It's been three years since the Covid crash tanked the S&P 500. But there's been still plenty of ways to make money since.
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Nine stocks in the S&P 500, including vaccine maker Moderna (MRNA), energy firm EQT (EQT) and materials firm Steel Dynamics (STLD), soared 200% or more from the market's Feb. 19, 2020 peak prior to the Covid crash, says an Investor's Business Daily analysis of data from S&P Global Market Intelligence and MarketSmith. That's a remarkable gain if you consider the S&P 500 tanked nearly 34% from the Covid peak until hitting rock bottom on March 23, 2020, says Bespoke Investment Group.
Yes, the S&P 500 is up since then. But it's trailing long-term averages.
"The U.S. stock market proxied by the SPY ETF has posted a total return of 24.4% in the three years since Covid hit," Bespoke said. "While stock market returns are now below average over the last three years, the real extreme has been in the bond market."
Assessing The Covid Years
The Covid crash and subsequent rally put S&P 500 investors through the wringer. But the (SPY) still managed to move higher. But other unexpected twists and turns have kept investors hopping.
"Small caps and midcaps have outperformed large caps, while value has outperformed growth," Bespoke said. "Of the various growth and value ETFs across the three market cap thresholds, mid-cap value (IJJ) is up the most at 37.6%, while large-cap growth (IVW) is up the least at 19.2%."
Here's another shocker: . "Energy (XLE) is up the most over the last three years with a gain of 79.4%, while Communication Services (XLC) is the only sector down at -2.9%," Bespoke found.
And if you thought you could hide from drama in bonds, that didn't work out. "The aggregate bond market ETFs have posted total returns of -9.5% since Feb. 19, 2020," Bespoke said. "The only fixed income ETF listed that's up over the last three years is the inflation protected Treasury ETF (TIP) that's up 1.35%."
So what are the big winners in the S&P 500?
Moderna: The Covid Champion
Given the immediate demand for a Covid vaccine, it's not surprising to see one of its pioneers top the charts. But the level of outperformance is still a little shocking.
Moderna shares shot up more than 745% from the start of the Covid crash. The stock took off as the company showed how its mRNA technology could be used to quickly inoculate humans against potential scourges. The health care company, overnight, went from losing nearly $2 a share in 2020 to making $28.29 a share in 2021.
But big S&P 500 winners weren't just companies exposed to conquering Covid. Investors also seek stability, which they get with EQT. The company is a major natural gas producer. It's also a stable profit producer yielding 1.9% annually. Shares are up more than 415% from the Covid crash.
Similarly, Steel Dynamics isn't a sexy high-tech company. But lately, S&P 500 investors don't want one. The company's shares are up nearly 330% in the past three years. The steel producer only yields 1.1%, but profit exploded following Covid. The company's profit per share jumped more than 40% in 2022.
Covid wasn't fun for anyone to live through. But at least there have been ways to make some money in the meantime.
Top S&P 500 Stocks Since Covid Crash
| Company | Ticker | Ch. | Sector |
|---|
| Moderna | (MRNA) | 746.2% | Health Care |
| EQT | (EQT) | 415.1 | Energy |
| Steel Dynamics | (STLD) | 329.0 | Materials |
| Onsemi | (ON) | 279.4 | Information Technology |
| Quanta Services | (PWR) | 276.5 | Industrials |
| Enphase Energy | (ENPH) | 252.4 | Information Technology |
| Freeport-McMoRan | (FCX) | 252.6 | Materials |
| Nucor | (NUE) | 242.8 | Materials |
| Tesla | (TSLA) | 222.7 | Consumer Discretionary |
Sources: IBD, S&P Global Market Intelligence, change from Feb. 19, 2020
Follow Matt Krantz on Twitter @mattkrantz
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FAQs
The connectedness between stock return and volatility has increased during the COVID‐19 pandemic. The COVID‐19 period is associated with negative mean returns for all market indices and higher volatility.
Has a stock ever gone up 1000 percent? ›
A majority of stocks, largecap, midcap, smallcap, or microcap, have delivered excellent returns. In fact, some stocks went on to deliver mind boggling returns of 1,000% or more.
What stock has gone up the most in 20 years? ›
Of the U.S. stocks with more than 20 years of trading history, Nvidia (NVDA) has the highest annualized return (33.38%)—and that's excluding its more than 130% performance so far this year.
