# How State Street (STT) compares with the whole market and its popular alternatives

> Source: EasyCompare research, https://easycompare.io/research/stt
> 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 STT alone. It places STT (State Street Corporation) against 19 popular alternatives, its neighboring categories and the entire market of over 10,000 U.S.-listed stocks and ETFs, and surfaces what has done better on consistent outperformance, return for the risk taken, behavior in real market crashes and diversification. The result is a clearer view of where STT stands in the market, and of the alternatives worth a closer look.

Period covered: STT'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 3 months, STT fell 8.3% while the S&P 500 rose 3.9%. Not every peer went the same way. Over the past 3 months, BLK (BlackRock) rose 7.6% and TROW (T. Rowe Price Group) fell 11.2%.
- **Stock or market?:** The weakness is STT's own: it fell 8.3% over the past 3 months while the banks ETF XLF (State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF) fell 0.2%. The S&P 500 rose 3.9%. Its bank peers did not move as one over the past 3 months: BLK (BlackRock) rose 7.6%, while TROW (T. Rowe Price Group) fell 11.2%.
- **Past 1 to 3 years:** STT has run far ahead of the market, rising 47.9% 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 (181% against 89.3%). STT finished ahead of the S&P 500 in both 2024 and 2025.
- **Long term:** STT turned $10,000 into $31,200 over the past decade, against $42,100 in the S&P 500. Even so, the past 5 years have been the better stretch: STT rose 96.2% against 81.7% for the S&P 500, after trailing over the decade.
- **In a crash:** Across seven sell-offs, STT has typically fallen 1.6 times as far as the S&P 500.
- **Diversification:** STT is more of the same, not a cushion: a correlation of 0.73 with the S&P 500 over 5 years and 0.75 with the total US market, more closely than 99% of stocks worth at least $300 million. Over 10 years, STT's beta versus the S&P 500 was 1.48: in the S&P 500's rising months it gained 1.3 times as much as the index, and in falling months it lost 1.7 times as much.
- **Better options**
  - **Popular alternatives:** JPM (JPMorgan Chase & Co.) and BNY (Bank of New York Mellon) earned more than STT with less volatility over the past 5 years. JPM returned 17.3% a year at 24.3% volatility, against 14.4% a year at 29.9%.
  - **Nearby categories and themes:** TD (Toronto-Dominion Bank, banks) and RY (Royal Bank of Canada, banks) earned more than STT with less volatility over the past 5 years. TD returned 15.8% a year at 20.0% volatility, against 14.4% a year at 29.9%.
  - **Whole market:** 145 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than STT with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them AAPL (Apple), WMT (Walmart) and JPM (JPMorgan Chase & Co.).

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

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

- $10,000 invested in STT at the end of September 1997 would have grown to $96,326 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 STT, and SEIC finished highest, at $491,181.

## STT 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.

- STT's deepest decline since it began trading in 1986 was 82.3%, from January 2008 to January 2009. It took about six years from the low to climb back to its old high.
- Over 29 full calendar years, STT's best was 1997, when it returned 81.6%, and its worst was 2008, when it lost 50.7%. It lost money in nine of those years.
- STT is 13.8% below its all-time high.

- Type: Stock, Financials (Asset Management)
- Trading since: October 20, 1986
- Market value: $46B
- Volatility (5 years): 29.9%; Sharpe ratio: 0.60
- Worst decline ever: −82.3%, from January 3, 2008 to January 20, 2009; back at its high by December 3, 2014

| Period | STT total return |
| --- | --- |
| 1 month | −9.2% |
| 3 months | −8.3% |
| 6 months | +12.1% |
| year to date | +31.3% |
| 1 year | +47.9% |
| 3 years | +181% |
| 5 years | +96.2% |
| 10 years | +212% |

## STT against the whole market

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

### How does STT rank among all stocks?

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

- STT's 3-year return ranks in the top 15% of the 3,017 stocks worth at least $300 million with 3 years of history.

