How Your Returns Would Have Changed If You Had Followed CMA in the Last 5 Years

Investors often ask: “What if I had invested differently?

”One of the best ways to answer this question is through a backtest — simulating how different strategies would have performed over time.

To illustrate the difference, let’s compare the S&P500 index with CMA’s three portfolio strategies — SAFE, OPTIMAL, and DYNAMIC — over the past 5 years.

A $10,000 Investment in 2019

Suppose you invested $10,000 in January 20 and held until today.Here’s how it would have grown under each approach:

Portfolio	Annualized Return (APR)	Volatility	Sharpe Ratio	Final Value (approx.)
S&P500	9.95%	15.78%	0.39	$15,900
SAFE	18.67%	16.24%	1.03	$23,600
OPTIMAL	36.08%	27.97%	1.29	$47,600
DYNAMIC	45.53%	50.59%	0.90	$61,000

What This Means

• The S&P500 nearly doubled your money in 5 years — not bad, but far from optimal.

• The SAFE strategy provided stronger returns with similar risk, growing your $10,000 into ~$23,600.

• The OPTIMAL strategy more than quadrupled your initial investment while maintaining an excellent risk-adjusted profile.

• The DYNAMIC strategy delivered the highest returns, turning $10,000 into over $60,000, though with significant short-term volatility.

The Takeaway

Backtesting shows what could have happened, but it also demonstrates the power of optimized portfolios. Instead of being limited to the “one-size-fits-all” S&P500, CMA strategies provide tailored risk-return profiles that can substantially enhance your results.

👉 If you had followed CMA in the last 5 years, your money would have worked harder — and smarter.