iShares MSCI Ireland ETF (EIRL)

TotalReturn:

'The total return on a portfolio of investments takes into account not only the capital appreciation on the portfolio, but also the income received on the portfolio. The income typically consists of interest, dividends, and securities lending fees. This contrasts with the price return, which takes into account only the capital gain on an investment.'

• Looking at the total return, or increase in value of 47.5% in the last 5 years of iShares MSCI Ireland ETF, we see it is relatively lower, thus worse in comparison to the benchmark SPY (80.7%)
• Compared with SPY (76%) in the period of the last 3 years, the total return, or performance of 54.7% is lower, thus worse.

CAGR:

'The compound annual growth rate isn't a true return rate, but rather a representational figure. It is essentially a number that describes the rate at which an investment would have grown if it had grown the same rate every year and the profits were reinvested at the end of each year. In reality, this sort of performance is unlikely. However, CAGR can be used to smooth returns so that they may be more easily understood when compared to alternative investments.'

• Compared with the benchmark SPY (12.6%) in the period of the last 5 years, the annual performance (CAGR) of 8.1% of iShares MSCI Ireland ETF is lower, thus worse.
• During the last 3 years, the compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) is 15.7%, which is smaller, thus worse than the value of 20.9% from the benchmark.

Volatility:

'In finance, volatility (symbol σ) is the degree of variation of a trading price series over time as measured by the standard deviation of logarithmic returns. Historic volatility measures a time series of past market prices. Implied volatility looks forward in time, being derived from the market price of a market-traded derivative (in particular, an option). Commonly, the higher the volatility, the riskier the security.'

• The volatility over 5 years of iShares MSCI Ireland ETF is 21.1%, which is greater, thus worse compared to the benchmark SPY (17.2%) in the same period.
• Looking at historical 30 days volatility in of 18% in the period of the last 3 years, we see it is relatively greater, thus worse in comparison to SPY (15.3%).

DownVol:

'The downside volatility is similar to the volatility, or standard deviation, but only takes losing/negative periods into account.'

• The downside volatility over 5 years of iShares MSCI Ireland ETF is 14.5%, which is larger, thus worse compared to the benchmark SPY (11.9%) in the same period.
• During the last 3 years, the downside risk is 12%, which is higher, thus worse than the value of 10.3% from the benchmark.

Sharpe:

'The Sharpe ratio was developed by Nobel laureate William F. Sharpe, and is used to help investors understand the return of an investment compared to its risk. The ratio is the average return earned in excess of the risk-free rate per unit of volatility or total risk. Subtracting the risk-free rate from the mean return allows an investor to better isolate the profits associated with risk-taking activities. One intuition of this calculation is that a portfolio engaging in 'zero risk' investments, such as the purchase of U.S. Treasury bills (for which the expected return is the risk-free rate), has a Sharpe ratio of exactly zero. Generally, the greater the value of the Sharpe ratio, the more attractive the risk-adjusted return.'

• The risk / return profile (Sharpe) over 5 years of iShares MSCI Ireland ETF is 0.27, which is smaller, thus worse compared to the benchmark SPY (0.59) in the same period.
• Compared with SPY (1.2) in the period of the last 3 years, the Sharpe Ratio of 0.74 is smaller, thus worse.

Sortino:

'The Sortino ratio, a variation of the Sharpe ratio only factors in the downside, or negative volatility, rather than the total volatility used in calculating the Sharpe ratio. The theory behind the Sortino variation is that upside volatility is a plus for the investment, and it, therefore, should not be included in the risk calculation. Therefore, the Sortino ratio takes upside volatility out of the equation and uses only the downside standard deviation in its calculation instead of the total standard deviation that is used in calculating the Sharpe ratio.'

• Compared with the benchmark SPY (0.85) in the period of the last 5 years, the excess return divided by the downside deviation of 0.39 of iShares MSCI Ireland ETF is smaller, thus worse.
• Looking at excess return divided by the downside deviation in of 1.1 in the period of the last 3 years, we see it is relatively smaller, thus worse in comparison to SPY (1.79).

Ulcer:

'Ulcer Index is a method for measuring investment risk that addresses the real concerns of investors, unlike the widely used standard deviation of return. UI is a measure of the depth and duration of drawdowns in prices from earlier highs. Using Ulcer Index instead of standard deviation can lead to very different conclusions about investment risk and risk-adjusted return, especially when evaluating strategies that seek to avoid major declines in portfolio value (market timing, dynamic asset allocation, hedge funds, etc.). The Ulcer Index was originally developed in 1987. Since then, it has been widely recognized and adopted by the investment community. According to Nelson Freeburg, editor of Formula Research, Ulcer Index is “perhaps the most fully realized statistical portrait of risk there is.'

• The Downside risk index over 5 years of iShares MSCI Ireland ETF is 14 , which is larger, thus worse compared to the benchmark SPY (8.46 ) in the same period.
• During the last 3 years, the Ulcer Index is 7.06 , which is higher, thus worse than the value of 3.37 from the benchmark.

MaxDD:

'A maximum drawdown is the maximum loss from a peak to a trough of a portfolio, before a new peak is attained. Maximum Drawdown is an indicator of downside risk over a specified time period. It can be used both as a stand-alone measure or as an input into other metrics such as 'Return over Maximum Drawdown' and the Calmar Ratio. Maximum Drawdown is expressed in percentage terms.'

• Compared with the benchmark SPY (-24.5 days) in the period of the last 5 years, the maximum reduction from previous high of -40.1 days of iShares MSCI Ireland ETF is lower, thus worse.
• Compared with SPY (-18.8 days) in the period of the last 3 years, the maximum DrawDown of -23 days is lower, thus worse.

MaxDuration:

'The Drawdown Duration is the length of any peak to peak period, or the time between new equity highs. The Max Drawdown Duration is the worst (the maximum/longest) amount of time an investment has seen between peaks (equity highs) in days.'

• Looking at the maximum days below previous high of 574 days in the last 5 years of iShares MSCI Ireland ETF, we see it is relatively higher, thus worse in comparison to the benchmark SPY (488 days)
• Looking at maximum days under water in of 254 days in the period of the last 3 years, we see it is relatively higher, thus worse in comparison to SPY (87 days).

AveDuration:

'The Drawdown Duration is the length of any peak to peak period, or the time between new equity highs. The Avg Drawdown Duration is the average amount of time an investment has seen between peaks (equity highs), or in other terms the average of time under water of all drawdowns. So in contrast to the Maximum duration it does not measure only one drawdown event but calculates the average of all.'

• Looking at the average days under water of 173 days in the last 5 years of iShares MSCI Ireland ETF, we see it is relatively larger, thus worse in comparison to the benchmark SPY (118 days)
• During the last 3 years, the average days under water is 60 days, which is higher, thus worse than the value of 18 days from the benchmark.