# How United Microelectronics (UMC) compares with the whole market and its popular alternatives

> Source: EasyCompare research, https://easycompare.io/research/umc
> 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 UMC alone. It places UMC (United Microelectronics 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 UMC stands in the market, and of the alternatives worth a closer look.

Period covered: UMC's full trading record, from September 2000 through September 2026. The crash tests reach back to 2000 using older funds and the S&P 500. All returns include reinvested dividends. Data as of October 20, 2026.

## Key findings

- **Right now:** UMC has run far ahead of the market, rising 58.4% over the past 6 months against 9.1% for the S&P 500 and 11.2% for the Nasdaq 100. On the flip side, it is 28.9% below its high, bear-market territory, while the S&P 500 sits 1.3% below a record.
- **Stock or market?:** UMC fell 3.1% over the past 3 months, in line with the semiconductors ETF SMH (VanEck Semiconductor ETF), which fell 2.2%. The S&P 500 rose 3.9%. Its semiconductor peers did not move as one over the past 3 months: ADI (Analog Devices) rose 6.9%, while NXPI (NXP Semiconductors) fell 10.7%.
- **Past 1 to 3 years:** Over the past year, UMC rose 166% against 15.8% for the S&P 500 and 17.9% for the Nasdaq 100. The same gap shows up over 3 years (202% against 89.3%).
- **Long term:** UMC turned $10,000 into $171,000 over the past decade, against $42,100 in the S&P 500. UMC's 10-year return of 1,610% puts it ahead of 98% of the stocks worth at least $300 million with that much history. The S&P 500 returned 321%.
- **In a crash:** UMC fell harder than the S&P 500 in five of six sell-offs. The Covid crash was the exception: UMC fell 17.1%, less than the S&P 500's 33.7%.
- **Diversification:** Against the S&P 500, UMC has a correlation of 0.45 over 5 years, more closely than 63% of stocks worth at least $300 million. Next to an index fund it is some diversification, but not a hedge.
- **Better options**
  - **Popular alternatives:** TSM (Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing) earned more than UMC with less volatility over the past 5 years: 31.5% a year at 38.5% volatility, against 19.9% a year at 43.2%.
  - **Whole market:** 189 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than UMC with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them TSM (Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing), LLY (Eli Lilly and Company) and XOM (Exxonmobil).

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

This chart tracks a hypothetical $10,000 investment in UMC over the past 26 years, with dividends reinvested, alongside the same amount in the S&P 500, investments that ended ahead of UMC over the same span and UMC's popular alternatives, among those that traded for the entire period.

- $10,000 invested in UMC at the end of September 2000 would have grown to $61,692 by September 2026, less than the $84,332 it would have become in SPY, an S&P 500 fund.
- Seven of the eight other investments on the chart ended ahead of UMC, and LRCX finished highest, at $1,845,538.

## UMC 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.

- UMC is still 28.9% below its all-time high.
- UMC's deepest decline since it began trading in 2000 was 86.0%, from September 2000 to October 2008. It took about 12 years from the low to climb back to its old high.
- Over 25 full calendar years, UMC's best was 2020, when it returned 232%, and its worst was 2002, when it lost 58.0%. It lost money in 13 of those years.

- Type: Stock, Technology (Semiconductors)
- Trading since: September 19, 2000
- Market value: $49B
- Volatility (5 years): 43.2%; Sharpe ratio: 0.63
- Worst decline ever: −86.0%, from September 20, 2000 to October 27, 2008; back at its high by November 23, 2020

| Period | UMC total return |
| --- | --- |
| 1 month | −22.7% |
| 3 months | −3.1% |
| 6 months | +58.4% |
| year to date | +155% |
| 1 year | +166% |
| 3 years | +202% |
| 5 years | +147% |
| 10 years | +1,610% |

## UMC against the whole market

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

### How does UMC rank among all stocks?

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

- UMC's 1-year return ranks in the top 2% of the 3,287 stocks worth at least $300 million with 1 year of history.

| Measure | UMC | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1-year return | +166% | 60 of 3,287 (top 2%) |
| 3-year return | +202% | 399 of 3,017 (top 14%) |
| 5-year return | +147% | 459 of 2,893 (top 16%) |
| 10-year return | +1,610% | 53 of 2,202 (top 3%) |
| Volatility, 5 years | 43.2% | 1,619 of 2,893 (top 56%) |
| Sharpe ratio, 5 years | 0.63 | 600 of 2,893 (top 21%) |
| Worst decline, past 10 years | −54.3% | 639 of 2,187 (top 30%) |

