# How Sysco (SYY) compares with the whole market and its popular alternatives

> Source: EasyCompare research, https://easycompare.io/research/syy
> 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 SYY alone. It places SYY (Sysco Corporation) against 15 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 SYY stands in the market, and of the alternatives worth a closer look.

Period covered: SYY'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 food distribution peers split over the past 6 months: CHEF (Chefs' Warehouse) rose 69.3%, while TSN (Tyson Foods) fell 11.5%. Over the past 6 months, SYY rose 10.2% against 9.1% for the S&P 500 and 11.2% for the Nasdaq 100.
- **Stock or market?:** SYY rose 3.3% over the past 3 months, in line with the food distribution ETF XLP (State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF), which rose 4.1%. The S&P 500 rose 3.9%. Its food distribution peers did not move as one over the past 3 months: CHEF (Chefs' Warehouse) rose 16.0%, while HRL (Hormel Foods) fell 17.6%.
- **Past 1 to 3 years:** SYY has trailed the market, rising 6.7% over the past year against 15.8% for the S&P 500 and 17.9% for the Nasdaq 100. The same gap shows up over 3 years (37.6% against 89.3%). SYY finished behind the S&P 500 in both 2024 and 2025.
- **Long term:** SYY turned $10,000 into $22,600 over the past decade, against $42,100 in the S&P 500.
- **In a crash:** SYY fell less than the S&P 500 in five of seven sell-offs, but the Covid crash broke the pattern: it fell 59.5%, more than the S&P 500's 33.7%.
- **Diversification:** SYY's link to the S&P 500 has loosened: a correlation of 0.40 over the past 5 years, down from 0.73 in the 5 years before. On the flip side, over 10 years, SYY's beta versus the S&P 500 was 1.02: in the S&P 500's rising months it gained 76% as much as the index, and in falling months it lost 1.0 times as much.
- **Better options**
  - **Popular alternatives:** YUM (Yum! Brands) earned more than SYY with less volatility over the past 5 years: 5.8% a year at 21.2% volatility, against 3.5% a year at 23.6%.
  - **Nearby categories and themes:** TXRH (Texas Roadhouse, restaurants) earned more for the risk it took than SYY over the past 5 years, and its worst fall in 10 years was 58.0%, against 63.4% for SYY.
  - **Whole market:** 667 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than SYY 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 SYY have grown?

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

- $10,000 invested in SYY at the end of September 1997 would have grown to $172,022 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 SYY, and CALM finished highest, at $790,455.

## SYY 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.

- SYY's deepest decline since it began trading in 1986 was 63.4%, from December 2019 to March 2020. It took 12 months from the low to climb back to its old high.
- Over 29 full calendar years, SYY's best was 2000, when it returned 53.5%, and its worst was 2008, when it lost 23.5%. It lost money in eight of those years.
- SYY is 7.1% below its all-time high.

- Type: Stock, Consumer Staples (Food Distribution)
- Trading since: October 17, 1986
- Market value: $41B
- Volatility (5 years): 23.6%; Sharpe ratio: 0.27
- Worst decline ever: −63.4%, from December 30, 2019 to March 18, 2020; back at its high by March 12, 2021

| Period | SYY total return |
| --- | --- |
| 1 month | +6.4% |
| 3 months | +3.3% |
| 6 months | +10.2% |
| year to date | +16.6% |
| 1 year | +6.7% |
| 3 years | +37.6% |
| 5 years | +18.7% |
| 10 years | +126% |

## SYY against the whole market

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

### How does SYY rank among all stocks?

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

- SYY is among the steadier stocks: its price swings rank in the top 8% of the 2,893 stocks worth at least $300 million, where the top is the calmest.

| Measure | SYY | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1-year return | +6.7% | 1,709 of 3,287 (top 52%) |
| 3-year return | +37.6% | 1,736 of 3,017 (top 58%) |
| 5-year return | +18.7% | 1,467 of 2,893 (top 51%) |
| 10-year return | +126% | 1,210 of 2,202 (top 55%) |
| Volatility, 5 years | 23.6% | 243 of 2,893 (top 9%) |
| Sharpe ratio, 5 years | 0.27 | 1,659 of 2,893 (top 58%) |
| Worst decline, past 10 years | −63.4% | 1,017 of 2,187 (top 47%) |

