The worst 30 year return — using rolling monthly performance — occurred at the height of the market just before the Great Depression and stocks still returned almost 8% per year over the ensuing three decades.
You can see that there is some variation in these returns throughout this period, but the volatility of the results is quite impressive — less than a 5% standard deviation in the return figures.
Written By: Ben Carlson, CFA
www.awealthofcommonsense.com