### What has beaten UMC 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).

- 167 stocks and 22 ETFs worth at least $500 million sit in the green region: each earned more than UMC over the past 5 years with smaller price swings. That is 5% of the 3,633 screened.
- Among those with at least half UMC's swings, CAH has the best return for its risk: 42.1% a year at 24.7% volatility, 43% less than UMC's 43.2%, and a Sharpe ratio (return above cash per unit of volatility) of 1.55 against 0.63 for UMC. INSW earned the most, 56.5% a year, while still swinging less than UMC (40.5% against 43.2%).
- Among UMC's popular alternatives, TSM is in the region. TSM earned 31.5% a year against 19.9% a year for UMC, at 38.5% volatility, 11% less than UMC's 43.2%.

### Is there a better investment than UMC?

The table below lists investments that beat UMC 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 UMC's popular alternatives, TSM earned more than UMC with less volatility over the past 5 years: 31.5% a year at 38.5% volatility, against 19.9% a year at 43.2%.
- Looking beyond its popular alternatives, SMH (semiconductors) earned more than UMC with less volatility over the past 5 years: 33.4% a year at 36.9% volatility, against 19.9% a year at 43.2%.
- Across the whole market, 189 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than UMC with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them TSM, LLY and XOM.

The 15 strongest of 189 investments that beat UMC 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 UMC | Better on |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| UMC: United Microelectronics Corporation (this page) |  | +19.9% | 43.2% | 0.63 | −54.3% | +1,610% |  |  |
| HALO: Halozyme Therapeutics, Inc. | Biotechnology | +26.6% | 40.4% | 0.79 | −49.1% | +1,196% | 0.15 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [MPC](https://easycompare.io/research/mpc): Marathon Petroleum Corporation | Oil & Gas | +51.2% | 33.4% | 1.41 | −79.7% | +1,387% | 0.02 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher return in most periods |
| [CAH](https://easycompare.io/research/cah): Cardinal Health, Inc. | Health Care Distribution | +42.1% | 24.7% | 1.55 | −46.1% | +349% | 0.12 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| [LLY](https://easycompare.io/research/lly): Eli Lilly and Company | Pharmaceuticals | +40.7% | 32.8% | 1.21 | −34.5% | +1,807% | 0.16 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| [VLO](https://easycompare.io/research/vlo): Valero Energy Corporation | Oil & Gas | +44.2% | 36.9% | 1.18 | −71.9% | +1,061% | 0.03 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher return in most periods |
| [ABBV](https://easycompare.io/research/abbv): AbbVie Inc. | Pharmaceuticals | +26.1% | 23.4% | 1.11 | −45.1% | +603% | 0.08 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | International Equity | +26.6% | 19.1% | 1.34 | −39.1% | +428% | 0.32 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| [CAT](https://easycompare.io/research/cat): Caterpillar Inc. | Industrial Machinery | +31.1% | 31.9% | 1.01 | −43.4% | +936% | 0.39 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| [PM](https://easycompare.io/research/pm): Philip Morris International Inc. | Tobacco | +21.0% | 23.4% | 0.94 | −42.9% | +242% | 0.22 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| [MCK](https://easycompare.io/research/mck): McKesson Corporation | Health Care Distribution | +38.7% | 25.0% | 1.44 | −38.1% | +586% | -0.14 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| [APH](https://easycompare.io/research/aph): Amphenol Corporation | Electronic Components | +33.8% | 32.2% | 1.07 | −37.5% | +965% | 0.44 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| [GILD](https://easycompare.io/research/gild): Gilead Sciences, Inc. | Biotechnology | +22.8% | 24.9% | 0.95 | −30.5% | +200% | 0.19 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| [MFG](https://easycompare.io/research/mfg): Mizuho Financial Group, Inc. | Banks | +33.6% | 30.6% | 1.10 | −45.7% | +345% | 0.19 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| [SMFG](https://easycompare.io/research/smfg): Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Inc. | Banks | +33.7% | 29.4% | 1.14 | −47.6% | +474% | 0.23 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| [PGR](https://easycompare.io/research/pgr): The Progressive Corporation | Property & Casualty Insurance | +21.3% | 25.6% | 0.89 | −30.3% | +816% | 0.07 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |

## UMC against its popular alternatives

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

### How do UMC'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 ASX and TSM were both more rewarding and calmer than UMC over the past 5 years, earning a higher annual return with lower volatility.
- Over the past 5 years, UMC returned 19.9% a year, more than the S&P 500's 12.7%, with higher volatility (43.2% against 17.1%).

