# How Sun Life Financial (SLF) compares with the whole market and its popular alternatives

> Source: BetterThanSPY research, https://betterthanspy.com/research/slf
> Data as of October 22, 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 SLF alone. It places SLF (Sun Life Financial Inc.) 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 SLF stands in the market, and of the alternatives worth a closer look.

Period covered: SLF's full trading record, from March 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 22, 2026.

## Key findings

- **Right now:** SLF has outpaced the market, rising 16.8% over the past 6 months against 8.0% for the S&P 500 and 7.8% for the Nasdaq 100. Its life insurance peers were far apart over the past 6 months, from MET (MetLife, up 36.4%) to AFL (Aflac, up 8.5%).
- **Stock or market?:** SLF rose 0.2% over the past 3 months, 2.8 points behind the life insurance ETF KIE (State Street SPDR S&P Insurance ETF), which rose 3.0%. The S&P 500 rose 2.5%. Its life insurance peers did not move as one over the past 3 months: MET (MetLife) rose 11.7%, while FG (F&G Annuities & Life) fell 27.4%.
- **Past 1 to 3 years:** Over the past year, SLF rose 36.7% against 15.6% for the S&P 500 and 16.9% for the Nasdaq 100. The same gap shows up over 3 years (99.2% against 88.4%). Even so, SLF finished behind the S&P 500 in both 2024 and 2025.
- **Long term:** SLF turned $10,000 into $36,000 over the past decade, against $41,600 in the S&P 500. Even so, over the past decade, only MFC (Manulife Financial) and AFL (Aflac) of its life insurance peers outpaced SLF.
- **In a crash:** Across six sell-offs, SLF has typically fallen 1.4 times as far as the S&P 500. The Covid crash took 50.2% off SLF, against 33.7% for the S&P 500. That was more than GL (Globe Life, 47.7%) but less than MFC (Manulife Financial, 55.1%).
- **Diversification:** Against the S&P 500, SLF has a correlation of 0.67 over 5 years, more closely than 97% of stocks worth at least $300 million. Next to an index fund it is more of the same, not a cushion.
- **Better options**
  - **Popular alternatives:** RY (Royal Bank of Canada) earned more than SLF with less volatility over the past 5 years: 17.5% a year at 18.2% volatility, against 11.9% a year at 19.4%.
  - **Nearby categories and themes:** BRK-A (Berkshire Hathaway, insurance) and IAK (iShares U.S. Insurance ETF, insurance) earned more than SLF with less volatility over the past 5 years. BRK-A returned 13.5% a year at 17.2% volatility, against 11.9% a year at 19.4%.
  - **Whole market:** Few investments have done better on both counts: only 64 of the 3,641 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than SLF with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them BRK-A (Berkshire Hathaway), JNJ (Johnson & Johnson) and KO (Coca-Cola).

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

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

- $10,000 invested in SLF at the end of September 2000 would have grown to $101,648 by September 2026, more than the $84,332 it would have become in SPY, an S&P 500 fund.
- Five of the eight other investments on the chart ended ahead of SLF, and BLK finished highest, at $562,061.

## SLF 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.

- SLF's deepest decline since it began trading in 2000 was 78.8%, from October 2007 to March 2009. It took about eight years from the low to climb back to its old high.
- Over 25 full calendar years, SLF's best was 2012, when it returned 52.5%, and its worst was 2008, when it lost 57.0%. It lost money in seven of those years.
- SLF is 3.0% below its all-time high.

- Type: Stock, Financials (Insurance - Diversified)
- Trading since: March 23, 2000
- Market value: $45B
- Volatility (5 years): 19.4%; Sharpe ratio: 0.68
- Worst decline ever: −78.8%, from October 31, 2007 to March 9, 2009; back at its high by November 14, 2016

| Period | SLF total return |
| --- | --- |
| 1 month | +0.1% |
| 3 months | +0.2% |
| 6 months | +16.8% |
| year to date | +32.3% |
| 1 year | +36.7% |
| 3 years | +99.2% |
| 5 years | +75.3% |
| 10 years | +260% |

## SLF against the whole market

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

### How does SLF rank among all stocks?

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

- SLF is among the steadier stocks: its price swings rank in the top 3% of the 2,897 stocks worth at least $300 million, where the top is the calmest.

