashes |

## ROST against its popular alternatives

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

### How do ROST'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 WMT and TJX were both more rewarding and calmer than ROST over the past 5 years, earning a higher annual return with lower volatility.
- 13 of the 18 popular alternatives earned less than ROST over the past 5 years while swinging more, the weaker corner of the map.
- Over the past 5 years, ROST returned 18.1% a year, more than the S&P 500's 12.7%, with higher volatility (29.5% against 17.1%).

### Has ROST consistently beaten its popular alternatives?

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

- ANF outperformed ROST in every long-term period and in all but one short-term period, the most consistent record in the group.
- Two of the 18 popular alternatives, ANF and URBN, outperformed ROST in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes.
- WMT, TJX and COST earned more for the risk they took than ROST (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 ROST | Verdict | Sharpe |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| ROST: Ross Stores, Inc. (this page) | +51.9% | +111% | +129% | +312% |  |  | 0.71 |
| ANF: Abercrombie & Fitch Co. | +143% | +166% | +328% | +1,117% | 4/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.77 |
| URBN: Urban Outfitters, Inc. | +30.6% | +162% | +187% | +160% | 3/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 0.68 |
| [WMT](https://easycompare.io/research/wmt): Walmart Inc. | +11.0% | +130% | +158% | +508% | 2/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.96 |
| [TJX](https://easycompare.io/research/tjx): The TJX Companies, Inc. | +3.8% | +71.6% | +147% | +361% | 1/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.93 |
| BVS: Bioventus Inc. | +99.3% | +360% | −3.0% | — | 5/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.42 |
| [COST](https://easycompare.io/research/cost): Costco Wholesale Corporation | +6.9% | +87.2% | +123% | +685% | 2/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.82 |
| BKE: The Buckle, Inc. | −8.4% | +71.8% | +84.7% | +493% | 2/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.53 |
| GAP: The Gap, Inc. | +10.0% | +117% | +24.6% | +25.2% | 2/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.36 |
| M: Macy's, Inc. | +34.8% | +131% | +7.7% | +0.7% | 2/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.29 |
| BOOT: Boot Barn Holdings, Inc. | −39.1% | +50.9% | +20.8% | +910% | 0/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.33 |
| [TGT](https://easycompare.io/research/tgt): Target Corporation | +75.1% | +58.0% | −28.5% | +207% | 4/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.00 |
| DG: Dollar General Corporation | +28.5% | +24.2% | −32.0% | +127% | 3/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.01 |
| KSS: Kohl's Corporation | +38.6% | +23.2% | −36.7% | −20.0% | 3/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.21 |
| DLTR: Dollar Tree, Inc. | +26.2% | +13.1% | +23.3% | +64.7% | 2/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.31 |
| AEO: American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. | +18.0% | +11.6% | −17.9% | +33.9% | 2/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.19 |
| DBI: Designer Brands Inc. | +77.8% | −39.1% | −46.2% | −61.1% | 2/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.19 |
| BURL: Burlington Stores, Inc. | −3.1% | +112% | −6.2% | +240% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.19 |
| ZUMZ: Zumiez Inc. | −30.5% | −16.8% | −64.9% | −36.5% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.14 |

### How did ROST do year by year?

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

- Ranked against its popular alternatives each year, ROST finished in the top quarter in ten of 29 years and in the bottom quarter in two. In 2025, it ranked 11 of 19.
- ROST finished ahead of the S&P 500 in 17 of its 29 full calendar years.
- Among its popular alternatives, BURL came out ahead of ROST most often, in seven of the 12 years both traded.

| Year | ROST | SPY |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2025 | +20.4% | +17.7% |
| 2024 | +10.4% | +24.9% |
| 2023 | +20.6% | +26.2% |
| 2022 | +2.9% | −18.2% |
| 2021 | −6.0% | +28.7% |
| 2020 | +5.8% | +18.3% |
| 2019 | +41.3% | +31.2% |
| 2018 | +4.8% | −4.6% |
| 2017 | +23.5% | +21.7% |
| 2016 | +23.0% | +12.0% |

## Risk and diversification

How ROST 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 ROST's worst declines?