| Measure | STT | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1-year return | +47.9% | 588 of 3,287 (top 18%) |
| 3-year return | +181% | 463 of 3,017 (top 16%) |
| 5-year return | +96.2% | 704 of 2,893 (top 25%) |
| 10-year return | +212% | 818 of 2,202 (top 38%) |
| Volatility, 5 years | 29.9% | 705 of 2,893 (top 25%) |
| Sharpe ratio, 5 years | 0.60 | 664 of 2,893 (top 23%) |
| Worst decline, past 10 years | −59.6% | 862 of 2,187 (top 40%) |

### What has beaten STT 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).

- 91 stocks and 54 ETFs worth at least $500 million sit in the green region: each earned more than STT over the past 5 years with smaller price swings. That is 4% of the 3,633 screened.
- Among those with at least half STT's swings, CAH has the best return for its risk: 42.1% a year at 24.7% volatility, 17% less than STT's 29.9%, and a Sharpe ratio (return above cash per unit of volatility) of 1.55 against 0.60 for STT.
- Among STT's popular alternatives, BNY and JPM are in the region. BNY earned 22.7% a year against 14.4% a year for STT, at 24.4% volatility, 18% less than STT's 29.9%.

### Is there a better investment than STT?

The table below lists investments that beat STT 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 STT's popular alternatives, JPM and BNY earned more than STT with less volatility over the past 5 years. JPM returned 17.3% a year at 24.3% volatility, against 14.4% a year at 29.9%.
- Looking beyond its popular alternatives, TD (banks) and RY (banks) earned more than STT with less volatility over the past 5 years. TD returned 15.8% a year at 20.0% volatility, against 14.4% a year at 29.9%.
- Across the whole market, 145 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than STT with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them AAPL, WMT and JPM.

The 15 strongest of 145 investments that beat STT 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 STT | Better on |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| STT: State Street Corporation (this page) |  | +14.4% | 29.9% | 0.60 | −59.6% | +212% |  |  |
| [CAH](https://easycompare.io/research/cah): Cardinal Health, Inc. | Health Care Distribution | +42.1% | 24.7% | 1.55 | −46.1% | +349% | 0.21 | 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% | 0.16 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [PM](https://easycompare.io/research/pm): Philip Morris International Inc. | Tobacco | +21.0% | 23.4% | 0.94 | −42.9% | +242% | 0.31 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [CSCO](https://easycompare.io/research/csco): Cisco Systems, Inc. | Communications Equipment | +16.8% | 26.1% | 0.73 | −42.0% | +374% | 0.42 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [MCK](https://easycompare.io/research/mck): McKesson Corporation | Health Care Distribution | +38.7% | 25.0% | 1.44 | −38.1% | +586% | 0.11 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [MRK](https://easycompare.io/research/mrk): Merck & Co., Inc. | Pharmaceuticals | +16.3% | 24.8% | 0.74 | −43.4% | +241% | 0.13 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [AMGN](https://easycompare.io/research/amgn): Amgen Inc. | Biotechnology | +19.6% | 24.9% | 0.85 | −24.9% | +266% | 0.27 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [VGT](https://easycompare.io/research/vgt): Vanguard Information Technology ETF | Technology Equity | +18.4% | 26.0% | 0.78 | −35.1% | +779% | 0.55 | 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% | 0.52 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [GWW](https://easycompare.io/research/gww): W.W. Grainger, Inc. | Industrial Distribution | +26.3% | 24.9% | 1.07 | −41.6% | +654% | 0.56 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [MNST](https://easycompare.io/research/mnst): Monster Beverage Corporation | Food & Beverages | +17.2% | 24.9% | 0.77 | −30.4% | +285% | 0.18 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [ALL](https://easycompare.io/research/all): The Allstate Corporation | Property & Casualty Insurance | +17.0% | 26.2% | 0.73 | −41.4% | +356% | 0.31 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [FAST](https://easycompare.io/research/fast): Fastenal Company | Industrial Distribution | +15.8% | 24.6% | 0.72 | −30.7% | +576% | 0.40 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [IX](https://easycompare.io/research/ix): ORIX Corporation | Diversified Financials | +17.9% | 25.4% | 0.78 | −42.5% | +284% | 0.53 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [AAPL](https://easycompare.io/research/aapl): Apple Inc. | Computer Hardware | +18.5% | 28.0% | 0.75 | −38.5% | +1,168% | 0.39 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |

## STT against its popular alternatives

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

### How do STT'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.

- BNY, JPM and C were both more rewarding and calmer than STT over the past 5 years, earning a higher annual return with lower volatility.
- Over the past 5 years, STT returned 14.4% a year, more than the S&P 500's 12.7%, with higher volatility (29.9% against 17.1%).

