# How RTX compares with the whole market and its popular alternatives

> Source: EasyCompare research, https://easycompare.io/research/rtx
> 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 RTX alone. It places RTX (RTX Corporation) 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 RTX stands in the market, and of the alternatives worth a closer look.

Period covered: RTX'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:** RTX has gone against the market, falling 0.5% over the past 6 months while the S&P 500 rose 9.1%. Its aerospace & defense peers split over the past 6 months: MOG-A (Moog) rose 14.8%, while HWM (Howmet Aerospace) fell 17.1%.
- **Stock or market?:** RTX held up far better than its industry: it fell 0.2% over the past 3 months while the aerospace & defense ETF ITA (iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF) fell 10.0%. The S&P 500 rose 3.9%. Its aerospace & defense peers did not move as one over the past 3 months: LMT (Lockheed Martin) rose 8.4%, while GE (GE Aerospace) fell 12.0%.
- **Past 1 to 3 years:** Over the past year, RTX rose 22.1% against 15.8% for the S&P 500 and 17.9% for the Nasdaq 100. The same gap shows up over 3 years (183% against 89.3%). The last two calendar years both went the same way: RTX rose 61.4% in 2025, against 15.8% for the S&P 500 and 17.9% for the Nasdaq 100.
- **Long term:** The past 5 years have been the better stretch: RTX rose 135% against 81.7% for the S&P 500, after trailing over the decade. RTX's 10-year return of 317% puts it ahead of 75% of the stocks worth at least $300 million with that much history. The S&P 500 returned 321%.
- **In a crash:** RTX fell harder than the S&P 500 in five of seven sell-offs. The 2022 bear market was the exception: RTX fell 21.9%, less than the S&P 500's 24.5%.
- **Diversification:** RTX is a real diversifier: a correlation of 0.20 with the S&P 500 over 5 years and 0.21 with the total US market, less closely than 85% of stocks worth at least $300 million. RTX moves far less with the S&P 500 than it used to, with a correlation of 0.20 over the past 5 years against 0.81 in the 5 years before.
- **Better options**
  - **Popular alternatives:** ATI and MOG-A (Moog) were ahead of RTX in most short and long periods, though with much bigger swings (42.9% and 32.0% volatility against 24.3%).
  - **Nearby categories and themes:** RS (Reliance Steel & Aluminum, metals & mining) earned more for the risk it took than RTX over the past 5 years, and its worst fall in 10 years was 40.8%, against 52.0% for RTX.
  - **Whole market:** Few investments have done better on both counts: only 11 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than RTX with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them WMT (Walmart), TJX (TJX Companies) and TRV (Travelers Companies).

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

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

- $10,000 invested in RTX at the end of September 1997 would have grown to $288,741 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 RTX, and HEI finished highest, at $1,347,388.

## RTX 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.

- RTX's deepest decline since it began trading in 1986 was 52.6%, from October 2007 to March 2009. It took 20 months from the low to climb back to its old high.
- Over 29 full calendar years, RTX's best was 2025, when it returned 61.4%, and its worst was 2008, when it lost 28.4%. It lost money in eight of those years.
- RTX is 14.3% below its all-time high.

- Type: Stock, Industrials (Aerospace & Defense)
- Trading since: October 17, 1986
- Market value: $261B
- Volatility (5 years): 24.3%; Sharpe ratio: 0.83
- Worst decline ever: −52.6%, from October 1, 2007 to March 9, 2009; back at its high by November 4, 2010

| Period | RTX total return |
| --- | --- |
| 1 month | −0.5% |
| 3 months | −0.2% |
| 6 months | −0.5% |
| year to date | +4.4% |
| 1 year | +22.1% |
| 3 years | +183% |
| 5 years | +135% |
| 10 years | +317% |

## RTX against the whole market

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

### How does RTX rank among all stocks?

This section ranks RTX 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), RTX ranks in the top 9% of the 2,893 stocks worth at least $300 million.

| Measure | RTX | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1-year return | +22.1% | 1,182 of 3,287 (top 36%) |
| 3-year return | +183% | 459 of 3,017 (top 16%) |
| 5-year return | +135% | 507 of 2,893 (top 18%) |
| 10-year return | +317% | 544 of 2,202 (top 25%) |
| Volatility, 5 years | 24.3% | 284 of 2,893 (top 10%) |
| Sharpe ratio, 5 years | 0.83 | 250 of 2,893 (top 9%) |
| Worst decline, past 10 years | −52.0% | 529 of 2,187 (top 25%) |

### What has beaten RTX 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).

- Five stocks and six ETFs worth at least $500 million sit in the green region: each earned more than RTX 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 RTX's swings, DXJ has the best return for its risk: 26.6% a year at 19.1% volatility, 22% less than RTX's 24.3%, and a Sharpe ratio (return above cash per unit of volatility) of 1.34 against 0.83 for RTX.