| Measure | SLF | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1-year return | +36.7% | 823 of 3,282 (top 26%) |
| 3-year return | +99.2% | 938 of 3,016 (top 32%) |
| 5-year return | +75.3% | 860 of 2,897 (top 30%) |
| 10-year return | +260% | 686 of 2,201 (top 32%) |
| Volatility, 5 years | 19.4% | 78 of 2,897 (top 3%) |
| Sharpe ratio, 5 years | 0.68 | 503 of 2,897 (top 18%) |
| Worst decline, past 10 years | −50.8% | 491 of 2,184 (top 23%) |

### What has beaten SLF 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 59 ETFs worth at least $500 million sit in the green region: each earned more than SLF over the past 5 years with smaller price swings. That is 2% of the 3,641 screened. Few investments beat it on both counts.
- Among those with at least half SLF's swings, LVHI has the best return for its risk: 16.9% a year at 11.1% volatility, 43% less than SLF's 19.4%, and a Sharpe ratio (return above cash per unit of volatility) of 1.48 against 0.68 for SLF. SDCI earned the most, 21.1% a year, while still swinging less than SLF (18.4% against 19.4%).
- Among SLF's popular alternatives, RY is in the region. RY earned 17.5% a year against 11.9% a year for SLF, at 18.2% volatility, 6% less than SLF's 19.4%.

### Is there a better investment than SLF?

The table below lists investments that beat SLF 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 SLF's popular alternatives, RY earned more than SLF with less volatility over the past 5 years: 17.5% a year at 18.2% volatility, against 11.9% a year at 19.4%.
- Looking beyond its popular alternatives, BRK-A (insurance) and IAK (insurance) earned more than SLF with less volatility over the past 5 years. BRK-A returned 13.5% a year at 17.2% volatility, against 11.9% a year at 19.4%.
- Few investments have done better on both counts: only 64 of the 3,641 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than SLF with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them BRK-A, JNJ and KO.

The 15 strongest of 64 investments that beat SLF over the past 5 years, out of 3,641 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million.

| Investment | Group | Annual return (5 years) | Volatility | Sharpe | Worst decline (10 years) | 10Y return | Correlation with SLF | Better on |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| SLF: Sun Life Financial Inc. (this page) |  | +11.9% | 19.4% | 0.68 | −50.8% | +260% |  |  |
| VLUE: iShares MSCI USA Value Factor ETF | US Large-Cap Value | +16.2% | 18.4% | 0.91 | −39.5% | +286% | 0.57 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| DIVB: iShares Core Dividend ETF | High Dividend Yield | +14.6% | 15.5% | 0.96 | −36.9% | — | 0.66 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [BRK-A](https://betterthanspy.com/research/brk-a): Berkshire Hathaway Inc. | Insurance | +13.5% | 17.2% | 0.83 | −30.4% | +281% | 0.49 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| IOO: iShares Global 100 ETF | Global Equity | +15.6% | 17.2% | 0.94 | −31.4% | +357% | 0.62 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| MGC: Vanguard Morningstar Mega Cap ETF | US Large-Cap Equity | +13.2% | 17.4% | 0.80 | −33.1% | +347% | 0.64 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [JNJ](https://betterthanspy.com/research/jnj): Johnson & Johnson | Pharmaceuticals | +13.5% | 18.0% | 0.80 | −27.4% | +209% | 0.19 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| [KO](https://betterthanspy.com/research/ko): The Coca-Cola Company | Nonalcoholic Beverages | +15.2% | 16.8% | 0.93 | −37.0% | +205% | 0.39 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| LVHI: Franklin International Low Volatility High Dividend Index ETF | International Dividend Equity | +16.9% | 11.1% | 1.48 | −32.4% | +194% | 0.57 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| [RY](https://betterthanspy.com/research/ry): Royal Bank of Canada | Banks | +17.5% | 18.2% | 0.98 | −40.0% | +361% | 0.68 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| EQL: ALPS Equal Sector Weight ETF | US Large-Cap Equity | +13.4% | 14.5% | 0.94 | −34.2% | +385% | 0.70 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| DGT: State Street SPDR Global Dow ETF | Global Equity | +13.9% | 15.1% | 0.95 | −34.4% | +260% | 0.72 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| [DYNF](https://betterthanspy.com/research/dynf): iShares U.S. Equity Factor Rotation Active ETF | US Multifactor Equity | +14.4% | 17.5% | 0.86 | −34.7% | — | 0.65 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| SDCI: USCF SummerHaven Dynamic Commodity Strategy No K-1 Fund | Broad Commodities | +21.1% | 18.4% | 1.14 | −45.7% | — | 0.15 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| EFV: iShares MSCI EAFE Value ETF | International Large-Cap Value | +13.6% | 15.9% | 0.89 | −43.2% | +156% | 0.67 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |
| FNDF: Schwab Fundamental International Large Company Index ETF | International Large-Cap Equity | +13.6% | 16.3% | 0.87 | −40.2% | +193% | 0.66 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline |

## SLF against its popular alternatives

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

### How do SLF'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 RY was both more rewarding and calmer than SLF over the past 5 years, earning a higher annual return with lower volatility.
- Over the past 5 years, SLF returned 11.9% a year, less than the S&P 500's 12.5%, with higher volatility (19.4% against 17.2%).

### Has SLF consistently beaten its popular alternatives?

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

- Four of the 19 popular alternatives, led by TD, MFC and JXN, outperformed SLF in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes.
- TD and MFC outperformed SLF in every long-term period and in all but one short-term period, the most consistent record in the group.
- JXN, RY and TD earned more for the risk they took than SLF (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 SLF | Verdict | Sharpe |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| SLF: Sun Life Financial Inc. (this page) | +36.7% | +99.2% | +75.3% | +260% |  |  | 0.68 |
| [TD](https://betterthanspy.com/research/td): The Toronto-Dominion Bank | +59.4% | +147% | +114% | +319% | 5/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.87 |
| [MFC](https://betterthanspy.com/research/mfc): Manulife Financial Corporation | +48.3% | +195% | +184% | +386% | 4/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 1.00 |
| JXN: Jackson Financial Inc. | +41.5% | +276% | +486% | — | 4/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 1.04 |
| EQH: Equitable Holdings, Inc. | +18.0% | +121% | +84.4% | — | 3/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 0.54 |
| [RY](https://betterthanspy.com/research/ry): Royal Bank of Canada | +41.5% | +176% | +124% | +361% | 1/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.98 |
| UNM: Unum Group | +26.0% | +109% | +291% | +263% | 2/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 1.08 |
| [AFL](https://betterthanspy.com/research/afl): Aflac Incorporated | +16.7% | +70.3% | +144% | +344% | 1/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.97 |
| [AMP](https://betterthanspy.com/research/amp): Ameriprise Financial, Inc. | +6.5% | +66.1% | +79.2% | +518% | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.56 |
| [MET](https://betterthanspy.com/research/met): MetLife, Inc. | +35.6% | +93.6% | +82.7% | +248% | 3/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.60 |
| CRBG: Corebridge Financial, Inc. | +15.1% | +104% | — | — | 3/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | — |
| [BLK](https://betterthanspy.com/research/blk): BlackRock, Inc. | +2.8% | +97.8% | +40.3% | +324% | 2/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.39 |
| PFG: Principal Financial Group, Inc. | +43.9% | +81.5% | +89.2% | +201% | 2/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.62 |
| LNC: Lincoln National Corporation | +9.2% | +125% | −29.4% | +25.0% | 1/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.06 |
| GL: Globe Life Inc. | +25.2% | +55.4% | +88.4% | +187% | 0/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.58 |
| [BAM](https://betterthanspy.com/research/bam): Brookfield Asset Management Ltd. | −8.3% | +74.1% | — | — | 2/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | — |
| VOYA: Voya Financial, Inc. | +36.7% | +60.3% | +56.6% | +264% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.46 |
| [PRU](https://betterthanspy.com/research/pru): Prudential Financial, Inc. | +21.9% | +53.1% | +32.3% | +123% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.35 |
| BHF: Brighthouse Financial, Inc. | −0.5% | +2.5% | −11.6% | — | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.15 |
| FG: F&G Annuities & Life, Inc. | −24.4% | −21.9% | — | — | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | — |

### How did SLF do year by year?

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

- SLF finished ahead of the S&P 500 in 12 of its 25 full calendar years, and behind it in each of the last three.
- Among its popular alternatives, EQH came out ahead of SLF most often, in six of the seven years both traded.
- Ranked against its popular alternatives each year, SLF finished in the top quarter in four of 25 years and in the bottom quarter in six. In 2025, it ranked 10 of 20.

| Year | SLF | SPY |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2025 | +9.7% | +17.7% |
| 2024 | +19.5% | +24.9% |
| 2023 | +16.9% | +26.2% |
| 2022 | −12.9% | −18.2% |
| 2021 | +29.7% | +28.7% |
| 2020 | +2.0% | +18.3% |
| 2019 | +42.7% | +31.2% |
| 2018 | −16.6% | −4.6% |
| 2017 | +10.3% | +21.7% |
| 2016 | +27.6% | +12.0% |

## Risk and diversification

How SLF 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 SLF's worst declines?