### What has beaten SYY 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).

- 89 stocks and 578 ETFs worth at least $500 million sit in the green region: each earned more than SYY over the past 5 years with smaller price swings. That is 18% of the 3,633 screened.
- Among those with at least half SYY's swings, DXJ has the best return for its risk: 26.6% a year at 19.1% volatility, 19% less than SYY's 23.6%, and a Sharpe ratio (return above cash per unit of volatility) of 1.34 against 0.27 for SYY.
- Among SYY's popular alternatives, YUM is in the region. YUM earned 5.8% a year against 3.5% a year for SYY, at 21.2% volatility, 11% less than SYY's 23.6%.

### Is there a better investment than SYY?

The table below lists investments that beat SYY 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 SYY's popular alternatives, YUM earned more than SYY with less volatility over the past 5 years: 5.8% a year at 21.2% volatility, against 3.5% a year at 23.6%.
- Looking beyond its popular alternatives, TXRH (restaurants) earned more for the risk it took than SYY over the past 5 years, and its worst fall in 10 years was 58.0%, against 63.4% for SYY.
- Across the whole market, 667 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than SYY with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them VTI, VOO and BRK-B.

The 15 strongest of 667 investments that beat SYY 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 SYY | Better on |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| SYY: Sysco Corporation (this page) |  | +3.5% | 23.6% | 0.27 | −63.4% | +126% |  |  |
| [RY](https://easycompare.io/research/ry): Royal Bank of Canada | Banks | +17.3% | 18.2% | 0.97 | −40.0% | +352% | 0.32 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [VOO](https://easycompare.io/research/voo): Vanguard S&P 500 ETF | US Large-Cap Equity | +12.8% | 16.9% | 0.80 | −34.0% | +324% | 0.40 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [BRK-B](https://easycompare.io/research/brk-b): Berkshire Hathaway Inc. | Insurance | +13.4% | 17.1% | 0.82 | −29.6% | +274% | 0.41 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [JNJ](https://easycompare.io/research/jnj): Johnson & Johnson | Pharmaceuticals | +12.7% | 17.9% | 0.76 | −27.4% | +196% | 0.45 | 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% | 0.48 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| LVHI: Franklin International Low Volatility High Dividend Index ETF | International Equity | +17.0% | 11.1% | 1.48 | −32.4% | +194% | 0.54 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [KO](https://easycompare.io/research/ko): The Coca-Cola Company | Food & Beverages | +14.7% | 16.8% | 0.91 | −37.0% | +204% | 0.58 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [VTV](https://easycompare.io/research/vtv): Vanguard Morningstar Value ETF | US Large-Cap Value | +12.1% | 13.7% | 0.90 | −36.8% | +235% | 0.61 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [TD](https://easycompare.io/research/td): The Toronto-Dominion Bank | Banks | +15.8% | 20.0% | 0.84 | −42.0% | +310% | 0.31 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [PG](https://easycompare.io/research/pg): The Procter & Gamble Company | Household & Personal Products | +5.1% | 18.3% | 0.37 | −23.8% | +145% | 0.57 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [MO](https://easycompare.io/research/mo): Altria Group, Inc. | Tobacco | +17.8% | 21.4% | 0.88 | −53.7% | +140% | 0.50 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [TRV](https://easycompare.io/research/trv): The Travelers Companies, Inc. | Property & Casualty Insurance | +22.4% | 22.3% | 1.02 | −46.3% | +347% | 0.58 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [SCHD](https://easycompare.io/research/schd): Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF | US Dividend Equity | +9.7% | 14.3% | 0.72 | −33.4% | +252% | 0.57 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [BMO](https://easycompare.io/research/bmo): Bank of Montreal | Banks | +13.6% | 21.4% | 0.71 | −51.0% | +295% | 0.43 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [BNS](https://easycompare.io/research/bns): The Bank of Nova Scotia | Banks | +12.9% | 19.9% | 0.71 | −46.9% | +187% | 0.45 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |

## SYY against its popular alternatives

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

### How do SYY'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 YUM was both more rewarding and calmer than SYY over the past 5 years, earning a higher annual return with lower volatility.
- Over the past 5 years, SYY returned 3.5% a year, less than the S&P 500's 12.7%, with higher volatility (23.6% against 17.1%).

