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Stock · Trading days

VanEck Gold Miners ETF (GDX)

VanEck Gold Miners ETF's performance and risk profile read through S&P 500.

Last updated:

Gale Finance Team
Written by Gale Finance Team
Sid Kalla
Reviewed by Sid Kalla CFA Charterholder
Quick Answer

What is VanEck Gold Miners ETF's risk, return, and volatility like?

VanEck Gold Miners ETF returned +109.8% over the 1Y window. On the 5Y lens, Sharpe ratio is 0.64, annualized volatility is 36.1%, and max drawdown is -46.5%.

Total Return
1Y +109.8%
5Y +181.9%
Sharpe Ratio
1Y 1.80
5Y 0.64
Annualized Volatility
1Y 44.6%
5Y 36.1%
Max Drawdown
1Y -30.8%
5Y -46.5%

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Price history

VanEck Gold Miners ETF price over the past 5Y

Track VanEck Gold Miners ETF's standalone price path with macro and asset-specific events enabled by default.

VanEck Gold Miners ETF price over the past 5Y

GDX
7 events in this period
Show events
Latest close $97.14 Data through 2026-05-12
5Y low $20.76 Window low
5Y high $115.84 Window high

Key takeaways

  • Total Return: GDX returned +109.8% over the 1Y window and +181.9% over the 5Y window ; annualized return over 5Y was +23.0%.
  • Risk-adjusted return: Sharpe was 0.64 and Sortino was 0.92 over 5Y. Sharpe counts total volatility; Sortino focuses on downside volatility.
  • Volatility & drawdown: Annualized volatility was 44.6% over 1Y and 36.1% over 5Y ; max drawdown was -30.8% over 1Y and -46.5% over 5Y .
  • Tail risk (Expected Shortfall): Over 5Y, daily VaR (5%) was -3.6% and Expected Shortfall was -5.2%. VaR is the cutoff; Expected Shortfall is the average move inside the worst 5% of daily returns.
  • Skew & kurtosis: Over 5Y, skew was -0.32 and excess kurtosis was 2.23. Skew shows return asymmetry; excess kurtosis shows how fat the tails were versus a Normal distribution.
  • Risk ratios: Sortino Ratio: 0.92 , Calmar Ratio: 0.50 , Sterling Ratio: 0.75 , Treynor Ratio: 0.35 , Ulcer Index: 20.39% .

VanEck Gold Miners ETF Drawdown

GDX 1Y Max Drawdown
↓ -30.8%
2026-02-27 to 2026-03-20
GDX 5Y Max Drawdown
↓ -46.5%
2022-04-18 to 2022-09-26

Max drawdown shows the deepest peak-to-trough decline VanEck Gold Miners ETF suffered in each research window. 1Y: -30.8%; 5Y: -46.5%.

VanEck Gold Miners ETF is currently -16.1% below its prior peak, with the high-water mark at $115.84. 5Y low is $20.76.

GDX underwater plot (5Y). Zero means at a prior peak; dips show how far below peak the close was on each day. Deepest trough: -46.5% on Sep 26, 2022.
-46.5% 2021-05-13 2026-05-12 0% -47%

5Y drawdown episodes

#1
-46.5% Apr 18, 2022 to Sep 26, 2022
Recovered Aug 21, 2024 856 total days
#2
-30.8% Feb 27, 2026 to Mar 20, 2026
Not yet recovered 74 total days
#3
-27.1% May 17, 2021 to Sep 29, 2021
Recovered Apr 1, 2022 319 total days

VanEck Gold Miners ETF Volatility

GDX 1Y Volatility
44.6%
Annualized daily closes
GDX 5Y Volatility
36.1%
Annualized daily closes

Volatility VanEck Gold Miners ETF's annualized volatility shows how widely daily closes moved over 1Y and 5Y. Higher values mean a noisier path, not automatically a better or worse investment. 1Y: 44.6%; 5Y: 36.1%.

Benchmark context

Where GDX fits relative to other lenses

Benchmark links are secondary on this page. Use them when you want to place the asset against a specific market, factor, or historical counterpart.