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

- In all five of SLF's worst declines, the S&P 500 held up better over the same dates.
- The slowest recovery came after SLF fell 78.8% from October 2007 to March 2009; it did not regain that peak until November 2016, eight years later.

| Decline | Peak | Low | Back at the high | SPY over the same dates | Market event |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| −78.8% | October 31, 2007 | March 9, 2009 | November 14, 2016 | −54.7% | 2008 financial crisis |
| −50.8% | February 14, 2020 | March 23, 2020 | January 19, 2021 | −33.6% | Covid crash |
| −42.3% | December 29, 2000 | October 7, 2002 | October 16, 2003 | −38.2% | dot-com bust |
| −30.8% | February 9, 2022 | October 12, 2022 | February 15, 2024 | −21.2% | 2022 bear market |
| −25.0% | January 22, 2018 | December 24, 2018 | July 3, 2019 | −15.5% | late-2018 sell-off |

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

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

- SLF fell further than the S&P 500 in seven of the nine crashes it has traded through. The clearest case was the 2008 financial crisis, when SLF fell 78.8% and the S&P 500 fell 55.2%.
- Among its popular alternatives, RY held up best, falling less than SLF in seven of the nine crashes they both traded through.
- SLF began trading after the dot-com bust, but eight of its popular alternatives lived through it. The mildest fall among them was RY's 21.6%, against 47.5% for the S&P 500.

| Crash | Dates | SLF 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 | −78.8% | −55.2% |
| Flash crash | May 6, 2010 to May 7, 2010 | −1.4% | −1.5% |
| Euro debt crisis | July 22, 2011 to October 3, 2011 | −20.3% | −17.9% |
| China devaluation & oil rout | August 10, 2015 to February 11, 2016 | −23.8% | −12.8% |
| Volmageddon | February 2, 2018 to February 9, 2018 | −4.5% | −6.5% |
| Q4 2018 selloff | September 21, 2018 to December 24, 2018 | −20.3% | −19.3% |
| COVID crash | February 19, 2020 to March 23, 2020 | −50.2% | −33.7% |
| 2022 bear market | January 4, 2022 to October 12, 2022 | −30.8% | −24.5% |
| SVB / regional bank stress | March 8, 2023 to March 13, 2023 | −5.5% | −3.4% |

### How closely does SLF 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.

- Only AFL, RY and TD had a higher capture ratio (upside capture divided by downside capture) than SLF's 1.02, out of 13 popular alternatives with the same record.
- AFL took just 71% of the S&P 500's losses, against 85% for SLF, while still keeping 83% of its gains.
- Over the past 10 years, SLF captured 87% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 85% of its losses in falling months, with a beta of 0.96. That is a defensive profile: it gave up some of the market's upside in exchange for smaller losses.

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

| Investment | Upside capture | Downside capture | Beta |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| SLF: Sun Life Financial Inc. (this page) | 87.0% | 85.0% | 0.96 |
| [TD](https://betterthanspy.com/research/td): The Toronto-Dominion Bank | 89.0% | 80.0% | 0.88 |
| [MFC](https://betterthanspy.com/research/mfc): Manulife Financial Corporation | 110% | 110% | 1.10 |
| [RY](https://betterthanspy.com/research/ry): Royal Bank of Canada | 97.0% | 88.0% | 0.88 |
| UNM: Unum Group | 88.0% | 90.0% | 0.96 |
| [AFL](https://betterthanspy.com/research/afl): Aflac Incorporated | 83.0% | 71.0% | 0.79 |
| [AMP](https://betterthanspy.com/research/amp): Ameriprise Financial, Inc. | 141% | 152% | 1.41 |
| [MET](https://betterthanspy.com/research/met): MetLife, Inc. | 91.0% | 97.0% | 1.03 |
| [BLK](https://betterthanspy.com/research/blk): BlackRock, Inc. | 127% | 157% | 1.30 |
| PFG: Principal Financial Group, Inc. | 103% | 124% | 1.22 |
| LNC: Lincoln National Corporation | 119% | 211% | 1.67 |
| GL: Globe Life Inc. | 72.0% | 72.0% | 0.79 |
| VOYA: Voya Financial, Inc. | 111% | 128% | 1.17 |
| [PRU](https://betterthanspy.com/research/pru): Prudential Financial, Inc. | 102% | 146% | 1.25 |