### Has SYY consistently beaten its popular alternatives?

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

- Three of the 15 popular alternatives, CHEF, USFD and DRI, outperformed SYY in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes.
- CHEF and USFD outperformed SYY in every long-term period and in all but one short-term period, the most consistent record in the group.
- CALM and YUM earned more for the risk they took than SYY (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 SYY | Verdict | Sharpe |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| SYY: Sysco Corporation (this page) | +6.7% | +37.6% | +18.7% | +126% |  |  | 0.27 |
| CHEF: The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. | +90.2% | +478% | +237% | +787% | 4/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.81 |
| USFD: US Foods Holding Corp. | +35.0% | +178% | +178% | +347% | 4/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.84 |
| DRI: Darden Restaurants, Inc. | +19.7% | +70.6% | +79.7% | +361% | 3/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | consistent | 0.57 |
| PFGC: Performance Food Group Co | −3.6% | +75.9% | +110% | +299% | 0/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.63 |
| DAR: Darling Ingredients Inc. | +86.2% | +42.0% | −23.4% | +342% | 2/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.07 |
| ANDE: The Andersons, Inc. | +39.5% | +39.1% | +122% | +118% | 2/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.61 |
| [YUM](https://easycompare.io/research/yum): Yum! Brands, Inc. | +4.3% | +34.0% | +32.5% | +192% | 1/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.37 |
| CALM: Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. | −30.4% | +55.3% | +125% | +121% | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.66 |
| UNFI: United Natural Foods, Inc. | +12.5% | +204% | +5.4% | +13.2% | 2/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.28 |
| [MCD](https://easycompare.io/research/mcd): McDonald's Corporation | −17.8% | +2.7% | +15.5% | +181% | 0/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.25 |
| LW: Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. | −15.6% | −33.9% | +3.1% | — | 4/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.22 |
| TSN: Tyson Foods, Inc. | +9.3% | +32.8% | −20.1% | +3.1% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.05 |
| PPC: Pilgrim's Pride Corporation | −24.7% | +30.8% | +10.1% | +57.7% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.22 |
| HRL: Hormel Foods Corporation | −9.6% | −25.6% | −41.4% | −28.0% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.31 |
| CAG: Conagra Brands, Inc. | −15.9% | −35.9% | −44.7% | −42.0% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.36 |

### How did SYY do year by year?

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

- SYY finished ahead of the S&P 500 in 12 of its 29 full calendar years, and behind it in each of the last three.
- Among its popular alternatives, PFGC came out ahead of SYY most often, in seven of the ten years both traded.
- Ranked against its popular alternatives each year, SYY finished in the top quarter in four of 29 years and in the bottom quarter in four. In 2025, it ranked 11 of 16.

| Year | SYY | SPY |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2025 | −1.0% | +17.7% |
| 2024 | +7.4% | +24.9% |
| 2023 | −1.7% | +26.2% |
| 2022 | −0.3% | −18.2% |
| 2021 | +8.3% | +28.7% |
| 2020 | −10.4% | +18.3% |
| 2019 | +39.6% | +31.2% |
| 2018 | +5.5% | −4.6% |
| 2017 | +12.5% | +21.7% |
| 2016 | +38.8% | +12.0% |

## Risk and diversification

How SYY 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 SYY's worst declines?

