AAPL vs GOOG: Performance Comparison

Last updated: December 29, 2025

Gale Research Team
Written by Gale Research Team Financial Data Analysis
Sid Kalla
Reviewed by Sid Kalla CFA Charterholder

Analysis period: 2024-12-30 to 2025-12-26

AAPL Total Return
+8.9%
GOOG Total Return
+64.1%

Relative Performance (Normalized to 100)

AAPL GOOG

Normalized to 100 at start date for comparison

Key Takeaways

  • Raw returns: GOOG outperformed with 64.1% total return vs 8.9% for AAPL.
  • Risk-adjusted (Sharpe): GOOG had better risk-adjusted returns with a Sharpe ratio of 1.6 vs 0.3 for AAPL.
  • Volatility: GOOG was less volatile at 32.1% annualized vs 32.6% for AAPL.
  • Max drawdown: GOOG had a shallower max drawdown of -29.3% vs -31.6% for AAPL.

Correlation Analysis

0.40 Average Correlation

AAPL and GOOG are moderately correlated over the past 6 months. With a correlation of 0.40, these assets show some independence, offering moderate diversification when held together.

Metric Metric Value
Current (30-day) 0.34
Average (full period) 0.40
Minimum -0.15
Maximum 0.86

Correlation measures how closely two assets move together. Values near +1 indicate strong co-movement, near 0 indicates independence, and negative values indicate inverse movement.

Investment Comparison

If you invested $10,000 in each asset on December 30, 2024:

AAPL $10,888.83 +8.9%
GOOG $16,409.9 +64.1%

Difference: $5,521.07 (GOOG ahead)

Risk Analysis

AAPL experienced its maximum drawdown of -31.6% from 2024-12-30 to 2025-04-08. It took 167 days to recover.

GOOG experienced its maximum drawdown of -29.3% from 2025-02-04 to 2025-04-08. It took 139 days to recover.

Smaller drawdowns and faster recoveries indicate lower downside risk and greater resilience during market stress.

Sharpe Ratio

AAPL Sharpe Ratio
0.30
GOOG Sharpe Ratio
1.60

The Sharpe ratio measures return per unit of risk (volatility). A higher Sharpe indicates better risk-adjusted performance. GOOG delivered 5.3x more return per unit of risk than AAPL.

A Sharpe above 1.0 is generally considered good, above 2.0 is excellent. Negative Sharpe means the asset underperformed the risk-free rate.

Sortino Ratio

AAPL Sortino Ratio
0.41
GOOG Sortino Ratio
2.47

The Sortino ratio measures return per unit of downside risk. Unlike Sharpe, it only penalizes negative volatility. GOOG had better downside-adjusted returns.

A higher Sortino is better. It's particularly useful for assets with asymmetric volatility (big gains, smaller losses). Downside volatility: AAPL 23.8% vs GOOG 20.8%.

Understanding Volatility

AAPL's annualized volatility of 32.6% means it typically moves ±2.06% on any given day.

GOOG's annualized volatility of 32.1% means it typically moves ±2.02% on any given day.

For comparison, the S&P 500 typically has 15-18% annualized volatility, translating to roughly ±1% daily moves. Higher volatility means larger potential gains but also larger potential losses.

Performance Over Time

Metric AAPL GOOG
30 Days -1.5% -1.6%
90 Days 7.1% 27.5%
180 Days 36.3% 77%
1 Year N/A N/A

Shorter time frames can show different leaders as market conditions change. Consider your investment horizon when comparing performance.

Full Comparison

Metric AAPL GOOG
Total Return 8.9% 64.1%
Annualized Volatility 32.6% 32.1%
Sharpe Ratio 0.30 1.60
Sortino Ratio 0.41 2.47
Max Drawdown -31.6% -29.3%
Avg Correlation to S&P 500 0.68 0.57