### Has STT consistently beaten its popular alternatives?

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

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

| Investment | 1Y return | 3Y return | 5Y return | 10Y return | Periods ahead of STT | Verdict | Sharpe |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| STT: State Street Corporation (this page) | +47.9% | +181% | +96.2% | +212% |  |  | 0.60 |
| AMG: Affiliated Managers Group, Inc. | +59.9% | +214% | +137% | +185% | 5/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 0.70 |
| [BNY](https://easycompare.io/research/bny): Bank of New York Mellon Corp | +35.3% | +272% | +179% | +341% | 2/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.97 |
| [C](https://easycompare.io/research/c): Citigroup Inc. | +26.0% | +238% | +102% | +234% | 1/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.63 |
| [JPM](https://easycompare.io/research/jpm): JPMorgan Chase & Co. | +13.0% | +150% | +122% | +537% | 2/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.78 |
| [MSCI](https://easycompare.io/research/msci): MSCI Inc. | +11.8% | +25.5% | +0.5% | +702% | 2/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.16 |
| [CME](https://easycompare.io/research/cme): CME Group Inc. | +14.6% | +57.7% | +70.1% | +319% | 2/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.62 |
| [BLK](https://easycompare.io/research/blk): BlackRock, Inc. | −0.6% | +96.3% | +41.1% | +313% | 2/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.39 |
| [SPGI](https://easycompare.io/research/spgi): S&P Global Inc. | −7.4% | +28.2% | +3.7% | +293% | 2/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.16 |
| AB: AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. | −3.7% | +56.6% | −0.1% | +281% | 2/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.14 |
| [ICE](https://easycompare.io/research/ice): Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. | +3.5% | +52.4% | +30.0% | +240% | 2/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.35 |
| [SCHW](https://easycompare.io/research/schw): The Charles Schwab Corporation | −3.1% | +86.2% | +19.1% | +221% | 0/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.27 |
| BEN: Franklin Resources, Inc. | +44.8% | +62.4% | +31.5% | +49.2% | 4/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.33 |
| SSNC: SS&C Technologies Holdings, Inc. | +8.3% | +81.0% | +26.0% | +200% | 3/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.31 |
| SEIC: SEI Investments Company | +32.7% | +102% | +81.6% | +168% | 3/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.65 |
| IVZ: Invesco Ltd. | +30.0% | +158% | +39.8% | +50.9% | 3/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.37 |
| NTRS: Northern Trust Corporation | +31.1% | +180% | +52.9% | +205% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.44 |
| TROW: T. Rowe Price Group, Inc. | +3.1% | +22.7% | −37.4% | +126% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.16 |
| FIS: Fidelity National Information Services, Inc. | −44.3% | −21.6% | −66.6% | −41.3% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.47 |
| APAM: Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc. | −16.8% | +26.9% | +4.6% | +200% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.18 |

### How did STT do year by year?

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

- Ranked against its popular alternatives each year, STT finished in the top quarter in one of 29 years and in the bottom quarter in five. In 2025, it ranked 8 of 20.
- STT finished ahead of the S&P 500 in 14 of its 29 full calendar years, and ahead of it in each of the last two.
- Among its popular alternatives, BLK came out ahead of STT most often, in 18 of the 26 years both traded.

| Year | STT | SPY |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2025 | +35.5% | +17.7% |
| 2024 | +30.2% | +24.9% |
| 2023 | +3.5% | +26.2% |
| 2022 | −13.8% | −18.2% |
| 2021 | +31.0% | +28.7% |
| 2020 | −4.8% | +18.3% |
| 2019 | +29.3% | +31.2% |
| 2018 | −34.0% | −4.6% |
| 2017 | +27.8% | +21.7% |
| 2016 | +19.8% | +12.0% |

## Risk and diversification

How STT 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 STT's worst declines?