### Is there a better investment than RTX?

The table below lists investments that beat RTX 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 RTX's popular alternatives, ATI and MOG-A were ahead of RTX in most short and long periods, though with much bigger swings (42.9% and 32.0% volatility against 24.3%).
- Looking beyond its popular alternatives, RS (metals & mining) earned more for the risk it took than RTX over the past 5 years, and its worst fall in 10 years was 40.8%, against 52.0% for RTX.
- Few investments have done better on both counts: only 11 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than RTX with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them WMT, TJX and TRV.

The 10 strongest of 11 investments that beat RTX 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 RTX | Better on |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| RTX: RTX Corporation (this page) |  | +18.6% | 24.3% | 0.83 | −52.0% | +317% |  |  |
| [TRV](https://easycompare.io/research/trv): The Travelers Companies, Inc. | Property & Casualty Insurance | +22.4% | 22.3% | 1.02 | −46.3% | +347% | 0.46 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | International Equity | +26.6% | 19.1% | 1.34 | −39.1% | +428% | 0.15 | 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% | 0.44 | 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% | 0.28 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher return in most periods |
| DBJP: Xtrackers MSCI Japan Hedged Equity ETF | International | +20.9% | 19.2% | 1.09 | −31.3% | +348% | 0.11 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [WMT](https://easycompare.io/research/wmt): Walmart Inc. | Discount Retail | +20.8% | 22.6% | 0.96 | −25.7% | +508% | 0.14 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| [TJX](https://easycompare.io/research/tjx): The TJX Companies, Inc. | Specialty Retail | +19.9% | 22.3% | 0.93 | −42.5% | +361% | 0.15 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| SDCI: USCF SummerHaven Dynamic Commodity Strategy No K-1 Fund | Bonds | +20.6% | 18.4% | 1.12 | −45.7% | — | 0.17 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| CRAK: VanEck Oil Refiners ETF | Energy | +19.8% | 20.9% | 0.97 | −58.8% | +336% | 0.27 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher return in most periods |
| ATMP: Barclays ETN+ Select MLP ETN | Broad Market | +21.2% | 21.5% | 1.01 | −70.3% | +172% | 0.30 | Higher return, lower volatility |

## RTX against its popular alternatives

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

### How do RTX'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 22 popular alternatives earned more than RTX over the past 5 years with smaller price swings, so every higher return on the map came with a bumpier ride.
- 13 of the 22 popular alternatives earned less than RTX over the past 5 years while swinging more, the weaker corner of the map.
- Over the past 5 years, RTX returned 18.6% a year, more than the S&P 500's 12.7%, with higher volatility (24.3% against 17.1%).

### Has RTX consistently beaten its popular alternatives?

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

- Two of the 22 popular alternatives, ATI and MOG-A, outperformed RTX in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes.
- CW earned more for the risk it took than RTX (a higher Sharpe ratio) and fell less in its worst decline of the past 10 years.
- HWM outperformed RTX over all three long-term periods but in none of the five short-term ones, so RTX has had the better of it lately.

