Tesla isn't the only stock that's struggling in 2022. Nearly 60 S&P 500 stocks — or about 11% of the index — are having their worst year ever, too.
Stocks like Generac and Meta Platforms — plus older companies like Stanley Black & Decker and V.F. — are down more this year than in any year since 1968, says an Investor's Business Daily analysis of data from S&P Global Market Intelligence and MarketSmith. That's the oldest stock market data readily available from S&P Global.
Seeing so many S&P 500 stocks suffering historically bad years is another reminder of why this bear market has felt so painful, even though the index itself isn't down that much relatively speaking. The SPDR S&P 500 Trust ETF is off 15.7% this year, not even enough to be considered a bear.
And yet stocks like Tesla, Generac and Meta are off 49%, 70% and 67%, respectively, this year. Adding to the pain is the fact that corporate bonds are having a horrific year too.
"U.S. investment-grade corporate bonds are having their worst year ever, even worse than the Great Depression," said Nicholas Colas, co-founder of DataTrek Research. "Interest rate risk is the cause, not perceived credit risk."
S&P 500 Having A Not So Great Year
These S&P 500 stocks aren't having their worst years ever in isolation. The backdrop isn't great.
Rising interest rates, stubborn inflation and slowing corporate profit growth are headwinds for the S&P 500. The index itself is having its worst year since falling 21% in 2020. But it's not even close to the worst-ever year (the S&P 500 lost 47.1% in 1931, says "Stock Trader's Almanac"). Nor is 2022 so far the worst year since 1968 (that was its 38.5% decline in 2008), the almanac says.
But the pain still hurts. Two S&P 500 sectors, the Communication Services Select Sector SPDR and Real Estate Select Sector SPDR, are having their worst-ever years. They're down 36% and 25% this year, respectively. Although it's important to note they are the youngest S&P 500 sector ETFs. XLC started trading in 2019 and XLRE in 2016.
What are some of the S&P 500 stocks struggling the most in 2022?
S&P 500 Stocks Having Very Bad Years
Meta Platforms is having a year for the history books, but in a bad way.
Shares of the company pivoting into virtual reality are down 41 percentage points more than their previously worse-ever year. Meta stock (then known as Facebook) dropped 25.7% in 2008 — which until dropping 67% this year had been its worst year ever.
Tesla, too, is having a year CEO Elon Musk would like to forget. With shares off nearly 50% this year, Tesla investors are suffering an almost-unheard-of annual loss. In the stock's 11 years of trading, it has gained in 10 of those. And the only year Tesla stock fell, 2016, it only dropped by 11%.
Some older stocks, too, are suffering like never before. With its shares down nearly 57% this year, Stanley Black & Decker is now doing worse than it did in 1974, when it lost nearly 52%.
So while 2022 might not be the worst year for stocks in history, it's easy to see why it might feel that way if you own certain ones.
S&P 500 Stocks Having Their Worst Year
Stocks where the drop this year is the biggest relative to the former worst year (ranked by degree)
| Company | Symbol | Previous worst year | YTD change | Sector |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carrier Global | 43.8% (2021) | -18.6% | Industrials | |
| Moderna | 28.1 (2019) | -30.4 | Health Care | |
| Caesars Entertainment | 9.2 (2018) | -47.5 | Consumer Discretionary | |
| Match Group | -12.5 (2021) | -63.5 | Communication Services | |
| Zoetis | 11.4 (2015) | -38.3 | Health Care | |
| Catalent | -24.1 (2018) | -67.1 | Health Care | |
| Meta Platforms | -25.7 (2018) | -66.6 | Communication Services | |
| Otis Worldwide | 28.9 (2021) | -10.3 | Industrials | |
| Etsy | -6.9 (2019) | -45.2 | Consumer Discretionary | |
| Tesla | -11.0 (2016) | -48.0 | Consumer Discretionary |
Sources: S&P Global Market Intelligence, IBD
Follow Matt Krantz on Twitter @mattkrantz