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

- In all four of SYY's worst declines, the S&P 500 held up better over the same dates.
- Not every decline was the market's doing: SYY fell 32.3% from January to March 2000, while the S&P 500 slipped only 4.2%.
- The slowest recovery came after SYY fell 46.8% from March 2004 to March 2009; it did not regain that peak until December 2012, four years later.

| Decline | Peak | Low | Back at the high | SPY over the same dates | Market event |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| −63.4% | December 30, 2019 | March 18, 2020 | March 12, 2021 | −25.3% | Covid crash |
| −46.8% | March 10, 2004 | March 9, 2009 | December 6, 2012 | −33.4% | 2008 financial crisis |
| −42.1% | August 13, 1987 | November 30, 1987 | March 3, 1989 | — |  |
| −32.3% | January 12, 2000 | March 7, 2000 | May 11, 2000 | −4.2% |  |
| −29.5% | December 21, 1993 | July 22, 1994 | June 28, 1995 | −1.2% |  |

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

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

- Among its popular alternatives, HRL held up best, falling less than SYY in eight of the ten crashes they both traded through.
- SYY fell less than the S&P 500 in six of the ten crashes it has traded through. The clearest case was the dot-com bust, when SYY fell 27.2% and the S&P 500 fell 47.5%.

| Crash | Dates | SYY fall | SPY fall |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Dot-com bust | March 10, 2000 to October 9, 2002 | −27.2% | −47.5% |
| Global financial crisis | October 9, 2007 to March 9, 2009 | −43.1% | −55.2% |
| Flash crash | May 6, 2010 to May 7, 2010 | −1.5% | −1.5% |
| Euro debt crisis | July 22, 2011 to October 3, 2011 | −17.9% | −17.9% |
| China devaluation & oil rout | August 10, 2015 to February 11, 2016 | −6.4% | −12.8% |
| Volmageddon | February 2, 2018 to February 9, 2018 | −6.8% | −6.5% |
| Q4 2018 selloff | September 21, 2018 to December 24, 2018 | −17.8% | −19.3% |
| COVID crash | February 19, 2020 to March 23, 2020 | −59.5% | −33.7% |
| 2022 bear market | January 4, 2022 to October 12, 2022 | −20.8% | −24.5% |
| SVB / regional bank stress | March 8, 2023 to March 13, 2023 | −2.3% | −3.4% |

### How closely does SYY 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.

- Eight of the 13 popular alternatives had a higher capture ratio (upside capture divided by downside capture) than SYY's 0.76, led by MCD, DRI and CHEF.
- YUM took just 70% of the S&P 500's losses, against 100% for SYY, while still keeping 67% of its gains.
- Over the past 10 years, SYY captured 76% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 100% of its losses in falling months, with a beta of 1.02. Its share of the market's losses was larger than its share of the gains.

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

| Investment | Upside capture | Downside capture | Beta |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| SYY: Sysco Corporation (this page) | 76.0% | 100% | 1.02 |
| CHEF: The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. | 161% | 154% | 1.87 |
| USFD: US Foods Holding Corp. | 100% | 103% | 1.29 |
| DRI: Darden Restaurants, Inc. | 96.0% | 92.0% | 1.06 |
| PFGC: Performance Food Group Co | 105% | 116% | 1.27 |
| DAR: Darling Ingredients Inc. | 118% | 127% | 1.05 |
| ANDE: The Andersons, Inc. | 54.0% | 54.0% | 0.65 |
| [YUM](https://easycompare.io/research/yum): Yum! Brands, Inc. | 67.0% | 70.0% | 0.82 |
| CALM: Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. | 27.0% | −3.0% | 0.04 |
| UNFI: United Natural Foods, Inc. | 65.0% | 120% | 1.02 |
| [MCD](https://easycompare.io/research/mcd): McDonald's Corporation | 58.0% | 52.0% | 0.52 |
| TSN: Tyson Foods, Inc. | 39.0% | 85.0% | 0.60 |
| PPC: Pilgrim's Pride Corporation | 61.0% | 96.0% | 0.71 |
| HRL: Hormel Foods Corporation | 6.0% | 37.0% | 0.15 |
| CAG: Conagra Brands, Inc. | 25.0% | 90.0% | 0.42 |

