RAIL vs XLI: Correlation
How closely do Freightcar America, Inc. (RAIL) and Industrial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLI) trade together? Their weekly returns over three years give a correlation of 0.44, which is moderate.
Data as of 2026-08-27 · refreshed every trading day · weekly returns · methodology
How correlated are RAIL and XLI?
Over the past 3 years, RAIL and XLI moved with a correlation of 0.44, which is moderate. The past 12 months show a tighter link (0.56) than the 3-year average (0.44). Over 5 years the correlation is 0.40, and the annualized covariance of weekly returns is 518.9 %².
XLI is one of the assets that tracks RAIL most closely: it ranks #1 out of the 11 assets we track against RAIL. Their recent paths diverged sharply: over the last 12 months XLI outperformed by 34.4 percentage points (-16.1% for RAIL against +18.3% for XLI). Risk is not evenly split, since RAIL carries 4.8 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.
RAIL vs XLI: side by side
| RAIL (Freightcar America, Inc.) | XLI (Industrial Select Sector SPDR Fund) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1-year return | -16.1% | +18.3% |
| 5-year return | +36.6% | +84.0% |
| Volatility (ann.) | 75.3% | 15.7% |
| Beta vs S&P 500 | 1.84 | 0.89 |
| Max drawdown (3Y) | -71.7% | -18.5% |
| Market cap | $0.2B | – |
| P/E (trailing) | – | – |
| Dividend yield | 0.00% | 1.15% |
| Expense ratio | – | 0.08% |
| Assets under management | – | $32.9B |
| Sector / category | US Listed | Sector ETF |
XLI is an Industrials fund from State Street Investment Management: $32.9B under management, 83 holdings, a 0.08% expense ratio, a 1.15% trailing dividend yield.
Year-by-year returns
| Year | RAIL | XLI |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | -13.3% | -5.6% |
| 2023 | -15.6% | +18.1% |
| 2024 | +231.9% | +17.3% |
| 2025 | +23.5% | +19.3% |
| 2026 | -34.6% | +15.9% |
Calendar-year price returns; the current year is year-to-date as of the data date above.
Are RAIL and XLI good diversifiers for each other?
A fair diversifier. At 0.44, enough of each asset's movement is its own that the pair has smoothed outcomes historically.
FAQ
What is the correlation between RAIL and XLI?
Using weekly returns as of 2026-08-27: 0.44 over 3 years, with 0.56 over the last year and 0.40 over 5 years.
Is XLI a good diversifier for RAIL?
A fair diversifier. At 0.44, enough of each asset's movement is its own that the pair has smoothed outcomes historically.
What does a correlation of 0.44 mean?
On the −1 to +1 scale, 0.44 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/rail-vs-xli.json
Drop this badge in a README or notebook; it updates with the data:
[](https://www.pairbook.io/pair/rail-vs-xli/)
No key needed, free to use. Full endpoint list in the API documentation.
Related comparisons
Hubs: RAIL correlations · XLI correlations
