Graham's defensive investor
Large, steady companies that pass Benjamin Graham's tests for the cautious investor.
Graham's defensive investor wanted size, a long record of profits and dividends, and a price that is modest on both earnings and assets. The tests rarely find exciting companies; they find durable ones bought at sensible prices. Our version uses ten years of profits (the SEC's machine-readable data starts in 2009) and treats an unbroken dividend record since then as the dividend test.
Based on The Intelligent Investor, chapter 14 (Benjamin Graham, 1949; revised 1973).
$10,000 in this list since 2016
Rebuilt every month from the data public at the time
- Per year
- +4.2%
- All stocks +9.4%, S&P 500 +13.8%
- Worst fall from a peak
- -36%
- All stocks -35%
- Months ahead of all stocks
- 48%
- 120 months tested
- Stocks held, on average
- 5
- 16 months with none (held cash)
- Past 12 months
- -4.5%
- All stocks +4.1%, S&P 500 +12.4%
- Volatility, per year
- 27%
- All stocks 22%
- Sharpe ratio
- 0.20
- All stocks 0.40; return over cash per unit of volatility
- Replaced each month
- 28%
- Share of the list that changes at a rebalance
Live since Oct 19, 2026. Holding the list as published, rebought at each month end: +0.3% against +2.1% for all stocks and +0.7% for the S&P 500, to Oct 30, 2026. Too short a period to read much into.
- Graham's defensive investor
- All US stocks, equal weight
- S&P 500 (price only)
Year by year
| Portfolio | 2016from Oct 31 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026to Oct 19 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This list | 0% | +12% | -18% | +24% | +7% | +24% | -10% | +27% | -14% | +1% | -0% |
| All US stocks | +12% | +19% |
6 stocks on the list today
As of the close on Oct 30, 2026; 1 joined and 0 left since Oct 29, 2026
| # | Company | Share price | 1D | Market cap | P/E | P/B | P/E × P/B | Current ratio | EPS 5Y | Yield | Div. yrs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $63.72 | +1.4% | $3.3B | 9.4× | 1.9× | 18.1 | 2.42 | 10.2% | 2.0% | 17 | |
| 2 |
More value ideas
- Net-netsCompanies trading for less than their current assets minus every liability.
- Magic FormulaGood businesses at bargain prices: the 30 best combined ranks on earnings yield and return on capital.
- High F-Score valueCheap stocks on book value whose finances are improving on at least 8 of Piotroski's 9 tests.
- More cash than they're worthCompanies whose net cash covers at least half of their market value.
- Undervalued and financially soundAt least 30% below our fair value estimate, with a healthy balance sheet.
A list produced by rules, not a recommendation. Past results in the backtest don't predict future returns. How the backtests work.