### Has UMC consistently beaten its popular alternatives?

This section compares UMC 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, ASX, outperformed UMC in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes.
- ASX, AVGO and KLAC earned more for the risk they took than UMC (a higher Sharpe ratio) and fell less in their worst decline of the past 10 years.
- AVGO outperformed UMC over all three long-term periods but in only one of the five short-term ones, so UMC has had the better of it lately.

| Investment | 1Y return | 3Y return | 5Y return | 10Y return | Periods ahead of UMC | Verdict | Sharpe |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| UMC: United Microelectronics Corporation (this page) | +166% | +202% | +147% | +1,610% |  |  | 0.63 |
| [ASX](https://easycompare.io/research/asx): ASE Technology Holding Co., Ltd. | +217% | +469% | +631% | +967% | 3/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 1.15 |
| [LRCX](https://easycompare.io/research/lrcx): Lam Research Corporation | +83.7% | +350% | +390% | +2,989% | 1/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.89 |
| [KLAC](https://easycompare.io/research/klac): KLA Corporation | +41.0% | +258% | +413% | +2,534% | 1/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.94 |
| [AVGO](https://easycompare.io/research/avgo): Broadcom Inc. | −3.5% | +305% | +617% | +2,380% | 1/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 1.11 |
| [TSM](https://easycompare.io/research/tsm): Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited | +44.3% | +382% | +293% | +1,505% | 2/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.91 |
| [AMAT](https://easycompare.io/research/amat): Applied Materials, Inc. | +78.5% | +209% | +215% | +1,488% | 1/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.72 |
| TSEM: Tower Semiconductor Ltd. | +144% | +737% | +487% | +1,058% | 1/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.93 |
| [ADI](https://easycompare.io/research/adi): Analog Devices, Inc. | +63.3% | +150% | +144% | +652% | 2/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.69 |
| [TXN](https://easycompare.io/research/txn): Texas Instruments Incorporated | +58.7% | +105% | +60.5% | +424% | 2/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.45 |
| [ASML](https://easycompare.io/research/asml): ASML Holding N.V. | +57.5% | +188% | +123% | +1,628% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.59 |
| ON: ON Semiconductor Corporation | +37.8% | −10.9% | +66.0% | +540% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.46 |
| [STM](https://easycompare.io/research/stm): STMicroelectronics N.V. | +52.9% | +18.8% | +11.6% | +525% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.28 |
| AMKR: Amkor Technology, Inc. | +30.1% | +97.6% | +93.5% | +363% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.52 |
| [MCHP](https://easycompare.io/research/mchp): Microchip Technology Incorporated | +16.0% | +8.5% | +13.0% | +207% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.28 |
| [NXPI](https://easycompare.io/research/nxpi): NXP Semiconductors N.V. | +10.0% | +34.9% | +31.9% | +159% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.34 |
| VSH: Vishay Intertechnology, Inc. | +66.1% | +32.0% | +62.9% | +146% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.44 |
| HIMX: Himax Technologies, Inc. | +26.6% | +135% | +51.0% | +105% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.44 |
| GFS: GLOBALFOUNDRIES Inc. | +32.7% | −13.2% | — | — | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | — |
| [INTC](https://easycompare.io/research/intc): Intel Corp. | +141% | +167% | +79.8% | +219% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.49 |

### How did UMC do year by year?

This table shows each investment's total return in every full calendar year since 2001, along with where UMC ranked among its popular alternatives each year.

- Among its popular alternatives, AVGO came out ahead of UMC most often, in 14 of the 16 years both traded.
- Ranked against its popular alternatives each year, UMC finished in the top quarter in two of 25 years and in the bottom quarter in eight. In 2025, it ranked 12 of 20.
- UMC finished ahead of the S&P 500 in ten of its 25 full calendar years.

| Year | UMC | SPY |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2025 | +28.7% | +17.7% |
| 2024 | −19.0% | +24.9% |
| 2023 | +39.0% | +26.2% |
| 2022 | −40.3% | −18.2% |
| 2021 | +43.1% | +28.7% |
| 2020 | +232% | +18.3% |
| 2019 | +55.4% | +31.2% |
| 2018 | −21.9% | −4.6% |
| 2017 | +42.2% | +21.7% |
| 2016 | −2.7% | +12.0% |

## Risk and diversification

How UMC 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 UMC's worst declines?

