QQQ vs WU: Correlation
How closely do Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) and Western Union Company (The) (WU) trade together? Their weekly returns over three years give a correlation of 0.15, which is weak.
Data as of 2026-08-27 · refreshed every trading day · weekly returns · methodology
How correlated are QQQ and WU?
On 3 years of weekly data the QQQ/WU correlation comes out at 0.15, weak. The relationship has been stable: the 1-year correlation (0.17) sits close to the 3-year figure. The 5-year figure is 0.25, and annualized covariance runs at 92.6 %².
By 3-year correlation, WU places #3412 of the 4755 assets tracked against QQQ. The last year tells two different stories: QQQ led by 32.1 percentage points, +26.3% for QQQ against -5.8% for WU. Risk is not evenly split, since WU carries 1.6 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.
QQQ vs WU: side by side
| QQQ (Invesco QQQ Trust) | WU (Western Union Company (The)) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1-year return | +26.3% | -5.8% |
| 5-year return | +95.4% | -49.2% |
| Volatility (ann.) | 19.6% | 31.1% |
| Beta vs S&P 500 | 1.28 | 0.48 |
| Max drawdown (3Y) | -22.8% | -43.2% |
| Market cap | – | $2.2B |
| P/E (trailing) | – | 5.9 |
| Dividend yield | 0.44% | 12.95% |
| Expense ratio | 0.18% | – |
| Assets under management | $452.8B | – |
| Sector / category | ETF · US Growth & Tech | US Listed |
On the fund side, QQQ sits in the Large Growth category at Invesco, with $452.8B under management, 104 holdings, a 0.18% expense ratio, a 0.44% trailing dividend yield.
Year-by-year returns
| Year | QQQ | WU |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | -32.6% | -17.9% |
| 2023 | +54.9% | -6.2% |
| 2024 | +25.6% | -3.8% |
| 2025 | +20.8% | -2.6% |
| 2026 | +17.7% | -18.0% |
Calendar-year price returns; the current year is year-to-date as of the data date above.
Are QQQ and WU good diversifiers for each other?
Yes. With a correlation of 0.15, QQQ and WU have moved largely independently, which makes them a genuinely diversifying pair by historical standards.
FAQ
What is the correlation between QQQ and WU?
Using weekly returns as of 2026-08-27: 0.15 over 3 years, with 0.17 over the last year and 0.25 over 5 years.
Is WU a good diversifier for QQQ?
Yes. With a correlation of 0.15, QQQ and WU have moved largely independently, which makes them a genuinely diversifying pair by historical standards.
What does a correlation of 0.15 mean?
A reading of 0.15 sits on a scale from −1 (opposite moves) through 0 (unrelated) to +1 (identical moves). Correlation captures direction, not magnitude or performance.
Use this data
$ curl https://www.pairbook.io/api/v1/pairs/qqq-vs-wu.json
Markdown for the live badge, attribution link included:
[](https://www.pairbook.io/pair/qqq-vs-wu/)
Free with attribution; caching and terms are described in the API documentation.
Related comparisons
Hubs: QQQ correlations · WU correlations
