Apex Momentum
Our best ideas, ranked by momentum. Apex Momentum holds the ten strongest names drawn from the combined conviction holdings of Core 20, Tepper Tactical, and Market Masters, rebalanced every quarter. Higher returns, a wilder ride.
All figures are backtested → · benchmark: S&P 500 TR
Growth of $10,000
Data through May 18, 2026•Log scale
Performance
LiveAll three windows use the same data source as the chart. YTD spans the most recent rebalance; the rebalance window is one holdings composition only.
Two yardsticks, on purpose. Returns on this page are measured against the S&P 500 TR, the question of whether this model was worth owning instead of the broad market. Risk and skill reads are measured against MTUM, its own sector, the question of whether the stock picking added value inside its pond. Beating the S&P justifies the allocation; beating MTUM justifies the selection.
Year by Year Returns
Annual returns through May 18, 2026 · 2026 YTD live through August 14, 2026
Annual returns vs S&P 500 TR. Green is a positive year, red is a negative one. The taller bar won that year.
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Risk and reward
Both reads below are computed from the strategy's realized return history, not from a snapshot of today's holdings. The score only moves when the strategy's real behavior changes.
Over its full record this strategy has been paid for the risk it takes relative to the S&P 500. The last 12 months have run cooler than that record. Right of center means the strategy earned more return per unit of downside than the S&P 500 over the window. The last 12 months marker is a rear view read of the strategy, not a forecast.
In its worst historical year Apex Momentum fell about -15%, and its deepest drawdown was -34.1%.
On the same scale: cash sits near 2, investment grade bonds near 18, a 60/40 mix near 45, and the S&P 500 near 72. Every portfolio we publish is a 100% equity, concentrated book, so each one is aggressive relative to a blended account. Size it to your own tolerance by blending in safer assets.
Rolling 3 year window. Above the dashed line: paid for the risk versus S&P 500. Below: not paid.
Rolling 3 year window on the same 0 to 100 scale. Risk breathes with market regimes; a snapshot score would hide that arc.
Why not just buy the momentum ETF?
Fair question. MTUM is the iShares MSCI USA Momentum Factor ETF, the standard way to own momentum as a factor. It ranks the whole large cap universe. Apex Momentum applies a similar discipline to a far smaller universe: the combined conviction holdings of our core models. Same idea, more selective inputs. Here is the head to head since MTUM launched in 2013.
The gap did not come from taking wilder swings. Over this window the deepest drawdowns were -22% for Apex Momentum and -30% for MTUM. The difference came from the inputs: ranking ten conviction names instead of several hundred index constituents. The risk worth naming: a ten stock book can trail badly when momentum concentrates somewhere our models do not own, and a factor this popular can get crowded.
Growth of $10,000, total return, 2013-04-30 through 2026-05-18, log scale. Apex Momentum is hypothetical backtested performance; MTUM and S&P 500 figures are from public market data over the same window. Past performance does not guarantee future results.
Backtested Quarterly Returns
Backtested return for each quarter, measured on the locked record's month-end grid. Closed quarters run month end to month end, so they sit within about ten days of the rebalance dates rather than exactly on them. The row marked Live is the current quarter, measured daily from the last locked date forward. Different time period than YTD, which covers Jan 1 forward and spans quarters.
| Period | Dates | Days | Portfolio | S&P 500 TR | Alpha |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Current (from Q2 2026)Live | May 18, 2026 → Aug 14, 2026 | 88 | +10.1% | +5.4% | +4.7% |
Q1 2026 | Feb 27, 2026 → May 18, 2026 | 80 | +10.6% | +7.9% | +2.7% |
Q4 2025 | Nov 28, 2025 → Feb 27, 2026 | 91 | +12.0% | +0.7% | +11.3% |
Q3 2025 | