IWM vs MBUU: Correlation
How closely do iShares Russell 2000 ETF (IWM) and Malibu Boats, Inc. (MBUU) trade together? Their weekly returns over three years give a correlation of 0.59, which is moderate.
Data as of 2026-08-27 · refreshed every trading day · weekly returns · methodology
How correlated are IWM and MBUU?
Over the past 3 years, IWM and MBUU moved with a correlation of 0.59, 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 0.58, and the annualized covariance of weekly returns is 502.8 %².
By 3-year correlation, MBUU places #132 of the 320 assets tracked against IWM. Their recent paths diverged sharply: over the last 12 months IWM outperformed by 55.5 percentage points (+28.4% for IWM against -27.1% for MBUU). Risk is not evenly split, since MBUU carries 2.2 times the volatility of the other side.
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.
IWM vs MBUU: side by side
| IWM (iShares Russell 2000 ETF) | MBUU (Malibu Boats, Inc.) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1-year return | +28.4% | -27.1% |
| 5-year return | +41.5% | -62.1% |
| Volatility (ann.) | 19.8% | 42.9% |
| Beta vs S&P 500 | 1.06 | 0.96 |
| Max drawdown (3Y) | -27.5% | -57.0% |
| Market cap | – | $0.6B |
| P/E (trailing) | – | – |
| Dividend yield | 0.91% | 0.00% |
| Expense ratio | 0.19% | – |
| Assets under management | $80.1B | – |
| Sector / category | ETF · US Small & Mid Cap | US Listed |
IWM, iShares's Small Blend fund, carries $80.1B under management, 1757 holdings, a 0.19% expense ratio, a 0.91% trailing dividend yield.
Year-by-year returns
| Year | IWM | MBUU |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | -20.5% | -22.5% |
| 2023 | +16.8% | +2.9% |
| 2024 | +11.4% | -31.4% |
| 2025 | +12.7% | -25.0% |
| 2026 | +22.3% | +2.1% |
Calendar-year price returns; the current year is year-to-date as of the data date above.
Are IWM and MBUU good diversifiers for each other?
Only partially. A correlation of 0.59 means IWM and MBUU share most of their swings. Pairing them dampens volatility somewhat, but it will not protect against a common drawdown.
FAQ
What is the correlation between IWM and MBUU?
Using weekly returns as of 2026-08-27: 0.59 over 3 years, with 0.58 over the last year and 0.58 over 5 years.
Is MBUU a good diversifier for IWM?
Only partially. A correlation of 0.59 means IWM and MBUU share most of their swings. Pairing them dampens volatility somewhat, but it will not protect against a common drawdown.
What does a correlation of 0.59 mean?
On the −1 to +1 scale, 0.59 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/iwm-vs-mbuu.json
Drop this badge in a README or notebook; it updates with the data:
[](https://www.pairbook.io/pair/iwm-vs-mbuu/)
No key needed, free to use. Full endpoint list in the API documentation.
Related comparisons
Hubs: IWM correlations · MBUU correlations
