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Ranked lists

Top 100: Most debt

Backtest from 31 Mar 2010 to 30 Sept 2026 · quarterly · hypothetical

Watch this strategy
Return a year
+13.2%
S&P 500 +14.0%
Last 12 months
+12.6%
S&P 500 +15.7%
Sharpe ratio
0.82
S&P 500 0.86
Biggest drop
−27.3%
S&P 500 −23.9%
$10.0k$20.0k$40.0k$80.0k 201020122014201620182020202220242026 $87.2k$77.6k
Top 100: Most debtS&P 500 $10,000 in Top 100: Most debt from 31 Mar 2010 against the S&P 500 (total return) over the same dates, marked quarterly, log scale. Hypothetical: before taxes and trading costs.

About

Holds the top 100 companies on our “most debt” list, equal weight, rebuilt every quarter from figures in quarters that ended at least 90 days earlier, the same rules as the live list.

The live list →

Key statistics

MeasureStrategyS&P 500
Return a year (compound)+13.2%+14.0%
Total return+676%+772%
Last 12 months+12.6%+15.7%
Last 3 months−2.4%—
Last month−2.4%—
This year so far+10.3%—
Volatility a year14.8%15.1%
Sharpe ratio0.820.86
Biggest drop−27.3%−23.9%
Beta to the S&P 5000.881.00
Alpha a year (t-statistic)+0.8% (0.45)—
Share of quarters up80%—

Sharpe ratio uses returns above the 3-month Treasury bill rate. Alpha is the yearly return left after allowing for the strategy's exposure to the S&P 500 (CAPM); a t-statistic below about 2 means it cannot be told apart from luck.

Insights

CompanyWeightHeld sinceReturn since
MS1.0%——
GS1.0%——
BAC1.0%——
C1.0%——
WFC1.0%——
TM1.0%——
VZ1.0%——
T1.0%——
AMZN1.0%——
ORCL1.0%——
NEE1.0%——
GOOGL1.0%——
PNC1.0%——
DUK1.0%——
AAPL1.0%——
UNH1.0%——
SO1.0%——
AVGO1.0%——
ABBV1.0%——
PCG1.0%——
PFE1.0%——
CVS1.0%——
AXP1.0%——
IBM1.0%——
HDB1.0%——
AMGN1.0%——
MRK1.0%——
EXC1.0%——
INTC1.0%——
AEP1.0%——
LLY1.0%——
D1.0%——
BA1.0%——
HD1.0%——
COF1.0%——
HCA1.0%——
TFC1.0%——
PEP1.0%——
PM1.0%——
TMO1.0%——
BMY1.0%——
NAVI1.0%——
MCD1.0%——
CRM1.0%——
KO1.0%——
DIS1.0%——
JNJ1.0%——
EIX1.0%——
XEL1.0%——
WMT1.0%——
LOW1.0%——
PLD1.0%——
RITM1.0%——
TDG1.0%——
XOM1.0%——
AMT1.0%——
RTX1.0%——
ELC1.0%——
ETR1.0%——
HON1.0%——
EPD1.0%——
MSFT1.0%——
SRE1.0%——
OKE1.0%——
MPC1.0%——
ELV1.0%——
BNY1.0%——
KMI1.0%——
ABT1.0%——
CI1.0%——
UNP1.0%——
WMB1.0%——
FE1.0%——
FISV1.0%——
ES1.0%——
MDT1.0%——
DTE1.0%——
AAL1.0%——
MPLX1.0%——
UAL1.0%——
GILD1.0%——
DELL1.0%——
CCL1.0%——
NRG1.0%——
CNP1.0%——
MO1.0%——
PG1.0%——
COP1.0%——
OMF1.0%——
PEG1.0%——
SCHW1.0%——
LNG1.0%——
GPN1.0%——
OPTU1.0%——
WM1.0%——
RCL1.0%——
LIN1.0%——
LMT1.0%——
BHC1.0%——
EQIX1.0%——

Equal weight at the latest rebalance, rebuilt every quarter.

PeriodReturn a yearS&P 500SharpeS&P 500Biggest dropBetaAlpha (t)
Whole backtest31 Mar 2010 to 30 Sept 2026+13.2%+14.0%0.820.86−27.3%0.88+0.8% (0.45)
2018 onwards31 Mar 2018 to 30 Sept 2026+12.6%+15.1%0.620.75−27.3%0.86−0.4% (−0.11)
Last three years31 Dec 2023 to 30 Sept 2026+16.4%+20.2%1.411.25−2.4%0.30+7.0% (1.26)
DateCompanyAction
30 Sept 2026UALBought
30 Sept 2026SCHWBought
30 Sept 2026RCLBought
30 Sept 2026ORCLBought
30 Sept 2026NRGBought
30 Sept 2026LNGBought
30 Sept 2026LMTBought
30 Sept 2026LINBought
30 Sept 2026HONBought
30 Sept 2026GILDBought
30 Sept 2026EQIXBought
30 Sept 2026CRMBought
30 Sept 2026BHCBought
30 Jun 2026TMBought
30 Jun 2026HDBBought
30 Jun 2026CNPBought
30 Jun 2026ABTBought
31 Mar 2026ULBought
31 Mar 2026TMUSBought
31 Mar 2026STLABought
31 Mar 2026SHELBought
31 Mar 2026PBRBought
31 Mar 2026NVOBought
31 Mar 2026GPNBought
31 Mar 2026FTSBought

Dated at the rebalance that made the change.

DateCompanyAction
30 Sept 2026ULSold
30 Sept 2026TMUSSold
30 Sept 2026STLASold
30 Sept 2026SHELSold
30 Sept 2026PBRSold
30 Sept 2026NVOSold
30 Sept 2026FTSSold
30 Sept 2026EDSold
30 Sept 2026CVXSold
30 Sept 2026CATSold
30 Sept 2026BTISold
30 Sept 2026AMXSold
30 Sept 2026AERSold
30 Jun 2026SCHWSold
30 Jun 2026LNGSold
30 Jun 2026GILDSold
30 Jun 2026CCISold
31 Mar 2026UALSold
31 Mar 2026PSXSold
31 Mar 2026OXYSold
31 Mar 2026MRSHSold
31 Mar 2026LMTSold
31 Mar 2026LINSold
31 Mar 2026KHCSold
31 Mar 2026GESold

Dated at the rebalance that made the change.

Backtests are hypothetical and use today's listed companies only, which flatters results. Past performance does not predict future returns. This is research, not investment advice. How we backtest