BEN vs XLF: Correlation
Franklin Resources (BEN) and Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLF) show a moderate relationship: their 3-year correlation of weekly returns is 0.58.
Data as of 2026-08-27 · refreshed every trading day · weekly returns · methodology
How correlated are BEN and XLF?
Over the past 3 years, BEN and XLF moved with a correlation of 0.58, which is moderate. Little has changed lately, as the 1-year reading of 0.58 lands near the 3-year figure. Over 5 years the correlation is 0.65, and the annualized covariance of weekly returns is 260.1 %².
By 3-year correlation, XLF places #16 of the 28 assets tracked against BEN. The last year tells two different stories: BEN led by 33.7 percentage points, +43.0% for BEN against +9.3% for XLF. On a rolling one-year basis the correlation drifted between 0.50 and 0.77, a moderate band. Note the risk asymmetry: BEN runs 1.7 times the annualized volatility of the other leg, so equal-weighting the two is not an equal-risk position.
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.
BEN vs XLF: side by side
| BEN (Franklin Resources) | XLF (Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1-year return | +43.0% | +9.3% |
| 5-year return | +37.6% | +64.2% |
| Volatility (ann.) | 27.9% | 16.2% |
| Beta vs S&P 500 | 1.01 | 0.84 |
| Max drawdown (3Y) | -40.0% | -15.5% |
| Market cap | $17.7B | – |
| P/E (trailing) | 23.8 | – |
| Dividend yield | 3.74% | 1.42% |
| Expense ratio | – | 0.08% |
| Assets under management | – | $57.9B |
| Sector / category | Financials | Sector ETF |
XLF is a Financial fund from State Street Investment Management: $57.9B under management, 77 holdings, a 0.08% expense ratio, a 1.42% trailing dividend yield.
Year-by-year returns
| Year | BEN | XLF |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | -17.5% | -10.6% |
| 2023 | +17.0% | +12.0% |
| 2024 | -27.2% | +30.6% |
| 2025 | +24.8% | +14.9% |
| 2026 | +49.4% | +6.6% |
Calendar-year price returns; the current year is year-to-date as of the data date above.
Fund exposure
BEN represents 0.13% of XLF's portfolio, so part of any move in XLF is BEN itself, and the correlation between them is partly mechanical.
Are BEN and XLF good diversifiers for each other?
To a limited degree. At 0.58 the two still catch most of the same waves, so the pair smooths returns a little without insulating either from a shared selloff.
FAQ
What is the correlation between BEN and XLF?
The BEN/XLF correlation stands at 0.58 on a 3-year window (1 year: 0.58, 5 years: 0.65), computed from weekly returns as of 2026-08-27.
Is XLF a good diversifier for BEN?
To a limited degree. At 0.58 the two still catch most of the same waves, so the pair smooths returns a little without insulating either from a shared selloff.
What does a correlation of 0.58 mean?
On the −1 to +1 scale, 0.58 describes how much the two returns move together: +1 is lockstep, 0 is independence, negative values mean opposite directions. It says nothing about which performed better.
Use this data
$ curl https://www.pairbook.io/api/v1/pairs/ben-vs-xlf.json
Embed this badge (it refreshes with the data), with attribution:
[](https://www.pairbook.io/pair/ben-vs-xlf/)
Free with attribution; caching and terms are described in the API documentation.
Related comparisons
Hubs: BEN correlations · XLF correlations
