SPY vs WEN: Correlation
Measured on weekly returns over the past three years, SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) and Wendy's Company (The) (WEN) carry a correlation of 0.18, a weak link.
Data as of 2026-08-27 · refreshed every trading day · weekly returns · methodology
How correlated are SPY and WEN?
Over the past 3 years, SPY and WEN moved with a correlation of 0.18, which is weak. Recent behaviour matches the longer record: 0.20 over 1 year against 0.18 over 3. Over 5 years the correlation is 0.36, and the annualized covariance of weekly returns is 82.8 %².
Within SPY's tracked universe of 4755 assets, WEN comes in at #3499 by 3-year correlation. The last year tells two different stories: SPY led by 40.7 percentage points, +20.6% for SPY against -20.1% for WEN. One caveat on sizing: WEN is 2.2 times as volatile as the other leg, so an equal-dollar split is far from equal-risk.
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 WEN: side by side
| SPY (SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust) | WEN (Wendy's Company (The)) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1-year return | +20.6% | -20.1% |
| 5-year return | +82.4% | -56.6% |
| Volatility (ann.) | 14.5% | 31.4% |
| Beta vs S&P 500 | 1.00 | 0.40 |
| Max drawdown (3Y) | -18.8% | -66.3% |
| Market cap | – | $1.5B |
| P/E (trailing) | – | 11.8 |
| Dividend yield | 1.01% | 6.19% |
| Expense ratio | 0.09% | – |
| Assets under management | $795.3B | – |
| Sector / category | ETF · US Large Cap | US Listed |
SPY is a Large Blend fund from State Street Investment Management: $795.3B under management, 504 holdings, a 0.09% expense ratio, a 1.01% trailing dividend yield.
Year-by-year returns
| Year | SPY | WEN |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | -18.2% | -2.8% |
| 2023 | +26.2% | -9.7% |
| 2024 | +24.9% | -11.4% |
| 2025 | +17.7% | -45.8% |
| 2026 | +13.7% | -2.7% |
Calendar-year price returns; the current year is year-to-date as of the data date above.
Are SPY and WEN good diversifiers for each other?
Yes: at 0.18, the two have gone their own ways historically, which is what genuine diversification looks like.
FAQ
What is the correlation between SPY and WEN?
As of 2026-08-27, the correlation of weekly returns between SPY and WEN is 0.18 over 3 years, 0.20 over 1 year and 0.36 over 5 years.
Is WEN a good diversifier for SPY?
Yes: at 0.18, the two have gone their own ways historically, which is what genuine diversification looks like.
What does a correlation of 0.18 mean?
A reading of 0.18 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/spy-vs-wen.json
Markdown for the live badge, attribution link included:
[](https://www.pairbook.io/pair/spy-vs-wen/)
Free with attribution; caching and terms are described in the API documentation.
Related comparisons
Hubs: SPY correlations · WEN correlations
