Paul Farrell Second Grader's Starter Portfolio vs Merrill Lynch Edge Select Aggressive Portfolio Portfolio Comparison

Simulation Settings

Period: January 1985 - February 2026 (~41 years)
Consolidated Returns as of 28 February 2026

Initial Amount: 1$

Rebalancing: at every Jan 1^st

Currency: USD

Inflation: US

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Results

30 Years
(1996/03 - 2026/02)

All Data
(1985/01 - 2026/02)

Inflation Adjusted:

Paul Farrell Second Grader's Starter Portfolio

1.00$
Invested Capital
March 1996
11.97$
Final Capital
February 2026
8.63%
Yearly Return
13.91%
Std Deviation
-48.52%
Max Drawdown
59months
Recovery Period

1.00$
Invested Capital
March 1996
5.68$
Final Capital
February 2026
5.96%
Yearly Return
13.91%
Std Deviation
-49.37%
Max Drawdown
66months
Recovery Period

1.00$
Invested Capital
January 1985
58.47$
Final Capital
February 2026
10.39%
Yearly Return
13.53%
Std Deviation
-48.52%
Max Drawdown
59months
Recovery Period

1.00$
Invested Capital
January 1985
18.88$
Final Capital
February 2026
7.40%
Yearly Return
13.53%
Std Deviation
-49.37%
Max Drawdown
66months
Recovery Period

Merrill Lynch Edge Select Aggressive Portfolio

1.00$
Invested Capital
March 1996
12.31$
Final Capital
February 2026
8.73%
Yearly Return
13.27%
Std Deviation
-45.65%
Max Drawdown
41months
Recovery Period

1.00$
Invested Capital
March 1996
5.84$
Final Capital
February 2026
6.06%
Yearly Return
13.27%
Std Deviation
-46.54%
Max Drawdown
63months
Recovery Period

1.00$
Invested Capital
January 1985
68.80$
Final Capital
February 2026
10.83%
Yearly Return
13.17%
Std Deviation
-45.65%
Max Drawdown
41months
Recovery Period

1.00$
Invested Capital
January 1985
22.22$
Final Capital
February 2026
7.82%
Yearly Return
13.17%
Std Deviation
-46.54%
Max Drawdown
63months
Recovery Period

As of February 2026, in the previous 30 Years, the Paul Farrell Second Grader's Starter Portfolio obtained a 8.63% compound annual return, with a 13.91% standard deviation. It suffered a maximum drawdown of -48.52% that required 59 months to be recovered.

As of February 2026, in the previous 30 Years, the Merrill Lynch Edge Select Aggressive Portfolio obtained a 8.73% compound annual return, with a 13.27% standard deviation. It suffered a maximum drawdown of -45.65% that required 41 months to be recovered.

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Disclaimer: The simulations on this website are provided in good faith but should NOT be taken as investment advice. We are not liable for any errors or actions based on this information. The authors of the website are not affiliated with the portfolio creators, who are the sole owners of their intellectual property. The translation of asset allocations into ETFs is based on the interpretation of LazyPortfolioETF.com and may not exactly reflect the original intent of the portfolio creators. Content is for informational, educational, illustrative, and entertainment purposes only.

Resources & Extras

Asset Allocations and ETFs

The compared portfolios have the following asset allocations.

Paul Farrell Second Grader's Starter Portfolio

Weight (%)	Ticker	Name
60.00	VTI	Vanguard Total Stock Market
30.00	VEU	Vanguard FTSE All-World ex-US
10.00	BND	Vanguard Total Bond Market

Merrill Lynch Edge Select Aggressive Portfolio

Weight (%)	Ticker	Name
29.00	VUG	Vanguard Growth
21.00	VEU	Vanguard FTSE All-World ex-US
19.00	VTV	Vanguard Value
9.00	EEM	iShares MSCI Emerging Markets
3.00	IJS	iShares S&P Small-Cap 600 Value
3.00	IJT	iShares S&P Small-Cap 600 Growth
5.00	IEI	iShares 3-7 Year Treasury Bond
4.00	LQD	iShares Investment Grade Corporate Bond
3.00	MBB	iShares MBS
2.00	BIL	SPDR Blmbg Barclays 1-3 Mth T-Bill
1.00	BNDX	Vanguard Total International Bond
1.00	HYG	iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond

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Portfolio Returns as of Feb 28, 2026

Returns are calculated in USD, assuming:

no fees or capital gain taxes.
rebalancing: at every Jan 1^st.
dividend reinvestment, when applicable.