How many years did it take to recover from the stock market crash? ›
The Dow Jones did not return to its peak close of September 3, 1929, for 25 years, until November 23, 1954.
How did COVID affect investments? ›
The average investment ratio before COVID-19 is 1.32% per quarter, and the average level of cash flows is 0.88%. Following the COVID-19 breakout, the investment rate drops to 0.91%, while the average cash flow falls to 0.48%. Moreover, net debt increases from 5.87% pre-COVID-19 to 6.36% during the crisis.
What was the biggest impact of COVID-19? ›
Weakened health systems, ballooning debt, widespread learning loss, and the most significant setback in poverty alleviation during the last two decades are a few examples of the public health crisis' rippling disruptions across the globe.
How much was $1000 invested in Walmart in 1970? ›
The largest retailer in the world
Walmart has been a public company a lot longer than Amazon, and if you'd invested $1,000 in it in 1970 with dividends reinvested, you'd have more than $4.6 million today.
What is the highest rise in stock market history? ›
The main stock market index in India (SENSEX) increased 9720 points or 13.45% since the beginning of 2024, according to trading on a contract for difference (CFD) that tracks this benchmark index from India. Historically, the BSE SENSEX Stock Market Index reached an all time high of 82725.28 in September of 2024.
Do 90% of people lose money in the stock market? ›
Only the top 5 per cent profit makers account for 75 per cent of profits. Saad Bhakshi, an aspiring pilot, is addicted to stock market investing.
What stock will make you rich in 10 years? ›
9 Best Growth Stocks for the Next 10 Years
| Stock | Sector | Market Capitalization |
|---|
| Nvidia Corp. (ticker: NVDA) | Technology | $2.9 trillion |
| Apple Inc. (AAPL) | Technology | $3.4 trillion |
| Palo Alto Networks Inc. (PANW) | Technology | $110 billion |
| Meta Platforms Inc. (META) | Communication services | $1.3 trillion |
5 more rowsAug 15, 2024
Nvidia Corp.
Nvidia shares have gained 322,185% overall in the past 30 years, a 37.2% average annual return, making it the best-performing S&P 500 stock of the past three decades.
What is the most profitable stock of all time? ›
At the top is Altria Group Inc. (MO), a tobacco company that, until 2003, was known as Philip Morris Companies Inc. The tobacco company has returned more than $2.6 million for every dollar invested on Dec. 31, 1925, the earliest date available in the data set Bessembinder used as the basis for his calculations.
Is a market crash coming in 2024? ›
While many experts are making predictions about whether the market will crash in 2024 or how severe the next downturn will be, it's impossible to say with certainty where stock prices will be in the short term. However, the market's long-term performance is all but guaranteed to be positive.
What was the worst financial crisis in history? ›
The financial crash and global recession of 2008 was "the worst economic disaster since the Great Depression of 1929", according to The Balance. The crash was triggered primarily by the collapse of the U.S. Housing Market, according to Investopedia.
How long did it take for stocks to recover from the 2008 recession? ›
For example, it took the stock market just over two years to recover from the 1987 stock market crash. However, it took the market almost six years to recover from the dot-com bubble burst in 2000. For the financial crisis of 2008, it took close to five years for the stock market to bottom out and start recovering.
What impact did the COVID pandemic have on the marketplace? ›
This chart shows us clearly the impact to global ecommerce revenues the pandemic has had, adding an additional 19% sales growth for 2020, and additional 22% sales growth to the existing 9% and 12% regular forecast sales growth rates, respectively.
How did the Covid-19 pandemic affect companies? ›
In 2022, of those companies that were impacted by the coronavirus pandemic but had returned to normal level of operations in 2020, 2021 or 2022, 4.1 percent of companies canceled, 12.45 percent postponed, 11.65 percent decreased, and 2.8 increased some of their budgeted capital expenditures during the coronavirus ...
How did COVID affect the economy? ›
Total nonfarm employment fell by 1.4 million jobs in March 2020 and a staggering 20.5 million jobs in April, creating a 22 million jobs deficit since the start of the recession and largely erasing the gains from a decade of job growth.
How has COVID affected global financial markets? ›
The COVID-19 pandemic has significant impacts on global financial markets. Substantial increases of volatility are found in global markets due to the outbreak. Global stock markets linkages display clear different patterns before and after the pandemic announcement.