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

- In all three of STT's worst declines, the S&P 500 held up better over the same dates.
- The slowest recovery came after STT fell 82.3% from January 2008 to January 2009; it did not regain that peak until December 2014, six years later.

| Decline | Peak | Low | Back at the high | SPY over the same dates | Market event |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| −82.3% | January 3, 2008 | January 20, 2009 | December 3, 2014 | −43.0% | 2008 financial crisis |
| −59.6% | January 24, 2018 | March 23, 2020 | January 7, 2022 | −17.8% | late-2018 sell-off |
| −51.7% | November 9, 2000 | March 27, 2003 | February 22, 2006 | −35.5% | dot-com bust |
| −51.6% | March 26, 1987 | December 4, 1987 | August 1, 1989 | — |  |
| −47.0% | June 6, 1990 | November 1, 1990 | February 11, 1991 | — |  |

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

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

- STT fell further than the S&P 500 in nine of the ten crashes it has traded through. The clearest case was the 2008 financial crisis, when STT fell 82.3% and the S&P 500 fell 55.2%.
- Among its popular alternatives, BLK held up best, falling less than STT in all ten crashes they both traded through.

| Crash | Dates | STT fall | SPY fall |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Dot-com bust | March 10, 2000 to October 9, 2002 | −50.7% | −47.5% |
| Global financial crisis | October 9, 2007 to March 9, 2009 | −82.3% | −55.2% |
| Flash crash | May 6, 2010 to May 7, 2010 | −1.9% | −1.5% |
| Euro debt crisis | July 22, 2011 to October 3, 2011 | −28.3% | −17.9% |
| China devaluation & oil rout | August 10, 2015 to February 11, 2016 | −34.1% | −12.8% |
| Volmageddon | February 2, 2018 to February 9, 2018 | −8.3% | −6.5% |
| Q4 2018 selloff | September 21, 2018 to December 24, 2018 | −32.3% | −19.3% |
| COVID crash | February 19, 2020 to March 23, 2020 | −45.1% | −33.7% |
| 2022 bear market | January 4, 2022 to October 12, 2022 | −41.4% | −24.5% |
| SVB / regional bank stress | March 8, 2023 to March 13, 2023 | −14.6% | −3.4% |

### How closely does STT 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.

- 11 of the 19 popular alternatives had a higher capture ratio (upside capture divided by downside capture) than STT's 0.77, led by CME, JPM and MSCI.
- JPM took just 103% of the S&P 500's losses, against 166% for STT, while still keeping 117% of its gains.
- Over the past 10 years, STT captured 128% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 166% of its losses in falling months, with a beta of 1.48. It amplified the market's moves in both directions.

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

| Investment | Upside capture | Downside capture | Beta |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| STT: State Street Corporation (this page) | 128% | 166% | 1.48 |
| AMG: Affiliated Managers Group, Inc. | 103% | 137% | 1.22 |
| [BNY](https://easycompare.io/research/bny): Bank of New York Mellon Corp | 115% | 120% | 1.08 |
| [C](https://easycompare.io/research/c): Citigroup Inc. | 131% | 165% | 1.49 |
| [JPM](https://easycompare.io/research/jpm): JPMorgan Chase & Co. | 117% | 103% | 1.09 |
| [MSCI](https://easycompare.io/research/msci): MSCI Inc. | 131% | 121% | 1.12 |
| [CME](https://easycompare.io/research/cme): CME Group Inc. | 50.0% | 11.0% | 0.33 |
| [BLK](https://easycompare.io/research/blk): BlackRock, Inc. | 127% | 157% | 1.30 |
| [SPGI](https://easycompare.io/research/spgi): S&P Global Inc. | 107% | 125% | 1.04 |
| AB: AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. | 102% | 112% | 1.10 |
| [ICE](https://easycompare.io/research/ice): Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. | 88.0% | 94.0% | 0.84 |
| [SCHW](https://easycompare.io/research/schw): The Charles Schwab Corporation | 89.0% | 90.0% | 0.91 |
| BEN: Franklin Resources, Inc. | 102% | 170% | 1.39 |
| SSNC: SS&C Technologies Holdings, Inc. | 113% | 153% | 1.32 |
| SEIC: SEI Investments Company | 97.0% | 127% | 1.03 |
| IVZ: Invesco Ltd. | 119% | 201% | 1.46 |
| NTRS: Northern Trust Corporation | 111% | 136% | 1.18 |
| TROW: T. Rowe Price Group, Inc. | 118% | 172% | 1.35 |
| FIS: Fidelity National Information Services, Inc. | 54.0% | 150% | 0.82 |
| APAM: Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc. | 160% | 224% | 1.79 |

