FRA vs. ^GSPC

Last updated Apr 2, 2026

Compare and contrast key facts about BlackRock Floating Rate Income Strategies Fund Inc (FRA) and S&P 500 Index (^GSPC).

FRA is managed by BlackRock. It was launched on Oct 29, 2003.

Performance

FRA vs. ^GSPC - Performance Comparison

The chart below illustrates the hypothetical performance of a $10,000 investment in BlackRock Floating Rate Income Strategies Fund Inc (FRA) and S&P 500 Index (^GSPC). The values are adjusted to include any dividend payments, if applicable.

FRA vs. ^GSPC - Yearly Performance Comparison

	2026 (YTD)	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018	2017
FRA BlackRock Floating Rate Income Strategies Fund Inc	-3.56%	-3.75%	21.56%	25.46%	-10.59%	17.81%	-2.38%	20.82%	-8.27%	0.76%
^GSPC S&P 500 Index	-3.95%	16.39%	23.31%	24.23%	-19.44%	26.89%	16.26%	28.88%	-6.24%	19.42%

Returns By Period

In the year-to-date period, FRA achieves a -3.56% return, which is significantly higher than ^GSPC's -3.95% return. Over the past 10 years, FRA has underperformed ^GSPC with an annualized return of 6.59%, while ^GSPC has yielded a comparatively higher 12.24% annualized return.

FRA

• 1D: -0.18%
• 1M: -0.49%
• YTD: -3.56%
• 6M: -9.70%
• 1Y: -3.61%
• 3Y*: 9.99%
• 5Y*: 6.48%
• 10Y*: 6.59%

^GSPC

• 1D: 0.72%
• 1M: -4.45%
• YTD: -3.95%
• 6M: -2.02%
• 1Y: 16.73%
• 3Y*: 16.96%
• 5Y*: 10.34%
• 10Y*: 12.24%

*Multi-year figures are annualized to reflect compound growth (CAGR)

Return for Risk

FRA vs. ^GSPC — Risk / Return Rank

Compare risk-adjusted metric ranks to identify better-performing investments over the past 12 months.

FRA

FRA Risk / Return Rank: 3
FRA Sharpe Ratio Rank: 2
FRA Sortino Ratio Rank: 2
FRA Omega Ratio Rank: 2
FRA Calmar Ratio Rank: 3
FRA Martin Ratio Rank: 3

^GSPC

^GSPC Risk / Return Rank: 67
^GSPC Sharpe Ratio Rank: 63
^GSPC Sortino Ratio Rank: 64
^GSPC Omega Ratio Rank: 69
^GSPC Calmar Ratio Rank: 60
^GSPC Martin Ratio Rank: 77

The rank (0–100) shows how this investment's returns compare to the risk taken. Higher = better. Based on the past 12 months of data, combining Sharpe, Sortino, and other metrics used by quantitative funds and institutional investors.

FRA vs. ^GSPC - Risk-Adjusted Trends Comparison

This table presents a comparison of risk-adjusted performance metrics for BlackRock Floating Rate Income Strategies Fund Inc (FRA) and S&P 500 Index (^GSPC). Risk-adjusted metrics are performance indicators that assess an investment's returns in relation to its risk, enabling a more accurate comparison of different investment options.

	FRA	^GSPC	Difference
Sharpe ratio Return per unit of total volatility	-0.25	0.92	-1.17
Sortino ratio Return per unit of downside risk	-0.24	1.41	-1.66
Omega ratio Gain probability vs. loss probability	0.96	1.21	-0.25
Calmar ratio Return relative to maximum drawdown	-0.26	1.41	-1.67
Martin ratio Return relative to average drawdown	-0.62	6.61	-7.23
Data is calculated on a 1-year rolling basis and updated daily. The trend shows the change in the indicator over the past month.

FRA vs. ^GSPC - Sharpe Ratio Comparison

The current FRA Sharpe Ratio is -0.25, which is lower than the ^GSPC Sharpe Ratio of 0.92. The chart below compares the historical Sharpe Ratios of FRA and ^GSPC, offering insights into how both investments have performed under varying market conditions. These values are calculated using daily returns over the previous 12 months.

Sharpe Ratios by Period

	FRA	^GSPC	Difference
Sharpe Ratio (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	-0.25	0.92	-1.17
Sharpe Ratio (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period	0.51	0.61	-0.11
Sharpe Ratio (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period	0.43	0.68	-0.25
Sharpe Ratio (All Time) Calculated using the full available price history	0.31	0.46	-0.15

Correlation

The correlation between FRA and ^GSPC is 0.33, which is considered to be low. This implies their price changes are not closely related. A low correlation is generally favorable for portfolio diversification, as it helps to reduce overall risk by spreading it across multiple assets with different performance patterns.

Drawdowns

FRA vs. ^GSPC - Drawdown Comparison

The maximum FRA drawdown since its inception was -51.43%, smaller than the maximum ^GSPC drawdown of -56.78%. Use the drawdown chart below to compare losses from any high point for FRA and ^GSPC.

Drawdown Indicators

	FRA	^GSPC	Difference
Max Drawdown Largest peak-to-trough decline	-51.43%	-56.78%	+5.35%
Max Drawdown (1Y) Largest decline over 1 year	-15.47%	-12.14%	-3.33%
Max Drawdown (5Y) Largest decline over 5 years	-18.77%	-25.43%	+6.66%
Max Drawdown (10Y) Largest decline over 10 years	-42.80%	-33.92%	-8.88%
Current Drawdown Current decline from peak	-11.78%	-5.78%	-6.00%
Average Drawdown Average peak-to-trough decline	-7.19%	-10.75%	+3.56%
Ulcer Index Depth and duration of drawdowns from previous peaks	6.45%	2.60%	+3.85%

Volatility

FRA vs. ^GSPC - Volatility Comparison

BlackRock Floating Rate Income Strategies Fund Inc (FRA) has a higher volatility of 5.64% compared to S&P 500 Index (^GSPC) at 5.37%. This indicates that FRA's price experiences larger fluctuations and is considered to be riskier than ^GSPC based on this measure. The chart below showcases a comparison of their rolling one-month volatility.

Volatility by Period

	FRA	^GSPC	Difference
Volatility (1M) Calculated over the trailing 1-month period	5.64%	5.37%	+0.27%
Volatility (6M) Calculated over the trailing 6-month period	8.21%	9.55%	-1.34%
Volatility (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	14.30%	18.33%	-4.03%
Volatility (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period, annualized	12.78%	16.90%	-4.12%
Volatility (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period, annualized	15.48%	18.05%	-2.57%