Return Comparison

Capital Growth

30 Years
(1996/03 - 2026/02)

All Data
(1985/01 - 2026/02)

Inflation Adjusted:

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	Initial Amount $	Final Amount $	Total Return (%)	Annualized (%)
Second Grader's Starter Paul Farrell	1 $	11.97 $	1 097.02%	8.63%
Edge Select Aggressive Merrill Lynch	1 $	12.31 $	1 131.25%	8.73%
	Mar 1996	Feb 2026

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	Initial Amount $	Final Amount $	Total Return (%)	Annualized (%)
Second Grader's Starter Paul Farrell	1 $	5.68 $	467.96%	5.96%
Edge Select Aggressive Merrill Lynch	1 $	5.84 $	484.21%	6.06%
	Mar 1996	Feb 2026

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	Initial Amount $	Final Amount $	Total Return (%)	Annualized (%)
Second Grader's Starter Paul Farrell	1 $	58.47 $	5 747.22%	10.39%
Edge Select Aggressive Merrill Lynch	1 $	68.80 $	6 780.28%	10.83%
	Jan 1985	Feb 2026

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	Initial Amount $	Final Amount $	Total Return (%)	Annualized (%)
Second Grader's Starter Paul Farrell	1 $	18.88 $	1 788.39%	7.40%
Edge Select Aggressive Merrill Lynch	1 $	22.22 $	2 122.02%	7.82%
	Jan 1985	Feb 2026

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		Return (%) as of Feb 28, 2026
		YTD (2M)	1M	6M	1Y	5Y	10Y	30Y	MAX (~41Y)
	Second Grader's Starter Paul Farrell	4.18	1.47	10.84	22.53	10.84	12.58	8.63	10.39
	Edge Select Aggressive Merrill Lynch	4.39	1.55	10.96	22.27	10.23	12.25	8.73	10.83
Returns over 1 year are annualized.

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Portfolio Metrics as of Feb 28, 2026

The following metrics, updated as of 28 February 2026, provide an overview of performance and risk, with the best value in each row highlighted within the table.

METRIC COMPARISON

Period: 1 March 2025 - 28 February 2026 (1 year)

Period: 1 March 2021 - 28 February 2026 (5 years)

Period: 1 March 2016 - 28 February 2026 (10 years)

Period: 1 March 1996 - 28 February 2026 (30 years)

Period: 1 January 1985 - 28 February 2026 (~41 years)

1 Year

5 Years

10 Years

30 Years

All (1985/01 - 2026/02)

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	Second Grader's Starter	Edge Select Aggressive
Author	Paul Farrell	Merrill Lynch
ASSET ALLOCATION
Stocks	90%	84%
Fixed Income	10%	16%
Commodities	0%	0%
PERFORMANCES
Annualized Return (%)	22.53	22.27
Infl. Adjusted (%)	19.98	19.72
DRAWDOWN
Deepest Drawdown Depth (%)	-3.34	-3.02
Start to Recovery (months)	3	3
Longest Drawdown Depth (%)	-3.34	-3.02
Start to Recovery (months)	3	3
Longest Negative Period (months)	2	2
RISK INDICATORS
Standard Deviation (%)	7.24	7.03
Sharpe Ratio	2.55	2.59
Sortino Ratio	3.35	3.43
Ulcer Index	1.22	1.13
Ratio: Return / Standard Deviation	3.11	3.17
Ratio: Return / Deepest Drawdown	6.76	7.38
Metrics calculated over the period 1 March 2025 - 28 February 2026

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	Second Grader's Starter	Edge Select Aggressive
Author	Paul Farrell	Merrill Lynch
ASSET ALLOCATION
Stocks	90%	84%
Fixed Income	10%	16%
Commodities	0%	0%
PERFORMANCES
Annualized Return (%)	10.84	10.23
Infl. Adjusted (%)	6.19	5.60
DRAWDOWN
Deepest Drawdown Depth (%)	-24.21	-23.81
Start to Recovery (months)	26	26
Longest Drawdown Depth (%)	-24.21	-23.81
Start to Recovery (months)	26	26
Longest Negative Period (months)	31	32
RISK INDICATORS
Standard Deviation (%)	13.13	12.51
Sharpe Ratio	0.58	0.56
Sortino Ratio	0.76	0.74
Ulcer Index	8.09	7.99
Ratio: Return / Standard Deviation	0.83	0.82
Ratio: Return / Deepest Drawdown	0.45	0.43
Metrics calculated over the period 1 March 2021 - 28 February 2026