| Investment | 1Y return | 3Y return | 5Y return | 10Y return | Periods ahead of RTX | Verdict | Sharpe |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| RTX: RTX Corporation (this page) | +22.1% | +183% | +135% | +317% |  |  | 0.83 |
| ATI: ATI Inc. | +125% | +415% | +1,008% | +929% | 3/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | consistent | 1.34 |
| MOG-A: Moog Inc. | +77.4% | +228% | +375% | +595% | 3/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | consistent | 1.14 |
| [HWM](https://easycompare.io/research/hwm): Howmet Aerospace Inc. | +10.2% | +391% | +594% | +1,028% | 0/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 1.36 |
| DRS: Leonardo DRS, Inc. | −14.2% | +82.9% | +228% | +3,294% | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.77 |
| CW: Curtiss-Wright Corporation | −11.6% | +148% | +283% | +512% | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 1.08 |
| [GE](https://easycompare.io/research/ge): GE Aerospace | −0.4% | +261% | +366% | +139% | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 1.15 |
| [HEI](https://easycompare.io/research/hei): HEICO Corporation | −2.4% | +93.4% | +122% | +809% | 2/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.71 |
| [TDG](https://easycompare.io/research/tdg): TransDigm Group Incorporated | −12.2% | +62.5% | +114% | +543% | 1/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.69 |
| KTOS: Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. | −55.0% | +127% | +71.3% | +515% | 0/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.47 |
| AVAV: AeroVironment, Inc. | −67.7% | +0.7% | +27.1% | +426% | 0/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.37 |
| BWXT: BWX Technologies, Inc. | −35.0% | +79.8% | +145% | +289% | 0/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.70 |
| HXL: Hexcel Corporation | +45.6% | +44.9% | +62.4% | +122% | 4/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.46 |
| [LMT](https://easycompare.io/research/lmt): Lockheed Martin Corporation | +11.3% | +33.8% | +69.0% | +204% | 3/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.56 |
| [DAL](https://easycompare.io/research/dal): Delta Air Lines, Inc. | +25.5% | +146% | +97.6% | +109% | 3/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.54 |
| [NOC](https://easycompare.io/research/noc): Northrop Grumman Corporation | −9.8% | +15.6% | +44.5% | +188% | 2/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.41 |
| [LHX](https://easycompare.io/research/lhx): L3Harris Technologies, Inc. | −13.0% | +49.6% | +13.0% | +229% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.22 |
| [GD](https://easycompare.io/research/gd): General Dynamics Corporation | +4.0% | +55.4% | +83.3% | +184% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.69 |
| HII: Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. | −3.2% | +32.2% | +43.2% | +110% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.39 |
| TXT: Textron Inc. | −6.3% | +1.9% | +4.1% | +97.9% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.17 |
| UAL: United Airlines Holdings, Inc. | −3.5% | +179% | +113% | +72.8% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.55 |
| [BA](https://easycompare.io/research/ba): The Boeing Company | −12.2% | +5.8% | −11.9% | +52.4% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.12 |
| AAL: American Airlines Group Inc. | −0.5% | +9.3% | −38.0% | −69.0% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.04 |

### How did RTX do year by year?

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

- Ranked against its popular alternatives each year, RTX finished in the top quarter in four of 29 years and in the bottom quarter in one. In 2025, it ranked 6 of 23.
- RTX finished ahead of the S&P 500 in 16 of its 29 full calendar years, and ahead of it in each of the last two.
- Among its popular alternatives, TDG came out ahead of RTX most often, in 13 of the 19 years both traded.

| Year | RTX | SPY |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2025 | +61.4% | +17.7% |
| 2024 | +40.8% | +24.9% |
| 2023 | −14.4% | +26.2% |
| 2022 | +20.0% | −18.2% |
| 2021 | +23.3% | +28.7% |
| 2020 | −16.7% | +18.3% |
| 2019 | +44.1% | +31.2% |
| 2018 | −14.5% | −4.6% |
| 2017 | +19.3% | +21.7% |
| 2016 | +17.3% | +12.0% |

## Risk and diversification

How RTX 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 RTX's worst declines?

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

- Not every decline was the market's doing: RTX fell 34.9% from May 1999 to March 2000, while the S&P 500 rose 4.7%.
- The slowest recovery came after RTX fell 52.1% from May to September 2001; it did not regain that peak until October 2003, two years later.
- In three of RTX's four worst declines, the S&P 500 held up better over the same dates.

| Decline | Peak | Low | Back at the high | SPY over the same dates | Market event |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| −52.6% | October 1, 2007 | March 9, 2009 | November 4, 2010 | −54.6% | 2008 financial crisis |
| −52.1% | May 18, 2001 | September 20, 2001 | October 14, 2003 | −23.7% | dot-com bust |
| −52.0% | February 7, 2020 | March 23, 2020 | June 1, 2021 | −32.5% | Covid crash |
| −49.1% | August 14, 1987 | December 4, 1987 | August 24, 1989 | — |  |
| −34.9% | May 11, 1999 | March 9, 2000 | December 5, 2000 | +4.7% |  |