### What diversifies SLF?

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 SLF into GLD would have cut the portfolio's volatility by 18% over the past 5 years and raised its annual return (+13.4% for SLF alone, +15.0% for the mix).
- Among large ETFs, DXJ, HDV and MLPX have moved largely independently of SLF over the past 5 years, with correlations of 0.49 or lower, and each still earned a positive 5-year return.
- FIX made money in four of the seven calendar years in which SLF lost money.

| Investment | Correlation with SLF | 5Y return | Volatility | Sharpe | Rose in SLF's 7 down years |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | 0.37 | +225% | 19.1% | 1.34 | 2 of 7 |
| HDV: iShares Core High Dividend ETF | 0.49 | +86.8% | 13.0% | 1.03 | 1 of 7 |
| MLPX: Global X - MLP & Energy Infrastructure ETF | 0.49 | +138% | 19.7% | 0.98 | 1 of 7 |
| [SMH](https://betterthanspy.com/research/smh): VanEck Semiconductor ETF | 0.47 | +304% | 37.0% | 0.94 | 1 of 7 |
| [XLE](https://betterthanspy.com/research/xle): State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF | 0.23 | +178% | 25.5% | 0.94 | 2 of 7 |
| [GLD](https://betterthanspy.com/research/gld): SPDR Gold Shares | 0.04 | +120% | 19.0% | 0.93 | 2 of 7 |
| FLTW: Franklin FTSE Taiwan ETF | 0.49 | +162% | 24.4% | 0.92 | 0 of 7 |
| AMLP: Alerian MLP ETF | 0.34 | +114% | 18.9% | 0.90 | 2 of 7 |

## Common questions

### What was SLF's worst drawdown?

SLF's deepest decline since it began trading in 2000 was 78.8%, from October 2007 to March 2009. It took about eight years from the low to climb back to its old high.

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

Over 25 full calendar years, SLF's best year was 2012, when it returned 52.5%. Its worst was 2008, with a return of -57.0%.

### Is there a better investment than SLF?

Among SLF's popular alternatives, RY earned more than SLF with less volatility over the past 5 years: 17.5% a year at 18.2% volatility, against 11.9% a year at 19.4%. Looking beyond its popular alternatives, BRK-A (insurance) and IAK (insurance) earned more than SLF with less volatility over the past 5 years. BRK-A returned 13.5% a year at 17.2% volatility, against 11.9% a year at 19.4%.

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

Yes. SLF's volatility over the past 5 years was 19.4%, 1.1 times the S&P 500's 17.2%. Volatility measures how widely returns swing around their average: in roughly two years out of three, SLF's return lands within 19.4% 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 SLF's Sharpe ratio?

SLF's Sharpe ratio over the past 5 years was 0.68, against 0.78 for the S&P 500, so SLF 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 SLF with the S&P 500?

Over the past 5 years, SLF's monthly returns had a correlation of 0.67 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 SLF instead: the lower it is, the more that option would diversify a SLF holding.

### What are the best alternatives to SLF?

Of the 19 popular alternatives we compared, four outperformed SLF in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes, with dividends reinvested: TD, MFC and JXN.

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

SLF finished ahead of the S&P 500 (SPY) in 12 of 25 full calendar years. In 2025, it returned +9.7%, against +17.7% for the index.

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

SLF fell less than the S&P 500 (SPY) in one of the nine major crashes it has traded through, and further in seven. The clearest case was the 2008 financial crisis, when SLF fell 78.8% and the S&P 500 fell 55.2%.

### What diversifies SLF?

These had a low correlation with SLF over the past 5 years and still earned a positive 5-year return: among large ETFs, DXJ (correlation 0.37), HDV (correlation 0.49) and MLPX (correlation 0.49); among large stocks, CAH (correlation 0.38), CLS (correlation 0.26) and MCK (correlation 0.19). A correlation near zero means the two have moved largely independently.

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## Explore further

- Full page with charts: https://betterthanspy.com/research/slf
- All research pages: https://betterthanspy.com/llms.txt
- Compare the entire market against SLF live: https://betterthanspy.com/?b=SLF