The chart belowshowsseveral issues investors struggle with all the time. It’s difficult to pick the best performing investmentyear after year, yet for many investors, it’s an annual event. They look for an encore, picking the best asset class last year with the hope of a repeat performance. Yet, betting on last year’s winnerrarely works out.
Assets at the top of the chart one year could be at the bottom the next, and viceversa. Much of this is due to reversion to the mean. But over the long-term, those big swings even out. The chart shows annual returns for eightasset classes against a diversified portfolio. Diversification works to smooth out those big swings in the short-term. While you’ll never get the biggest gains of any year, you avoid thehugelosses.
The table below ranks the best to worstinvestment returnsby asset class over the past15 years. Hover over the table to highlight theasset class returns.
Asset Class Returns
| 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | YTD | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EM 79.0% | REIT 28.0% | REIT 8.3% | REIT 19.7% | Sm Cap 38.8% | REIT 28.0% | REIT 2.8% | Sm Cap 21.3% | EM 37.8% | Cash 1.8% | Lg Cap 31.5% | Sm Cap 20.0% | REIT 41.3% | Cash 1.6% | Lg Cap 26.3% | Lg Cap 10.6% | |
| HY Bnd 57.5% | Sm Cap 26.9% | HG Bnd 7.8% | EM 18.6% | Lg Cap 32.4% | Lg Cap 13.7% | Lg Cap 1.4% | HY Bnd 17.5% | Int’l 25.6% | HG Bnd 0.0% | REIT 28.7% | EM 18.7% | Lg Cap 28.7% | HY Bnd -11.2% | Int’l 18.9% | Int’l 5.9% | |
| Int’l Stk 32.5% | EM 19.2% | HY Bnd 4.4% | Int’l Stk 17.9% | Int’l Stk 23.3% | AA 6.9% | HG Bnd 0.6% | Lg Cap 12.0% | Lg Cap 21.8% | HY Bnd -2.3% | Sm Cap 25.5% | Lg Cap 18.4% | Sm Cap 14.8% | HG Bnd -13.0% | Sm Cap 16.9% | Sm Cap 5.2% | |
| REIT 28.0% | HY Bnd 15.2% | Lg Cap 2.1% | Sm Cap 16.4% | AA 11.5% | HG Bnd 6.0% | Cash 0.0% | EM 11.6% | Sm Cap 14.7% | REIT -4.0% | Int’l Stk 22.7% | AA 9.8% | Int’l Stk 11.8% | Int’l Stk -14.0% | HY Bnd 13.5% | AA 2.8% | |
| Sm Cap 27.2% | Lg Cap 15.1% | AA 0.3% | Lg Cap 16.0% | HY Bnd 7.4% | Sm Cap 4.9% | Int’l Stk -0.4% | REIT 8.6% | AA 14.6% | Lg Cap -4.4% | AA 18.9% | Int’l Stk 8.3% | AA 10.9% | AA -16.5% | AA 12.8% | EM 2.4% | |
| Lg Cap 26.5% | AA 13.5% | Cash 0.1% | HY Bnd 15.6% | REIT 2.9% | HY Bnd 2.5% | AA -1.3% | AA 7.2% | REIT 8.7% | AA -5.6% | EM 18.9% | HY Bnd 7.5% | HY Bnd 5.4% | Lg Cap -18.1% | REIT 11.4% | HY Bnd 1.5% | |
| AA 24.6% | Int’l Stk 8.2% | Sm Cap -4.2% | AA 12.2% | Cash 0.1% | Cash 0.0% | Sm Cap -4.4% | HG Bnd 2.7% | HY Bnd 7.5% | Sm Cap -11.0% | HY Bnd 14.4% | HG Bnd 6.1% | Cash 0.0% | EM -19.7% | EM 10.3% | Cash 1.3% | |
| HG Bnd 5.9% | HG Bnd 6.5% | Int’l Stk -11.7% | HG Bnd 4.2% | HG Bnd -2.0% | EM -1.8% | HY Bnd -4.6% | Int’l Stk 1.5% | HG Bnd 3.5% | Int’l Stk -13.4% | HG Bnd 8.7% | Cash 0.6% | HG Bnd -1.5% | Sm Cap -20.4% | HG Bnd 5.5% | HG Bnd -0.8% | |
| Cash 0.1% | Cash 0.1% | EM -18.2% | Cash 0.1% | EM -2.3% | Int’l Stk -4.5% | EM -14.6% | Cash 0.3% | Cash 0.8% | EM -14.3% | Cash 2.2% | REIT -5.1% | EM -2.2% | REIT -25.0% | Cash 5.1% | REIT -1.3% |
| Abbr. | Asset Class – Index | Annual | Best | Worst |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lg Cap | Large Cap Stocks –S&P 500 Index | 13.97% | 32.4% | -18.1% |
| Sm Cap | Small Cap Stocks –Russell 2000 Index | 11.30% | 38.8% | -20.4% |
| Int’l Stk | International Developed Stocks –MSCI EAFE Index | 7.44% | 32.5% | -14.0% |
| EM | EM Stocks –MSCI Emerging Markets Index | 6.93% | 79.0% | -19.7% |
| REIT | REITs –FTSE NAREIT All Equity Index | 10.86% | 41.3% | -25.0% |
| HG Bnd | High Grade Bonds –Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Agg Index | 2.59% | 8.7% | -13.0% |
| HY Bnd | High Yield Bonds –ICE BofA US High Yield Index | 9.12% | 57.5% | -11.2% |
| Cash | Cash – S&P U.S. Treasury Bill 0-3 Mth Index | 0.85% | 5.1% | 0.0% |
| AA | AssetAllocation Portfolio* | 7.51% | 24.6% | -16.5% |
Past performance does not guarantee future returns. The historical performance showschanges in market trends across several asset classes over the past fifteen years. Returns represent total annual returns (reinvestment of all distributions) and does not include fees and expenses. The investments you choose should reflect your financial goals and risk tolerance. For assistance, talk to a financial professional. All data are as of 3/31/24.
*Asset Allocation Portfolio is 15% large cap stocks, 15% international stocks, 10% small cap stocks, 10% emerging market stocks, 10% REITs, 40% high-grade bonds, and annual rebalancing.
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MoreCharts
- International Stock Market Returns
- Emerging Stock Market Returns
- Historical Annual Returns
