PORTFOLIO COMPARISON / ONE VARIABLE

Graham-Inspired 50/50 Portfolio Backtest

Backtest a fixed 50/50 US equity and aggregate bond ETF proxy inspired by Benjamin Graham’s defensive allocation range.

Benjamin Graham-inspiredClassic defensive starting point50% broad equities / 50% bondsHistorical result available

HISTORICAL BACKTEST RESULT

60% SPY / 40% AGG vs 50% SPY / 50% AGG

60% SPY / 40% AGG 50% SPY / 50% AGG
2016-08-23 → 2026-07-31 · 2492 common sessions
60% SPY / 40% AGG$22,7528.6% annualized · -21.3% max drawdown
50% SPY / 50% AGG$19,8357.1% annualized · -20.6% max drawdown

Historical calculation from cached Marketstack EOD data. Annual rebalancing, $10,000 initial value, nominal USD before fees and taxes. The disclosed portfolio definitions—not an AI model—produce the result.

RUN THIS PORTFOLIO

Change the rule, then compare the new result.

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WHAT TO COMPARE

Read the trade-off as a system.

  1. 01Ending value
  2. 02Maximum drawdown
  3. 03Volatility
  4. 04Stock–bond trade-off

WHEN TO LOOK

Locate where the difference appeared.

First shared ETF observation onwardEquity-led periodsBond-led periods2022 rate shock

A useful comparison shows whether an advantage was broad or created by one unusually favorable period. Review the portfolio backtest methodology to understand how the same rules are applied across a shared data window.

PORTFOLIO RULE / DISCLOSED IMPLEMENTATION

Fixed 50/50 ETF illustration

Graham described a defensive allocation range rather than this fixed two-ETF rule. This page is therefore labelled Graham-inspired.

SPYSPDR S&P 500 ETF TrustSPDR S&P 500 ETF TrustUS large-cap equity ETFTracks the S&P 500, a widely used reference for large US companies.50%S&P 500 equity proxy
AGGiShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETFiShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETFUS bond ETFTracks a broad investment-grade US bond index.50%US aggregate bond proxy

REBALANCINGAnnual rebalancing to 50% equities and 50% bonds.

DATA WINDOWThe calculation uses the common EOD history of SPY and AGG; it should not be extended with a different index without disclosure.