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

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

- RTX fell further than the S&P 500 in seven of the ten crashes it has traded through. The clearest case was the Covid crash, when RTX fell 50.5% and the S&P 500 fell 33.7%.
- Among its popular alternatives, LMT held up best, falling less than RTX in nine of the ten crashes they both traded through.

| Crash | Dates | RTX fall | SPY fall |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Dot-com bust | March 10, 2000 to October 9, 2002 | −52.1% | −47.5% |
| Global financial crisis | October 9, 2007 to March 9, 2009 | −52.0% | −55.2% |
| Flash crash | May 6, 2010 to May 7, 2010 | −2.5% | −1.5% |
| Euro debt crisis | July 22, 2011 to October 3, 2011 | −23.1% | −17.9% |
| China devaluation & oil rout | August 10, 2015 to February 11, 2016 | −15.4% | −12.8% |
| Volmageddon | February 2, 2018 to February 9, 2018 | −7.1% | −6.5% |
| Q4 2018 selloff | September 21, 2018 to December 24, 2018 | −27.7% | −19.3% |
| COVID crash | February 19, 2020 to March 23, 2020 | −50.5% | −33.7% |
| 2022 bear market | January 4, 2022 to October 12, 2022 | −21.9% | −24.5% |
| SVB / regional bank stress | March 8, 2023 to March 13, 2023 | −1.5% | −3.4% |

### How closely does RTX 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.

- 12 of the 22 popular alternatives had a higher capture ratio (upside capture divided by downside capture) than RTX's 1.02, led by DRS, NOC and HEI.
- DRS took just 4% of the S&P 500's losses, against 91% for RTX, while still keeping 125% of its gains.
- Over the past 10 years, RTX captured 94% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 91% of its losses in falling months, with a beta of 0.89. Its share of the market's gains was slightly larger than its share of the losses.

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

| Investment | Upside capture | Downside capture | Beta |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| RTX: RTX Corporation (this page) | 94.0% | 91.0% | 0.89 |
| ATI: ATI Inc. | 141% | 116% | 1.37 |
| MOG-A: Moog Inc. | 119% | 101% | 1.20 |
| [HWM](https://easycompare.io/research/hwm): Howmet Aerospace Inc. | 142% | 115% | 1.41 |
| DRS: Leonardo DRS, Inc. | 125% | 4.0% | 0.66 |
| CW: Curtiss-Wright Corporation | 103% | 77.0% | 1.20 |
| [GE](https://easycompare.io/research/ge): GE Aerospace | 85.0% | 106% | 1.21 |
| [HEI](https://easycompare.io/research/hei): HEICO Corporation | 118% | 85.0% | 1.15 |
| [TDG](https://easycompare.io/research/tdg): TransDigm Group Incorporated | 112% | 97.0% | 1.25 |
| KTOS: Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. | 133% | 135% | 0.98 |
| AVAV: AeroVironment, Inc. | 120% | 114% | 0.90 |
| BWXT: BWX Technologies, Inc. | 82.0% | 68.0% | 0.87 |
| HXL: Hexcel Corporation | 94.0% | 135% | 1.27 |
| [LMT](https://easycompare.io/research/lmt): Lockheed Martin Corporation | 58.0% | 48.0% | 0.52 |
| [DAL](https://easycompare.io/research/dal): Delta Air Lines, Inc. | 107% | 149% | 1.34 |
| [NOC](https://easycompare.io/research/noc): Northrop Grumman Corporation | 49.0% | 32.0% | 0.35 |
| [LHX](https://easycompare.io/research/lhx): L3Harris Technologies, Inc. | 72.0% | 65.0% | 0.70 |
| [GD](https://easycompare.io/research/gd): General Dynamics Corporation | 68.0% | 68.0% | 0.71 |
| HII: Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. | 71.0% | 90.0% | 0.60 |
| TXT: Textron Inc. | 103% | 155% | 1.33 |
| UAL: United Airlines Holdings, Inc. | 107% | 158% | 1.41 |
| [BA](https://easycompare.io/research/ba): The Boeing Company | 93.0% | 152% | 1.42 |
| AAL: American Airlines Group Inc. | 70.0% | 199% | 1.53 |

