ASG vs SPY: Correlation
How closely do Liberty All-Star Growth Fund, Inc. (ASG) and SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) trade together? Their weekly returns over three years give a correlation of 0.89, which is very strong.
Data as of 2026-08-27 · refreshed every trading day · weekly returns · methodology
How correlated are ASG and SPY?
On 3 years of weekly data the ASG/SPY correlation comes out at 0.89, very strong, meaning they move nearly in lockstep. Little has changed lately, as the 1-year reading of 0.88 lands near the 3-year figure. The 5-year figure is 0.85, and annualized covariance runs at 234.3 %².
SPY is one of the assets that tracks ASG most closely: it ranks #3 out of the 52 assets we track against ASG. The last year tells two different stories: SPY led by 17.3 percentage points, +3.3% for ASG against +20.6% for SPY.
How is this computed?
Pearson correlation on weekly returns: ρ(A,B) = cov(rA, rB) / (σA · σB), over windows of 52, 156 and 260 weeks. Covariance is annualized (×52) and expressed in %². Full definitions on the methodology page.
ASG vs SPY: side by side
| ASG (Liberty All-Star Growth Fund, Inc.) | SPY (SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1-year return | +3.3% | +20.6% |
| 5-year return | -5.6% | +82.4% |
| Volatility (ann.) | 18.3% | 14.5% |
| Beta vs S&P 500 | 1.12 | 1.00 |
| Max drawdown (3Y) | -25.3% | -18.8% |
| Market cap | $0.3B | – |
| P/E (trailing) | 23.9 | – |
| Dividend yield | 8.76% | 1.01% |
| Expense ratio | – | 0.09% |
| Assets under management | – | $795.3B |
| Sector / category | US Listed | ETF · US Large Cap |
SPY is a Large Blend fund from State Street Investment Management: $795.3B under management, 504 holdings, a 0.09% expense ratio, a 1.01% trailing dividend yield.
Year-by-year returns
| Year | ASG | SPY |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | -40.9% | -18.2% |
| 2023 | +16.2% | +26.2% |
| 2024 | +16.8% | +24.9% |
| 2025 | +2.2% | +17.7% |
| 2026 | +6.0% | +13.7% |
Calendar-year price returns; the current year is year-to-date as of the data date above.
Are ASG and SPY good diversifiers for each other?
No: a correlation of 0.89 means ASG and SPY tend to fall together, which is precisely when diversification is supposed to help.
FAQ
What is the correlation between ASG and SPY?
Using weekly returns as of 2026-08-27: 0.89 over 3 years, with 0.88 over the last year and 0.85 over 5 years.
Is SPY a good diversifier for ASG?
No: a correlation of 0.89 means ASG and SPY tend to fall together, which is precisely when diversification is supposed to help.
What does a correlation of 0.89 mean?
Correlation ranges from −1 to +1. Values near +1 mean two assets move together, near 0 that they move independently, and negative values that they tend to move in opposite directions. It measures co-movement, not performance.
Use this data
$ curl https://www.pairbook.io/api/v1/pairs/asg-vs-spy.json
Embed this badge (it refreshes with the data), with attribution:
[](https://www.pairbook.io/pair/asg-vs-spy/)
Free with attribution; caching and terms are described in the API documentation.
Related comparisons
Hubs: ASG correlations · SPY correlations