### What diversifies STT?

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 STT into DBMF would have cut the portfolio's volatility by 22% over the past 5 years for a small cut in its annual return (+19.1% for STT alone, +18.5% for the mix).
- Among large ETFs, DXJ, SMH and GLD have moved largely independently of STT over the past 5 years, with correlations of 0.47 or lower, and each still earned a positive 5-year return.
- FIX made money in six of the nine calendar years in which STT lost money.

| Investment | Correlation with STT | 5Y return | Volatility | Sharpe | Rose in STT's 9 down years |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | 0.29 | +225% | 19.1% | 1.34 | 3 of 9 |
| [SMH](https://easycompare.io/research/smh): VanEck Semiconductor ETF | 0.47 | +323% | 36.9% | 0.97 | 2 of 9 |
| [GLD](https://easycompare.io/research/gld): SPDR Gold Shares | 0.02 | +126% | 18.9% | 0.96 | 3 of 9 |
| [XLE](https://easycompare.io/research/xle): State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF | 0.43 | +177% | 25.5% | 0.93 | 3 of 9 |
| EWT: iShares MSCI Taiwan ETF | 0.47 | +153% | 24.2% | 0.89 | 3 of 9 |
| EDIV: State Street SPDR S&P Emerging Markets Dividend ETF | 0.36 | +69.9% | 13.8% | 0.84 | 0 of 9 |
| PTLC: Pacer Trendpilot US Large Cap ETF | 0.43 | +57.4% | 11.8% | 0.83 | 1 of 9 |
| DBMF: iMGP DBi Managed Futures Strategy ETF | -0.29 | +59.7% | 12.4% | 0.82 | 2 of 9 |

## Common questions

### What was STT's worst drawdown?

STT's deepest decline since it began trading in 1986 was 82.3%, from January 2008 to January 2009. It took about six years from the low to climb back to its old high.

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

Over 29 full calendar years, STT's best year was 1997, when it returned 81.6%. Its worst was 2008, with a return of -50.7%.

### Is there a better investment than STT?

Among STT's popular alternatives, JPM and BNY earned more than STT with less volatility over the past 5 years. JPM returned 17.3% a year at 24.3% volatility, against 14.4% a year at 29.9%. Looking beyond its popular alternatives, TD (banks) and RY (banks) earned more than STT with less volatility over the past 5 years. TD returned 15.8% a year at 20.0% volatility, against 14.4% a year at 29.9%.

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

Yes. STT's volatility over the past 5 years was 29.9%, 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, STT's return lands within 29.9% 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 STT's Sharpe ratio?

STT's Sharpe ratio over the past 5 years was 0.60, against 0.79 for the S&P 500, so STT 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 STT with the S&P 500?

Over the past 5 years, STT's monthly returns had a correlation of 0.73 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 STT instead: the lower it is, the more that option would diversify a STT holding.

### What are the best alternatives to STT?

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

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

STT finished ahead of the S&P 500 (SPY) in 14 of 29 full calendar years. In 2025, it returned +35.5%, against +17.7% for the index.

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

STT fell less than the S&P 500 (SPY) in none of the ten major crashes it has traded through, and further in nine. The clearest case was the 2008 financial crisis, when STT fell 82.3% and the S&P 500 fell 55.2%.

### What diversifies STT?

These had a low correlation with STT over the past 5 years and still earned a positive 5-year return: among large ETFs, DXJ (correlation 0.29), SMH (correlation 0.47) and GLD (correlation 0.02); among large stocks, CAH (correlation 0.21), CLS (correlation 0.39) and FIX (correlation 0.44). 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/stt
- All research pages: https://easycompare.io/llms.txt
- Compare the entire market against STT live: https://betterthanspy.com/?b=STT&utm_source=easycompare&utm_medium=research