Default benchmark

S&P 500

SPY

Broad equity benchmark

1Y return
↑ +26.9%
GDX minus SPY
↑ +83.3%
Correlation
0.29
1Y
GDX vs SPY average correlation
Weakly linked
0.29
QQQ

Nasdaq 100

Corr 0.30

Growth and tech benchmark

1Y return +37.7%
GDX minus QQQ +72.5%
BTC

Bitcoin

Corr 0.13

Cross-asset crypto benchmark

1Y return -22.0%
GDX minus BTC +132.2%

Risk-adjusted ratios

These ratios compare return against different definitions of risk: total volatility, downside volatility, drawdowns, benchmark beta, and time spent underwater.

VanEck Gold Miners ETF Sharpe Ratio

GDX 1Y Sharpe ratio
↑ 1.80
Recent window
GDX 5Y Sharpe ratio
↑ 0.64
Deeper research window

GDX Sharpe Ratio (5Y)

Return per total volatility

The dot sits at (VanEck Gold Miners ETF's annualized volatility, its excess annualized return). The slope from the origin to the dot is the Sharpe ratio — steeper means the asset converted risk into return more efficiently.

Higher is better
Excess return Annualized volatility 0 50% vol 36.1% · excess +23.1%
excess annualized return / total volatility
Formula Sharpe=E[R]−RfσR\displaystyle \mathrm{Sharpe} = \frac{\mathbb{E}[R] - R_f}{\sigma_R}

Sharpe ratio VanEck Gold Miners ETF's Sharpe ratio measures excess return per unit of total volatility. Higher readings mean the asset converted risk into return more efficiently over the same window. 1Y: 1.80; 5Y: 0.64.

A Sharpe above 1.0 is generally considered good, above 2.0 is excellent. Negative Sharpe means the asset underperformed the risk-free rate. Calculated on each asset's full 365-day lookback of available prices and annualized using the asset calendar (365 for crypto, 252 trading days for equities/ETFs/metals).

VanEck Gold Miners ETF Sortino Ratio

GDX 1Y Sortino ratio
↑ 2.53
Recent window
GDX 5Y Sortino ratio
↑ 0.92
Deeper research window

GDX Sortino Ratio (5Y)

Return per downside volatility

VanEck Gold Miners ETF's daily-return distribution over the long window. Days left of the target line are the only ones Sortino penalizes in the denominator — so a distribution with a fat left tail produces a smaller Sortino even at the same mean return.

Higher is better
Frequency (days) Daily return (%) target -13.7% +10.9% 187 0
excess annualized return / downside volatility
Formula Sortino=E[R]−Rfσdown\displaystyle \mathrm{Sortino} = \frac{\mathbb{E}[R] - R_f}{\sigma_{\mathrm{down}}}

Sortino ratio VanEck Gold Miners ETF's Sortino ratio isolates downside volatility instead of all volatility. It is the cleaner lens when you care more about bad downside moves than upside noise. 1Y: 2.53; 5Y: 0.92.

A higher Sortino is better. It's useful when upside volatility is common (crypto is the obvious example). Calculated on each asset's full 365-day lookback of available prices, using the daily risk-free rate as the target return, and annualized using the asset calendar (365 for crypto, 252 trading days for equities/ETFs/metals).

VanEck Gold Miners ETF Calmar Ratio

GDX 1Y Calmar ratio
↑ 3.57
Recent window
GDX 5Y Calmar ratio
↑ 0.50
Deeper research window

GDX Calmar Ratio (5Y)

CAGR per worst drawdown

VanEck Gold Miners ETF's CAGR bar sits above zero, the max drawdown bar sits below. Calmar is the ratio of those two magnitudes — a shallow drawdown bar with a tall CAGR bar produces a strong Calmar.

Higher is better
0% GDX 5Y +23.1% -46.5%
CAGR / max drawdown
Formula Calmar=CAGR∣MaxDD∣\displaystyle \mathrm{Calmar} = \frac{\mathrm{CAGR}}{|\mathrm{MaxDD}|}

Calmar ratio VanEck Gold Miners ETF's Calmar ratio measures return per unit of max drawdown. It is useful when the path of losses matters as much as the final return. 1Y: 3.57; 5Y: 0.50.