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

- In all five of UMC's worst declines, the S&P 500 held up better over the same dates.
- Not every decline was the market's doing: UMC fell 38.1% from June to July 2026, while the S&P 500 slipped only 0.5%.
- The slowest recovery came after UMC fell 86.0% from September 2000 to October 2008; it did not regain that peak until November 2020, 12 years later.

| Decline | Peak | Low | Back at the high | SPY over the same dates | Market event |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| −86.0% | September 20, 2000 | October 27, 2008 | November 23, 2020 | −33.6% | dot-com bust |
| −54.3% | December 7, 2021 | October 11, 2022 | January 20, 2026 | −22.4% | 2022 bear market |
| −38.1% | June 24, 2026 | July 29, 2026 | not yet | −0.5% |  |
| −31.1% | January 27, 2026 | March 30, 2026 | April 20, 2026 | −8.9% |  |
| −26.9% | April 26, 2021 | May 17, 2021 | August 4, 2021 | −0.5% |  |

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

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

- None of its popular alternatives fell less than UMC in most of the crashes they both traded through.
- UMC began trading after the dot-com bust, but 13 of its popular alternatives lived through it. The mildest fall among them was MCHP's 58.7%, against 47.5% for the S&P 500.
- UMC fell further than the S&P 500 in five of the nine crashes it has traded through. The clearest case was the 2022 bear market, when UMC fell 51.0% and the S&P 500 fell 24.5%.

| Crash | Dates | UMC fall | SPY fall |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Dot-com bust | March 10, 2000 to October 9, 2002 | not trading | −47.5% |
| Global financial crisis | October 9, 2007 to March 9, 2009 | −63.0% | −55.2% |
| Flash crash | May 6, 2010 to May 7, 2010 | 0.0% | −1.5% |
| Euro debt crisis | July 22, 2011 to October 3, 2011 | −24.9% | −17.9% |
| China devaluation & oil rout | August 10, 2015 to February 11, 2016 | −16.6% | −12.8% |
| Volmageddon | February 2, 2018 to February 9, 2018 | −4.4% | −6.5% |
| Q4 2018 selloff | September 21, 2018 to December 24, 2018 | −36.2% | −19.3% |
| COVID crash | February 19, 2020 to March 23, 2020 | −17.1% | −33.7% |
| 2022 bear market | January 4, 2022 to October 12, 2022 | −51.0% | −24.5% |
| SVB / regional bank stress | March 8, 2023 to March 13, 2023 | −2.0% | −3.4% |

### How closely does UMC move with the S&P 500?

Upside capture measures how much of the S&P 500's gains an investment kept in the months the market rose, and downside capture how much of its losses it took in the months the market fell.

- Over the past 10 years, UMC captured 133% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 52% of its losses in falling months, with a beta of 1.33. Its share of the market's gains was larger than its share of the losses.
- Only KLAC had a higher capture ratio (upside capture divided by downside capture) than UMC's 2.56, out of 18 popular alternatives with the same record.

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

| Investment | Upside capture | Downside capture | Beta |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| UMC: United Microelectronics Corporation (this page) | 133% | 52.0% | 1.33 |
| [ASX](https://easycompare.io/research/asx): ASE Technology Holding Co., Ltd. | 126% | 79.0% | 1.38 |
| [LRCX](https://easycompare.io/research/lrcx): Lam Research Corporation | 183% | 104% | 1.56 |
| [KLAC](https://easycompare.io/research/klac): KLA Corporation | 152% | 59.0% | 1.32 |
| [AVGO](https://easycompare.io/research/avgo): Broadcom Inc. | 158% | 86.0% | 1.19 |
| [TSM](https://easycompare.io/research/tsm): Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited | 138% | 75.0% | 1.15 |
| [AMAT](https://easycompare.io/research/amat): Applied Materials, Inc. | 152% | 97.0% | 1.51 |
| TSEM: Tower Semiconductor Ltd. | 143% | 95.0% | 1.11 |
| [ADI](https://easycompare.io/research/adi): Analog Devices, Inc. | 117% | 92.0% | 1.20 |
| [TXN](https://easycompare.io/research/txn): Texas Instruments Incorporated | 113% | 108% | 1.18 |
| [ASML](https://easycompare.io/research/asml): ASML Holding N.V. | 170% | 132% | 1.44 |
| ON: ON Semiconductor Corporation | 161% | 185% | 1.95 |
| [STM](https://easycompare.io/research/stm): STMicroelectronics N.V. | 122% | 104% | 1.72 |
| AMKR: Amkor Technology, Inc. | 152% | 174% | 1.94 |
| [MCHP](https://easycompare.io/research/mchp): Microchip Technology Incorporated | 127% | 170% | 1.72 |
| [NXPI](https://easycompare.io/research/nxpi): NXP Semiconductors N.V. | 115% | 157% | 1.63 |
| VSH: Vishay Intertechnology, Inc. | 118% | 160% | 1.61 |
| HIMX: Himax Technologies, Inc. | 133% | 197% | 2.12 |
| [INTC](https://easycompare.io/research/intc): Intel Corp. | 98.0% | 100% | 1.43 |