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	Second Grader's Starter	Edge Select Aggressive
Author	Paul Farrell	Merrill Lynch
ASSET ALLOCATION
Stocks	90%	84%
Fixed Income	10%	16%
Commodities	0%	0%
PERFORMANCES
Annualized Return (%)	12.58	12.25
Infl. Adjusted (%)	9.04	8.72
DRAWDOWN
Deepest Drawdown Depth (%)	-24.21	-23.81
Start to Recovery (months)	26	26
Longest Drawdown Depth (%)	-24.21	-23.81
Start to Recovery (months)	26	26
Longest Negative Period (months)	31	32
RISK INDICATORS
Standard Deviation (%)	13.26	12.57
Sharpe Ratio	0.79	0.81
Sortino Ratio	1.03	1.06
Ulcer Index	6.45	6.29
Ratio: Return / Standard Deviation	0.95	0.97
Ratio: Return / Deepest Drawdown	0.52	0.51
Metrics calculated over the period 1 March 2016 - 28 February 2026

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	Second Grader's Starter	Edge Select Aggressive
Author	Paul Farrell	Merrill Lynch
ASSET ALLOCATION
Stocks	90%	84%
Fixed Income	10%	16%
Commodities	0%	0%
PERFORMANCES
Annualized Return (%)	8.63	8.73
Infl. Adjusted (%)	5.96	6.06
DRAWDOWN
Deepest Drawdown Depth (%)	-48.52	-45.65
Start to Recovery (months)	59	41
Longest Drawdown Depth (%)	-39.03	-33.96
Start to Recovery (months)	64	56
Longest Negative Period (months)	131	118
RISK INDICATORS
Standard Deviation (%)	13.91	13.27
Sharpe Ratio	0.46	0.49
Sortino Ratio	0.60	0.64
Ulcer Index	12.78	11.10
Ratio: Return / Standard Deviation	0.62	0.66
Ratio: Return / Deepest Drawdown	0.18	0.19
Metrics calculated over the period 1 March 1996 - 28 February 2026

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	Second Grader's Starter	Edge Select Aggressive
Author	Paul Farrell	Merrill Lynch
ASSET ALLOCATION
Stocks	90%	84%
Fixed Income	10%	16%
Commodities	0%	0%
PERFORMANCES
Annualized Return (%)	10.39	10.83
Infl. Adjusted (%)	7.40	7.82
DRAWDOWN
Deepest Drawdown Depth (%)	-48.52	-45.65
Start to Recovery (months)	59	41
Longest Drawdown Depth (%)	-39.03	-33.96
Start to Recovery (months)	64	56
Longest Negative Period (months)	131	118
RISK INDICATORS
Standard Deviation (%)	13.53	13.17
Sharpe Ratio	0.53	0.58
Sortino Ratio	0.70	0.76
Ulcer Index	11.23	9.86
Ratio: Return / Standard Deviation	0.77	0.82
Ratio: Return / Deepest Drawdown	0.21	0.24
Metrics calculated over the period 1 January 1985 - 28 February 2026

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Drawdowns

A drawdown refers to the decline in value from a relative peak value to a relative trough. A maximum drawdown is the maximum observed loss from a peak to a trough of a portfolio before a new peak is attained.

DRAWDOWN COMPARISON

Period: 1 March 1996 - 28 February 2026 (30 years)

Period: 1 January 1985 - 28 February 2026 (~41 years)

30 Years
(1996/03 - 2026/02)

Chart Table

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Second Grader's Starter			Edge Select Aggressive
Drawdown (%)	Recovery (#Months)	From To	Drawdown (%)	Recovery (#Months)	From To
-48.52	59	Nov 2007 Sep 2012
			-45.65	41	Nov 2007 Mar 2011
-39.03	64	Apr 2000 Jul 2005
			-33.96	56	Apr 2000 Nov 2004
-24.21	26	Jan 2022 Feb 2024
			-23.81	26	Jan 2022 Feb 2024
-19.32	8	Jan 2020 Aug 2020
			-17.64	7	Jan 2020 Jul 2020
			-16.85	11	May 2011 Mar 2012
-14.32	5	Jul 1998 Nov 1998
			-13.97	7	May 1998 Nov 1998
-11.99	7	Oct 2018 Apr 2019
			-11.27	7	Oct 2018 Apr 2019
-10.88	14	Jun 2015 Jul 2016
			-10.51	14	Jun 2015 Jul 2016