### What diversifies SYY?

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 SYY into GLD would have cut the portfolio's volatility by 16% over the past 5 years and raised its annual return (+2.4% for SYY alone, +6.0% for the mix).
- FIX made money in seven of the eight calendar years in which SYY lost money.
- Among large ETFs, DXJ, EMLP and SMH have moved largely independently of SYY over the past 5 years, with correlations of 0.48 or lower, and each still earned a positive 5-year return.

| Investment | Correlation with SYY | 5Y return | Volatility | Sharpe | Rose in SYY's 8 down years |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | 0.48 | +225% | 19.1% | 1.34 | 4 of 8 |
| EMLP: First Trust North American Energy Infrastructure Fund | 0.48 | +101% | 14.5% | 1.04 | 3 of 8 |
| [SMH](https://easycompare.io/research/smh): VanEck Semiconductor ETF | 0.19 | +323% | 36.9% | 0.97 | 5 of 8 |
| [GLD](https://easycompare.io/research/gld): SPDR Gold Shares | 0.21 | +126% | 18.9% | 0.96 | 6 of 8 |
| SPMO: Invesco S&P 500 Momentum ETF | 0.38 | +136% | 20.8% | 0.93 | 3 of 8 |
| [XLE](https://easycompare.io/research/xle): State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF | 0.33 | +177% | 25.5% | 0.93 | 4 of 8 |
| DFIV: Dimensional - International Value ETF | 0.47 | +99.4% | 16.4% | 0.93 | 2 of 8 |
| VLUE: iShares MSCI USA Value Factor ETF | 0.49 | +109% | 18.4% | 0.90 | 2 of 8 |

## Common questions

### What was SYY's worst drawdown?

SYY's deepest decline since it began trading in 1986 was 63.4%, from December 2019 to March 2020. It took 12 months from the low to climb back to its old high.

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

Over 29 full calendar years, SYY's best year was 2000, when it returned 53.5%. Its worst was 2008, with a return of -23.5%.

### Is there a better investment than SYY?

Among SYY's popular alternatives, YUM earned more than SYY with less volatility over the past 5 years: 5.8% a year at 21.2% volatility, against 3.5% a year at 23.6%. Looking beyond its popular alternatives, TXRH (restaurants) earned more for the risk it took than SYY over the past 5 years, and its worst fall in 10 years was 58.0%, against 63.4% for SYY.

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

Yes. SYY's volatility over the past 5 years was 23.6%, 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, SYY's return lands within 23.6% 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 SYY's Sharpe ratio?

SYY's Sharpe ratio over the past 5 years was 0.27, against 0.79 for the S&P 500, so SYY 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 SYY with the S&P 500?

Over the past 5 years, SYY's monthly returns had a correlation of 0.40 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 SYY instead: the lower it is, the more that option would diversify a SYY holding.

### What are the best alternatives to SYY?

Of the 15 popular alternatives we compared, three outperformed SYY in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes, with dividends reinvested: CHEF, USFD and DRI.

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

SYY finished ahead of the S&P 500 (SPY) in 12 of 29 full calendar years. In 2025, it returned -1.0%, against +17.7% for the index.

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

SYY fell less than the S&P 500 (SPY) in six of the ten major crashes it has traded through, and further in one. The clearest case was the dot-com bust, when SYY fell 27.2% and the S&P 500 fell 47.5%.

### What diversifies SYY?

These had a low correlation with SYY over the past 5 years and still earned a positive 5-year return: among large ETFs, DXJ (correlation 0.48), EMLP (correlation 0.48) and SMH (correlation 0.19); among large stocks, CAH (correlation 0.42), CLS (correlation 0.12) and FIX (correlation 0.31). A correlation near zero means the two have moved largely independently.

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- [Alphabet (GOOG) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/goog)
- [Microsoft (MSFT) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/msft)
- [Amazon.com (AMZN) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/amzn)
- [Vanguard Morningstar Total Stock Market ETF (VTI) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/vti)
- [Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/tsm)
- [Space Exploration Technologies (SPCX) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/spcx)
- [Meta Platforms (META) Performance, Alternatives and Market Rank](https://easycompare.io/research/meta)

## Explore further

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