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

- In all three of ROST's worst declines, the S&P 500 held up better over the same dates.
- Not every decline was the market's doing: ROST fell 52.7% from July 1999 to January 2000, while the S&P 500 rose 7.2%.
- The slowest recovery came after ROST fell 82.2% from October 1989 to November 1990; it did not regain that peak until February 1996, five years later.

| Decline | Peak | Low | Back at the high | SPY over the same dates | Market event |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| −82.2% | October 12, 1989 | November 1, 1990 | February 22, 1996 | — |  |
| −66.7% | July 16, 1987 | October 27, 1987 | September 20, 1988 | — |  |
| −52.7% | July 21, 1999 | January 19, 2000 | August 10, 2001 | +7.2% |  |
| −51.4% | February 20, 2020 | March 18, 2020 | February 24, 2021 | −28.8% | Covid crash |
| −50.6% | July 20, 1998 | October 8, 1998 | May 13, 1999 | −18.2% |  |

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

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

- Among its popular alternatives, WMT held up best, falling less than ROST in eight of the ten crashes they both traded through.
- ROST fell further than the S&P 500 in six of the ten crashes it has traded through. The clearest case was the Covid crash, when ROST fell 51.4% and the S&P 500 fell 33.7%.

| Crash | Dates | ROST fall | SPY fall |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Dot-com bust | March 10, 2000 to October 9, 2002 | −45.8% | −47.5% |
| Global financial crisis | October 9, 2007 to March 9, 2009 | −46.5% | −55.2% |
| Flash crash | May 6, 2010 to May 7, 2010 | −2.6% | −1.5% |
| Euro debt crisis | July 22, 2011 to October 3, 2011 | −12.4% | −17.9% |
| China devaluation & oil rout | August 10, 2015 to February 11, 2016 | −20.5% | −12.8% |
| Volmageddon | February 2, 2018 to February 9, 2018 | −5.1% | −6.5% |
| Q4 2018 selloff | September 21, 2018 to December 24, 2018 | −26.0% | −19.3% |
| COVID crash | February 19, 2020 to March 23, 2020 | −51.4% | −33.7% |
| 2022 bear market | January 4, 2022 to October 12, 2022 | −37.5% | −24.5% |
| SVB / regional bank stress | March 8, 2023 to March 13, 2023 | −4.9% | −3.4% |

### How closely does ROST 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.

- COST took just 50% of the S&P 500's losses, against 89% for ROST, while still keeping 93% of its gains.
- Over the past 10 years, ROST captured 93% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 89% of its losses in falling months, with a beta of 0.93. That is a defensive profile: it gave up some of the market's upside in exchange for smaller losses.
- Five of the 17 popular alternatives had a higher capture ratio (upside capture divided by downside capture) than ROST's 1.05, led by WMT, COST and TJX.

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

| Investment | Upside capture | Downside capture | Beta |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| ROST: Ross Stores, Inc. (this page) | 93.0% | 89.0% | 0.93 |
| ANF: Abercrombie & Fitch Co. | 138% | 112% | 1.36 |
| URBN: Urban Outfitters, Inc. | 97.0% | 136% | 1.40 |
| [WMT](https://easycompare.io/research/wmt): Walmart Inc. | 74.0% | 36.0% | 0.53 |
| [TJX](https://easycompare.io/research/tjx): The TJX Companies, Inc. | 81.0% | 65.0% | 0.78 |
| [COST](https://easycompare.io/research/cost): Costco Wholesale Corporation | 93.0% | 50.0% | 0.77 |
| BKE: The Buckle, Inc. | 95.0% | 80.0% | 1.12 |
| GAP: The Gap, Inc. | 127% | 217% | 1.86 |
| M: Macy's, Inc. | 93.0% | 183% | 1.75 |
| BOOT: Boot Barn Holdings, Inc. | 189% | 201% | 2.31 |
| [TGT](https://easycompare.io/research/tgt): Target Corporation | 83.0% | 87.0% | 1.00 |
| DG: Dollar General Corporation | 46.0% | 46.0% | 0.37 |
| KSS: Kohl's Corporation | 109% | 234% | 1.76 |
| DLTR: Dollar Tree, Inc. | 52.0% | 79.0% | 0.75 |
| AEO: American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. | 94.0% | 164% | 1.37 |
| DBI: Designer Brands Inc. | 93.0% | 238% | 1.85 |
| BURL: Burlington Stores, Inc. | 103% | 121% | 1.22 |
| ZUMZ: Zumiez Inc. | 70.0% | 155% | 1.37 |