Calmar is computed on each asset's full 365-day lookback and uses the max drawdown over that same window.

VanEck Gold Miners ETF Sterling Ratio

GDX 1Y Sterling ratio
↑ 4.70
Recent window
GDX 5Y Sterling ratio
↑ 0.75
Deeper research window

GDX Sterling Ratio (5Y)

Return per average drawdown

The underwater curve shows VanEck Gold Miners ETF's drawdowns over the long window. Sterling averages every event deeper than the 10% threshold instead of taking only the worst one — so an asset with many mid-size drawdowns scores worse here than on Calmar.

Higher is better
0% -12% -24% -37% -49% 10% drawdown threshold
excess CAGR / average deep drawdown
Formula Sterling=CAGR−RfD‾>10%\displaystyle \mathrm{Sterling} = \frac{\mathrm{CAGR} - R_f}{\overline{D}_{>10\%}}

Sterling ratio VanEck Gold Miners ETF's Sterling ratio compares return against deep drawdown pressure. It gives a harsher read on assets that compound well but suffer ugly declines along the way. 1Y: 4.70; 5Y: 0.75.

Sterling uses average drawdown events deeper than 10% and subtracts the risk-free rate to report excess return.

VanEck Gold Miners ETF Ulcer Index

GDX 1Y Ulcer Index
10.41
Recent window
GDX 5Y Ulcer Index
20.39
Deeper research window

GDX Ulcer Index (5Y)

Drawdown pain

The underwater curve shows how deep and how long VanEck Gold Miners ETF's drawdowns were. Ulcer is the root-mean-square of that curve — both depth and persistence count, so lower is better.

Lower is better
0% -12% -24% -37% -49%
root-mean-square drawdown
Formula UI=E[Dt2]\displaystyle \mathrm{UI} = \sqrt{\mathbb{E}[D_t^2]}

Ulcer Index VanEck Gold Miners ETF's Ulcer Index measures both the depth and persistence of drawdowns. Lower is better because it means fewer and shallower underwater periods. 1Y: 10.41; 5Y: 20.39.

Ulcer Index is computed from each asset's drawdown series over the full lookback window.

VanEck Gold Miners ETF Treynor Ratio

GDX 1Y Treynor
↑ 0.67
Beta 1.21 vs SPY
GDX 5Y Treynor
↑ 0.35
Beta 0.66 vs SPY

GDX Treynor Ratio (5Y)

Excess return per beta vs SPY

The line's slope is VanEck Gold Miners ETF's beta to SPY — steeper means more market-sensitive. Treynor divides excess return by that slope, so an asset can look efficient with a shallow beta and a small return, or inefficient with a steep beta and a big return.

Higher is better
Asset return Market return 0 0 β 0.66
excess return / market beta
Formula Treynor=E[R]−Rfβ\displaystyle \mathrm{Treynor} = \frac{\mathbb{E}[R] - R_f}{\beta}

Treynor ratio measures excess return per unit of market beta versus SPY. A high Treynor means the asset compensated its market exposure well over this window. A low or negative Treynor means the asset's market risk wasn't rewarded.

Treynor uses beta vs the S&P 500 (SPY) on shared dates and the average 3-month Treasury rate as the risk-free rate.

VanEck Gold Miners ETF Tail Risk

Tail-risk stats use daily return distributions rather than simple end-point returns. They show how ugly the left tail has been, how severe the worst 5% of days were, and whether returns were skewed toward outsized upside or downside shocks.

The histogram shows the shape of VanEck Gold Miners ETF's daily log returns over the 5Y window. Bars left of the 5% VaR marker are the worst 5% of days; the ES marker is the average loss inside that tail. Skew and excess kurtosis describe whether the distribution is symmetric around zero and whether extreme days are more common than a Normal distribution predicts.

