What if you invested monthly in a Quality-factor ETF (QUAL) for 10 years?
This calculates the result of investing a fixed amount monthly into QUAL, which selects stocks by 'quality' traits such as high return on equity, low leverage, and stable earnings, over 10 years using actual price data. It shows the factor's out- and under-performance alongside maximum drawdown and time underwater.
Investment conditions
Asset · QUAL (US Quality-factor ETF)
Method · Recurring monthly investment
Period · 2016-07-01 ~ 2026-07-01
Amount · $222 / month
As of · 2026-07-01
Key metrics
These results do not reflect taxes. Based on historical data.
Risk & recovery
As important as returns. This service does not hide maximum drawdown or loss periods.
Maximum drawdown (MDD)
-32.8%
Largest drop from peak
Longest loss period
1months
Months in loss: 2
Recovery period
2months
Growth over time
Invested principal (dashed) and portfolio value (solid). Values below match the calculation.
Total invested $26,889 → Final value $58,208 (+116.5%), Maximum drawdown (MDD) -32.8%
Why this period and asset
The quality factor stems from the observation that highly profitable, financially sound firms with stable earnings tend to deliver better long-run risk-adjusted results. Profitability research such as Novy-Marx is often cited as the theoretical basis. QUAL screens US large- and mid-caps by these quality metrics. This 10-year window (2016-2026) spans the late-2018 selloff, the 2020 COVID crash, and the 2022 correction; a quality tilt held up comparatively better in some sharp selloffs, but that was a feature of specific periods, not proof of being always defensive.
Interpreting the result
Investing the same amount each month buys more shares when prices are low and fewer when they are high. Because quality concentrates on financially robust firms, its drawdown often looks shallower in crises, yet it can lag the broad index or growth stocks in strong rallies. Such factor premia show cyclicality, alternating between underperformance and outperformance over years. The key is to read the maximum drawdown, time underwater, and months to recovery next to the broad index on the results screen.
Caveats & limits
A quality strategy can also trail the broad index for years, and backtest results shrink once real fees, turnover, and taxes are included. Expense ratios, trading fees, USD/KRW exchange-rate moves, and dividend/capital-gains taxes also affect the outcome. Past performance does not guarantee future results, and this page does not recommend buying any specific security.
Data sources & limits
- Price data source: Yahoo Finance / FinanceDataReader
- Collected on: 2026-07-23
- Effective trading date: 2026-07-01
- Price basis: Adjusted close (reflects dividends and stock splits)
- Trading fees and taxes are not reflected — figures are pre-tax.
- Based on historical data; does not guarantee future returns.
Frequently asked questions
What is factor investing?
Instead of holding the whole market, it selects stocks by a specific characteristic (factor) such as quality, value, or momentum. It is a smart-beta approach that follows, by rules, excess-return patterns observed in academic research.
Does the quality factor always beat the market?
No. It has held up comparatively better in some sharp selloffs, but it can lag the market or growth stocks in strong rallies. Out- and under-performance alternate over multiple years.
What are the risks of this strategy?
Long stretches of underperformance and being left behind in rallies are the main ones. Even quality names cannot avoid loss periods and delayed recovery when the whole market falls, real results can trail the backtest, and fees and FX reduce returns.
Related scenarios
📋 Results are based on historical data; past returns do not guarantee future returns.
📋 This service is provided for educational purposes to help you understand investing, not as investment advice.