### What diversifies RTX?

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 RTX into DXJ would have cut the portfolio's volatility by 18% over the past 5 years and raised its annual return (+19.2% for RTX alone, +21.3% for the mix).
- Among large ETFs, LVHI, DXJ and EMLP have moved largely independently of RTX over the past 5 years, with correlations of 0.39 or lower, and each still earned a positive 5-year return.
- FIX made money in five of the eight calendar years in which RTX lost money.

| Investment | Correlation with RTX | 5Y return | Volatility | Sharpe | Rose in RTX's 8 down years |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| LVHI: Franklin International Low Volatility High Dividend Index ETF | 0.39 | +119% | 11.1% | 1.48 | 1 of 8 |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | 0.15 | +225% | 19.1% | 1.34 | 3 of 8 |
| EMLP: First Trust North American Energy Infrastructure Fund | 0.38 | +101% | 14.5% | 1.04 | 1 of 8 |
| FDL: First Trust Morningstar Dividend Leaders Index Fund | 0.46 | +91.8% | 14.4% | 0.98 | 3 of 8 |
| [SMH](https://easycompare.io/research/smh): VanEck Semiconductor ETF | -0.06 | +323% | 36.9% | 0.97 | 3 of 8 |
| DBEF: Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Hedged Equity ETF | 0.32 | +85.0% | 13.8% | 0.96 | 3 of 8 |
| [GLD](https://easycompare.io/research/gld): SPDR Gold Shares | 0.34 | +126% | 18.9% | 0.96 | 4 of 8 |
| SPMO: Invesco S&P 500 Momentum ETF | 0.10 | +136% | 20.8% | 0.93 | 2 of 8 |

## Common questions

### What was RTX's worst drawdown?

RTX's deepest decline since it began trading in 1986 was 52.6%, from October 2007 to March 2009. It took 20 months from the low to climb back to its old high.

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

Over 29 full calendar years, RTX's best year was 2025, when it returned 61.4%. Its worst was 2008, with a return of -28.4%.

### Is there a better investment than RTX?

Among RTX's popular alternatives, ATI and MOG-A were ahead of RTX in most short and long periods, though with much bigger swings (42.9% and 32.0% volatility against 24.3%). Looking beyond its popular alternatives, RS (metals & mining) earned more for the risk it took than RTX over the past 5 years, and its worst fall in 10 years was 40.8%, against 52.0% for RTX.

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

Yes. RTX's volatility over the past 5 years was 24.3%, 1.4 times the S&P 500's 17.1%. Volatility measures how widely returns swing around their average: in roughly two years out of three, RTX's return lands within 24.3% 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 RTX's Sharpe ratio?

RTX's Sharpe ratio over the past 5 years was 0.83, against 0.79 for the S&P 500, so RTX 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 RTX with the S&P 500?

Over the past 5 years, RTX's monthly returns had a correlation of 0.20 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 RTX instead: the lower it is, the more that option would diversify a RTX holding.

### What are the best alternatives to RTX?

Of the 22 popular alternatives we compared, two outperformed RTX in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes, with dividends reinvested: ATI and MOG-A.

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

RTX finished ahead of the S&P 500 (SPY) in 16 of 29 full calendar years. In 2025, it returned +61.4%, against +17.7% for the index.

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

RTX fell less than the S&P 500 (SPY) in three of the ten major crashes it has traded through, and further in seven. The clearest case was the Covid crash, when RTX fell 50.5% and the S&P 500 fell 33.7%.

### What diversifies RTX?

These had a low correlation with RTX over the past 5 years and still earned a positive 5-year return: among large ETFs, LVHI (correlation 0.39), DXJ (correlation 0.15) and EMLP (correlation 0.38); among large stocks, CAH (correlation 0.32), CLS (correlation -0.01) and FIX (correlation 0.14). A correlation near zero means the two have moved largely independently.

## More research

- [Howmet Aerospace (HWM) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/hwm)
- [GE Aerospace (GE) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/ge)
- [HEICO (HEI) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/hei)
- [TransDigm Group (TDG) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/tdg)
- [Lockheed Martin (LMT) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/lmt)
- [Delta Air Lines (DAL) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/dal)
- [Northrop Grumman (NOC) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/noc)
- [L3Harris Technologies (LHX) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/lhx)
- [General Dynamics (GD) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/gd)
- [Boeing (BA) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/ba)
- [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)

## Explore further

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