UAL vs XLI: Correlation
United Airlines Holdings (UAL) and Industrial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLI) show a moderate relationship: their 3-year correlation of weekly returns is 0.49.
Data as of 2026-08-27 · refreshed every trading day · weekly returns · methodology
How correlated are UAL and XLI?
On 3 years of weekly data the UAL/XLI correlation comes out at 0.49, moderate. The relationship has been stable: the 1-year correlation (0.51) sits close to the 3-year figure. The 5-year figure is 0.51, and annualized covariance runs at 355.7 %².
By 3-year correlation, XLI places #16 of the 33 assets tracked against UAL. The trailing year gives XLI the advantage: +7.8% versus +18.3%, a 10.5-point spread. Do not treat this figure as fixed: across three years the rolling one-year correlation ranged all the way from 0.15 to 0.68. Note the risk asymmetry: UAL runs 3.0 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.
UAL vs XLI: side by side
| UAL (United Airlines Holdings) | XLI (Industrial Select Sector SPDR Fund) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1-year return | +7.8% | +18.3% |
| 5-year return | +144.8% | +84.0% |
| Volatility (ann.) | 46.6% | 15.7% |
| Beta vs S&P 500 | 1.33 | 0.89 |
| Max drawdown (3Y) | -49.2% | -18.5% |
| Market cap | $36.5B | – |
| P/E (trailing) | 10.8 | – |
| Dividend yield | 0.00% | 1.15% |
| Expense ratio | – | 0.08% |
| Assets under management | – | $32.9B |
| Sector / category | Industrials | 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 | UAL | XLI |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | -13.9% | -5.6% |
| 2023 | +9.4% | +18.1% |
| 2024 | +135.3% | +17.3% |
| 2025 | +15.2% | +19.3% |
| 2026 | +0.5% | +15.9% |
Calendar-year price returns; the current year is year-to-date as of the data date above.
Fund exposure
A structural note: 0.66% of XLI is UAL itself, so the fund partly moves with the stock by construction.
Are UAL and XLI good diversifiers for each other?
A fair diversifier. At 0.49, enough of each asset's movement is its own that the pair has smoothed outcomes historically.
FAQ
What is the correlation between UAL and XLI?
Using weekly returns as of 2026-08-27: 0.49 over 3 years, with 0.51 over the last year and 0.51 over 5 years.
Is XLI a good diversifier for UAL?
A fair diversifier. At 0.49, enough of each asset's movement is its own that the pair has smoothed outcomes historically.
What does a correlation of 0.49 mean?
A reading of 0.49 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/ual-vs-xli.json
Drop this badge in a README or notebook; it updates with the data:
[](https://www.pairbook.io/pair/ual-vs-xli/)
No key needed, free to use. Full endpoint list in the API documentation.
Related comparisons
Hubs: UAL correlations · XLI correlations
