SPY vs TAN: Correlation
How closely do SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) and Invesco Solar ETF (TAN) trade together? Their weekly returns over three years give a correlation of 0.40, which is moderate.
Data as of 2026-08-27 · refreshed every trading day · weekly returns · methodology
How correlated are SPY and TAN?
On 3 years of weekly data the SPY/TAN correlation comes out at 0.40, moderate. Recent behaviour matches the longer record: 0.41 over 1 year against 0.40 over 3. The 5-year figure is 0.47, and annualized covariance runs at 218.0 %².
By 3-year correlation, TAN places #1183 of the 4755 assets tracked against SPY. Twelve-month performance is nearly a tie, at +20.6% for SPY and +21.4% for TAN. Do not treat this figure as fixed: across three years the rolling one-year correlation ranged all the way from 0.20 to 0.74. Note the risk asymmetry: TAN runs 2.6 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.
SPY vs TAN: side by side
| SPY (SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust) | TAN (Invesco Solar ETF) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1-year return | +20.6% | +21.4% |
| 5-year return | +82.4% | -41.9% |
| Volatility (ann.) | 14.5% | 37.4% |
| Beta vs S&P 500 | 1.00 | 1.04 |
| Max drawdown (3Y) | -18.8% | -55.4% |
| Dividend yield | 1.01% | – |
| Expense ratio | 0.09% | – |
| Assets under management | $795.3B | – |
| Sector / category | ETF · US Large Cap | ETF · Thematic |
On the fund side, SPY sits in the Large Blend category at State Street Investment Management, with $795.3B under management, 504 holdings, a 0.09% expense ratio, a 1.01% trailing dividend yield.
Year-by-year returns
| Year | SPY | TAN |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | -18.2% | -5.2% |
| 2023 | +26.2% | -26.8% |
| 2024 | +24.9% | -37.6% |
| 2025 | +17.7% | +48.3% |
| 2026 | +13.7% | +1.3% |
Calendar-year price returns; the current year is year-to-date as of the data date above.
Are SPY and TAN good diversifiers for each other?
A fair diversifier. At 0.40, enough of each asset's movement is its own that the pair has smoothed outcomes historically.
FAQ
What is the correlation between SPY and TAN?
The SPY/TAN correlation stands at 0.40 on a 3-year window (1 year: 0.41, 5 years: 0.47), computed from weekly returns as of 2026-08-27.
Is TAN a good diversifier for SPY?
A fair diversifier. At 0.40, enough of each asset's movement is its own that the pair has smoothed outcomes historically.
What does a correlation of 0.40 mean?
On the −1 to +1 scale, 0.40 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/spy-vs-tan.json
Markdown for the live badge, attribution link included:
[](https://www.pairbook.io/pair/spy-vs-tan/)
No key needed, free to use. Full endpoint list in the API documentation.
Related comparisons
Hubs: SPY correlations · TAN correlations