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Second Grader's Starter			Edge Select Aggressive
Drawdown (%)	Recovery (#Months)	From To	Drawdown (%)	Recovery (#Months)	From To
-48.52	59	Nov 2007 Sep 2012
			-45.65	41	Nov 2007 Mar 2011
-39.03	64	Apr 2000 Jul 2005
			-33.96	56	Apr 2000 Nov 2004
-24.21	26	Jan 2022 Feb 2024
			-23.81	26	Jan 2022 Feb 2024
			-22.86	17	Sep 1987 Jan 1989
-21.75	17	Sep 1987 Jan 1989
-19.32	8	Jan 2020 Aug 2020
			-17.64	7	Jan 2020 Jul 2020
-16.95	14	Jan 1990 Feb 1991
			-16.85	11	May 2011 Mar 2012
			-15.96	7	Aug 1990 Feb 1991
-14.32	5	Jul 1998 Nov 1998
			-13.97	7	May 1998 Nov 1998

Rolling Returns

By selecting the 'Rolling Period', the chart and data will update. To study a different date range, change the Simulation Settings.

You can explore the Rolling Returns for a single portfolio, or check the return differential, by switching on "Head To Head" toggle.

Rolling Returns Comparison

Annualized Rolling Returns Chart

Rolling Returns Chart - Inflation Adjusted

Time Period: 1 January 1985 - 28 February 2026 (~41 years)

Rolling Period:

Second Grader's Starter
Edge Select Aggressive

Head To Head (Ptf 1 vs Ptf 2):

US Inflation Adjusted:

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Yearly Returns

For each year, the following table provides the return and intra-year drawdown. The highlighted returns represent the highest values for that specific year.

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	Second Grader's Starter		Edge Select Aggressive
Year	Return (%)	Drawdown (%)	Return (%)	Drawdown (%)
2026	4.18	0.00	4.39	0.00
2025	20.67	-3.62	19.85	-3.25
2024	16.09	-3.63	15.15	-3.19
2023	20.93	-9.14	21.47	-8.85
2022	-17.70	-24.21	-17.87	-23.81
2021	17.70	-3.84	15.74	-3.70
2020	16.72	-19.32	17.62	-17.64
2019	25.83	-5.44	24.61	-5.32
2018	-7.40	-11.99	-6.88	-11.27
2017	21.30	0.00	21.70	0.00
2016	9.42	-5.60	9.21	-4.97
2015	-1.16	-9.62	-1.81	-9.34
2014	6.75	-3.49	6.27	-3.59
2013	24.11	-2.56	20.62	-2.29
2012	15.86	-7.88	15.28	-7.41
2011	-2.83	-17.88	-2.72	-16.85
2010	14.62	-11.38	14.37	-10.38
2009	28.98	-17.20	30.72	-15.46
2008	-34.54	-37.04	-32.45	-35.23
2007	8.57	-5.03	10.67	-4.82
2006	17.83	-3.36	16.89	-3.81
2005	8.70	-3.82	9.86	-4.16
2004	14.35	-3.09	13.59	-3.69
2003	30.95	-4.37	30.43	-3.69
2002	-15.98	-22.25	-14.01	-20.65
2001	-11.78	-21.62	-9.00	-19.93
2000	-9.89	-14.07	-8.67	-12.07
1999	23.19	-3.08	23.19	-2.88
1998	19.50	-14.32	18.05	-13.97
1997	19.31	-4.84	17.27	-6.20
1996	14.34	-4.50	15.00	-3.98
1995	24.48	-1.28	23.68	-0.91
1994	2.56	-5.09	0.50	-7.08
1993	16.32	-4.22	21.88	-3.14
1992	1.74	-4.65	3.09	-3.48
1991	23.80	-4.67	34.86	-4.62
1990	-10.22	-16.95	-6.03	-15.96
1989	22.09	-2.57	30.19	-2.36
1988	18.82	-3.47	18.97	-3.56
1987	10.87	-21.75	4.52	-22.86
1986	29.27	-5.18	25.81	-5.82
1985	36.18	-2.85	34.45	-2.58

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Table of contents

Resources & Extras

Asset Allocations and ETFs

Portfolio Returns as of Feb 28, 2026

Portfolio Metrics as of Feb 28, 2026

Drawdowns

Rolling Returns

Yearly Returns