### What diversifies ROST?

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 ROST into GLD would have cut the portfolio's volatility by 18% over the past 5 years and raised its annual return (+17.8% for ROST alone, +18.8% for the mix).
- XLE made money in four of the four calendar years in which ROST lost money.
- Among large ETFs, DXJ, EMLP and HDV have moved largely independently of ROST over the past 5 years, with correlations of 0.34 or lower, and each still earned a positive 5-year return.

| Investment | Correlation with ROST | 5Y return | Volatility | Sharpe | Rose in ROST's 4 down years |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | 0.29 | +225% | 19.1% | 1.34 | 1 of 4 |
| EMLP: First Trust North American Energy Infrastructure Fund | 0.34 | +101% | 14.5% | 1.04 | 1 of 4 |
| HDV: iShares Core High Dividend ETF | 0.33 | +83.3% | 13.0% | 1.00 | 1 of 4 |
| [SMH](https://easycompare.io/research/smh): VanEck Semiconductor ETF | 0.23 | +323% | 36.9% | 0.97 | 2 of 4 |
| DBEF: Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Hedged Equity ETF | 0.46 | +85.0% | 13.8% | 0.96 | 1 of 4 |
| [GLD](https://easycompare.io/research/gld): SPDR Gold Shares | 0.08 | +126% | 18.9% | 0.96 | 1 of 4 |
| SPMO: Invesco S&P 500 Momentum ETF | 0.30 | +136% | 20.8% | 0.93 | 1 of 4 |
| [XLE](https://easycompare.io/research/xle): State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF | 0.16 | +177% | 25.5% | 0.93 | 4 of 4 |

## Common questions

### What was ROST's worst drawdown?

ROST's deepest decline since it began trading in 1986 was 82.2%, from October 1989 to November 1990. It took about five years from the low to climb back to its old high.

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

Over 29 full calendar years, ROST's best year was 2001, when it returned 91.0%. Its worst was 2007, with a return of -12.0%.

### Is there a better investment than ROST?

Among ROST's popular alternatives, WMT and TJX earned more than ROST with less volatility over the past 5 years. WMT returned 20.8% a year at 22.6% volatility, against 18.1% a year at 29.5%. Looking beyond its popular alternatives, ORLY (specialty retail) and AZO (specialty retail) fell less than ROST in each recent sell-off and kept up with it over the past decade.

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

Yes. ROST's volatility over the past 5 years was 29.5%, 1.7 times the S&P 500's 17.1%. Volatility measures how widely returns swing around their average: in roughly two years out of three, ROST's return lands within 29.5% 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 ROST's Sharpe ratio?

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

Over the past 5 years, ROST's monthly returns had a correlation of 0.46 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 ROST instead: the lower it is, the more that option would diversify a ROST holding.

### What are the best alternatives to ROST?

Of the 18 popular alternatives we compared, two outperformed ROST in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes, with dividends reinvested: ANF and URBN.

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

ROST finished ahead of the S&P 500 (SPY) in 17 of 29 full calendar years. In 2025, it returned +20.4%, against +17.7% for the index.

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

ROST fell less than the S&P 500 (SPY) in four of the ten major crashes it has traded through, and further in six. The clearest case was the Covid crash, when ROST fell 51.4% and the S&P 500 fell 33.7%.

### What diversifies ROST?

These had a low correlation with ROST over the past 5 years and still earned a positive 5-year return: among large ETFs, DXJ (correlation 0.29), EMLP (correlation 0.34) and HDV (correlation 0.33); among large stocks, CAH (correlation 0.26), CLS (correlation 0.20) and FIX (correlation 0.38). 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/rost
- All research pages: https://easycompare.io/llms.txt
- Compare the entire market against ROST live: https://betterthanspy.com/?b=ROST&utm_source=easycompare&utm_medium=research