### What diversifies UMC?

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 UMC into MCK would have cut the portfolio's volatility by 21% over the past 5 years and raised its annual return (+22.9% for UMC alone, +28.3% for the mix).
- FIX made money in ten of the 13 calendar years in which UMC lost money.
- Among large ETFs, LVHI, DXJ and EMLP have moved largely independently of UMC over the past 5 years, with correlations of 0.32 or lower, and each still earned a positive 5-year return.

| Investment | Correlation with UMC | 5Y return | Volatility | Sharpe | Rose in UMC's 13 down years |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| LVHI: Franklin International Low Volatility High Dividend Index ETF | 0.18 | +119% | 11.1% | 1.48 | 2 of 13 |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | 0.32 | +225% | 19.1% | 1.34 | 5 of 13 |
| EMLP: First Trust North American Energy Infrastructure Fund | 0.08 | +101% | 14.5% | 1.04 | 3 of 13 |
| HDV: iShares Core High Dividend ETF | 0.16 | +83.3% | 13.0% | 1.00 | 4 of 13 |
| DBEF: Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Hedged Equity ETF | 0.45 | +85.0% | 13.8% | 0.96 | 4 of 13 |
| [GLD](https://easycompare.io/research/gld): SPDR Gold Shares | 0.07 | +126% | 18.9% | 0.96 | 8 of 13 |
| [XLE](https://easycompare.io/research/xle): State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF | -0.09 | +177% | 25.5% | 0.93 | 9 of 13 |
| [VTV](https://easycompare.io/research/vtv): Vanguard Morningstar Value ETF | 0.35 | +76.6% | 13.7% | 0.90 | 6 of 13 |

## Common questions

### What was UMC's worst drawdown?

UMC's deepest decline since it began trading in 2000 was 86.0%, from September 2000 to October 2008. It took about 12 years from the low to climb back to its old high.

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

Over 25 full calendar years, UMC's best year was 2020, when it returned 232%. Its worst was 2002, with a return of -58.0%.

### Is there a better investment than UMC?

Among UMC's popular alternatives, TSM earned more than UMC with less volatility over the past 5 years: 31.5% a year at 38.5% volatility, against 19.9% a year at 43.2%. Looking beyond its popular alternatives, SMH (semiconductors) earned more than UMC with less volatility over the past 5 years: 33.4% a year at 36.9% volatility, against 19.9% a year at 43.2%.

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

Yes. UMC's volatility over the past 5 years was 43.2%, 2.5 times the S&P 500's 17.1%. Volatility measures how widely returns swing around their average: in roughly two years out of three, UMC's return lands within 43.2% 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 UMC's Sharpe ratio?

UMC's Sharpe ratio over the past 5 years was 0.63, against 0.79 for the S&P 500, so UMC 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 UMC with the S&P 500?

Over the past 5 years, UMC's monthly returns had a correlation of 0.45 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 UMC instead: the lower it is, the more that option would diversify a UMC holding.

### What are the best alternatives to UMC?

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

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

UMC finished ahead of the S&P 500 (SPY) in ten of 25 full calendar years. In 2025, it returned +28.7%, against +17.7% for the index.

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

UMC fell less than the S&P 500 (SPY) in four of the nine major crashes it has traded through, and further in five. The clearest case was the 2022 bear market, when UMC fell 51.0% and the S&P 500 fell 24.5%.

### What diversifies UMC?

These had a low correlation with UMC over the past 5 years and still earned a positive 5-year return: among large ETFs, LVHI (correlation 0.18), DXJ (correlation 0.32) and EMLP (correlation 0.08); among large stocks, CAH (correlation 0.12), CLS (correlation 0.08) and FIX (correlation 0.22). 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/umc
- All research pages: https://easycompare.io/llms.txt
- Compare the entire market against UMC live: https://betterthanspy.com/?b=UMC&utm_source=easycompare&utm_medium=research