GDX daily return distribution (5Y)

GDX daily return distribution (5Y)

Log-return histogram with Value-at-Risk and Expected Shortfall markers at the 5% left tail.

Days
GDX 5Y VaR 5% ES 5% -15.7% 0% +15.7% Daily log return
worst-5% daily return and the average loss inside it
Formula VaR5%=Q0.05(R),ES5%=E[R∣R≤VaR5%]\displaystyle \mathrm{VaR}_{5\%} = Q_{0.05}(R),\quad \mathrm{ES}_{5\%} = \mathbb{E}[R \mid R \le \mathrm{VaR}_{5\%}]
Metric 1Y5Y
VaR (5%) -4.6% Historical daily threshold -3.6% Historical daily threshold
Expected shortfall (5%) -7.3% Beyond the VaR threshold -5.2% Beyond the VaR threshold
Skew -0.98 -0.32
Excess kurtosis 2.91 2.23

Less negative daily VaR and Expected Shortfall values mean the left tail was less violent. Skew and excess kurtosis help distinguish between steady compounding and a path dominated by occasional extreme moves.

Full stats table

Every window-consistent research metric

Each column keeps the same horizon across returns, ratios, drawdowns, and tail-risk metrics.

Metric
1Y Recent window
5Y Deeper research window
Total return
+109.8%
+181.9%
Annualized return
+109.9%
+23.0%
Volatility
44.6% Annualized daily closes
36.1% Annualized daily closes
Sharpe ratio
1.80
0.64
Sortino ratio
2.53
0.92
Calmar ratio
3.57
0.50
Sterling ratio
4.70
0.75
Ulcer Index
10.41
20.39
Max drawdown
-30.8% 2026-02-27 to 2026-03-20
-46.5% 2022-04-18 to 2022-09-26
VaR (5%)
-4.6% Historical daily threshold
-3.6% Historical daily threshold
Expected shortfall (5%)
-7.3% Beyond the VaR threshold
-5.2% Beyond the VaR threshold
Skew
-0.98
-0.32
Excess kurtosis
2.91
2.23

What viewers usually ask next

What is VanEck Gold Miners ETF's 5Y CAGR?

VanEck Gold Miners ETF's 5y cagr is +23.0% on Gale using the past 5 years.

What is VanEck Gold Miners ETF's 1-year volatility?

Annualized volatility is 44.6% over the past year.

What is VanEck Gold Miners ETF's 5-year Sharpe ratio?

VanEck Gold Miners ETF's Sharpe ratio is 0.64 using the past 5 years.

What is VanEck Gold Miners ETF's 5-year Sortino ratio?

VanEck Gold Miners ETF's Sortino ratio is 0.92 using the past 5 years.

What is VanEck Gold Miners ETF's 5-year Calmar ratio?

VanEck Gold Miners ETF's Calmar ratio is 0.50 using the past 5 years.

What is VanEck Gold Miners ETF's 5-year Sterling ratio?

VanEck Gold Miners ETF's Sterling ratio is 0.75 using the past 5 years.

What is VanEck Gold Miners ETF's 5-year Ulcer Index?

VanEck Gold Miners ETF's Ulcer Index is 20.39 using the past 5 years. Lower is better because it means shallower and less persistent drawdowns.

What is VanEck Gold Miners ETF's 5-year max drawdown?

Max drawdown is -46.5% over the past 5 years from 2022-04-18 to 2022-09-26.

What is VanEck Gold Miners ETF's 5-year daily Value at Risk?

Using historical daily returns, Gale estimates a 5% Value at Risk of -3.63% over the past 5 years.

What is VanEck Gold Miners ETF's 5-year Expected Shortfall?

Expected Shortfall is -5.22% over the past 5 years, which captures the average outcome inside the worst 5% of daily returns.

Is VanEck Gold Miners ETF still below its all-time high?

Current drawdown is -16.1% versus the all-time high of $115.84 reached on 2026-02-27.

Which benchmark should viewers open first for VanEck Gold Miners ETF?

S&P 500 is the default benchmark lens on Gale because it gives the cleanest context for VanEck Gold Miners ETF's recent behavior.