iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Germany ETF (HEWG)

TotalReturn:

'Total return, when measuring performance, is the actual rate of return of an investment or a pool of investments over a given evaluation period. Total return includes interest, capital gains, dividends and distributions realized over a given period of time. Total return accounts for two categories of return: income including interest paid by fixed-income investments, distributions or dividends and capital appreciation, representing the change in the market price of an asset.'

• Compared with the benchmark SPY (63%) in the period of the last 5 years, the total return, or performance of 24.4% of iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Germany ETF is lower, thus worse.
• Looking at total return, or performance in of 17.3% in the period of the last 3 years, we see it is relatively lower, thus worse in comparison to SPY (33.5%).

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.'

• Looking at the annual return (CAGR) of 4.5% in the last 5 years of iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Germany ETF, we see it is relatively smaller, thus worse in comparison to the benchmark SPY (10.3%)
• Compared with SPY (10.1%) in the period of the last 3 years, the annual performance (CAGR) of 5.5% is lower, thus worse.

Volatility:

'Volatility is a rate at which the price of a security increases or decreases for a given set of returns. Volatility is measured by calculating the standard deviation of the annualized returns over a given period of time. It shows the range to which the price of a security may increase or decrease. Volatility measures the risk of a security. It is used in option pricing formula to gauge the fluctuations in the returns of the underlying assets. Volatility indicates the pricing behavior of the security and helps estimate the fluctuations that may happen in a short period of time.'

• The volatility over 5 years of iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Germany ETF is 22.7%, which is larger, thus worse compared to the benchmark SPY (21.6%) in the same period.
• Compared with SPY (25.1%) in the period of the last 3 years, the volatility of 26.4% is greater, thus worse.

DownVol:

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

• Looking at the downside volatility of 16.9% in the last 5 years of iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Germany ETF, we see it is relatively greater, thus worse in comparison to the benchmark SPY (15.6%)
• During the last 3 years, the downside volatility is 19.7%, which is greater, thus worse than the value of 18.1% from the benchmark.

Sharpe:

'The Sharpe ratio is the measure of risk-adjusted return of a financial portfolio. Sharpe ratio is a measure of excess portfolio return over the risk-free rate relative to its standard deviation. Normally, the 90-day Treasury bill rate is taken as the proxy for risk-free rate. A portfolio with a higher Sharpe ratio is considered superior relative to its peers. The measure was named after William F Sharpe, a Nobel laureate and professor of finance, emeritus at Stanford University.'

• Looking at the Sharpe Ratio of 0.09 in the last 5 years of iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Germany ETF, we see it is relatively smaller, thus worse in comparison to the benchmark SPY (0.36)
• Looking at Sharpe Ratio in of 0.11 in the period of the last 3 years, we see it is relatively lower, thus worse in comparison to SPY (0.3).

Sortino:

'The Sortino ratio measures the risk-adjusted return of an investment asset, portfolio, or strategy. It is a modification of the Sharpe ratio but penalizes only those returns falling below a user-specified target or required rate of return, while the Sharpe ratio penalizes both upside and downside volatility equally. Though both ratios measure an investment's risk-adjusted return, they do so in significantly different ways that will frequently lead to differing conclusions as to the true nature of the investment's return-generating efficiency. The Sortino ratio is used as a way to compare the risk-adjusted performance of programs with differing risk and return profiles. In general, risk-adjusted returns seek to normalize the risk across programs and then see which has the higher return unit per risk.'

• Compared with the benchmark SPY (0.5) in the period of the last 5 years, the downside risk / excess return profile of 0.12 of iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Germany ETF is lower, thus worse.
• During the last 3 years, the downside risk / excess return profile is 0.15, which is lower, thus worse than the value of 0.42 from the benchmark.

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.'

• Looking at the Downside risk index of 11 in the last 5 years of iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Germany ETF, we see it is relatively larger, thus worse in comparison to the benchmark SPY (8.88 )
• Compared with SPY (11 ) in the period of the last 3 years, the Downside risk index of 13 is larger, thus worse.

MaxDD:

'Maximum drawdown is defined as the peak-to-trough decline of an investment during a specific period. It is usually quoted as a percentage of the peak value. The maximum drawdown can be calculated based on absolute returns, in order to identify strategies that suffer less during market downturns, such as low-volatility strategies. However, the maximum drawdown can also be calculated based on returns relative to a benchmark index, for identifying strategies that show steady outperformance over time.'

• Looking at the maximum reduction from previous high of -39.4 days in the last 5 years of iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Germany ETF, we see it is relatively smaller, thus worse in comparison to the benchmark SPY (-33.7 days)
• During the last 3 years, the maximum drop from peak to valley is -39.4 days, which is lower, thus worse than the value of -33.7 days from the benchmark.

MaxDuration:

'The Maximum Drawdown Duration is an extension of the Maximum Drawdown. However, this metric does not explain the drawdown in dollars or percentages, rather in days, weeks, or months. It is the length of time the account was in the Max Drawdown. A Max Drawdown measures a retrenchment from when an equity curve reaches a new high. It’s the maximum an account lost during that retrenchment. This method is applied because a valley can’t be measured until a new high occurs. Once the new high is reached, the percentage change from the old high to the bottom of the largest trough is recorded.'

• Looking at the maximum time in days below previous high water mark of 342 days in the last 5 years of iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Germany ETF, we see it is relatively greater, thus worse in comparison to the benchmark SPY (273 days)
• Looking at maximum days under water in of 304 days in the period of the last 3 years, we see it is relatively larger, thus worse in comparison to SPY (273 days).

AveDuration:

'The Average Drawdown Duration is an extension of the Maximum Drawdown. However, this metric does not explain the drawdown in dollars or percentages, rather in days, weeks, or months. 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.'

• The average time in days below previous high water mark over 5 years of iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Germany ETF is 113 days, which is higher, thus worse compared to the benchmark SPY (57 days) in the same period.
• During the last 3 years, the average time in days below previous high water mark is 103 days, which is higher, thus worse than the value of 73 days from the benchmark.