The NASDAQ (and technology stocks in general), are like a finely tuned sports car. They can run circles around your grandma’s Oldsmobile (the Dow), but they break down often, requiring TLC at the repair shop.

Since its foundation, and Since 2015, the NASDAQ has outperformed the Dow and the S&P 500, but it’s a tale of the hare and the tortoise.Takes a long nap with this bully rabbit from time to time – eventually winning the race, if you can overcome the volatility that often accompanies the risks inherent in technology reserves.

This brings us to the current market rotation. Since November 1, 2025, the Dow is up 4.34% while the NASDAQ is down 3.54%, mirroring each other, as We’ve seen another rotation of Red Hot Technology stock (your favorite sports car) and a return to the reliability of grandma’s Oldsmobile sedan..

Consumer discretionary stocks fell in April due to the tariff tantrum. These stocks initially went down but are now better. We rarely err on the side of trusting American consumers, especially when sentiment is temporarily low.

Consumer discretionary outperformed essential purchases (staples) last year, but they’ve been on the upswing recently:

Yes, NASDAQ can break your heart, but give it another chance.. Here’s what your reward might look like:

By the end of 2021, While the authorities were still telling us it was “temporary” and nothing to worry about, shoppers and sensible people knew better.As some of the major institutions started taking profits on their winners.

On November 19, 2021, the NASDAQ hit an all-time high of 16,057 and then fell sharply, down 36.4 percent by the end of the following year, closing at just 10,213 on December 28, 2022. Over the same 13+ months, the other two major indexes lost some, but by much less: the S&P was down about 19%, while the Dow was down just 7.65%.

Those NASDAQ tickers may have been fine by now, but If you owned a fleet of high-performance speedsters in 2022, you’re likely to be seriously injured.. Those wounds healed as 2023 reversed those losses in short order:

Over the three years, 2023-25, the NASDAQ gained 122%, while the S&P gained 78% and the Dow gained only 45%.

NASDAQ’s Biggest Disaster – The Y2K Crash

In 1999, the NASDAQ was doubling from June 1999 to March 2000, while the Dow looked like Rip Van Winkle, sleeping soundly. That all changed in March 2000, when the Dow actually rose while the NASDAQ lost 50% or more in short order. During February 2000, the NASDAQ “melted” while the Dow was down, but in mid-April the NASDAQ melted while the Dow was actually going up. NASDAQ’s Worst Week Ever.

While the NASDAQ rose 122% from its inception in 1999 to the end of February 2020, the S&P and Dow rose 16% and 17%, respectively. Then their fate changed. From March to May, the blue-chip index rose 4 percent, while the NASDAQ fell 28 percent. In one week — April 11-15 — the NASDAQ fell 25.3 percent while the Dow rose 3.4 percent.

even worse, It took 16 years for the NASDAQ to regain its mojo – March 2000 peak – while the Dow and S&P 500 briefly set new highs through 2007 and then set new all-time highs for caps through 2012. After 16 years, the Dow was flying higher, 48.6%, versus the 33.8% S&PUSDA Line for the S&PUS 500.

and, Speaking of Y2K, pay no attention to those gloomy chartists who compare 2020 to 2026.. The dot-com boom in 1999 was led by dream Internet applications with no revenue, while today’s technology leaders have phenomenal sales and revenue, with strong future guidance for real-life business applications, so Don’t miss this supercharged corner of Wall Street.. Over time — since its inception 55 years ago — the NASDAQ has run rings around the Dow and even outperformed the S&P 500 — between 2:1 and 4:1.

The NASDAQ is up nearly 260 times since its inception.increased from 89.61 at the beginning of 1971 to 23,242 at the beginning of 2026. In the same 55 years, The Dow is up just 57 times, and the S&P 500 is up 74 times.

Rest assured, NASDAQ investors. Not all those four-letter stock symbols deserve your four-letter curse.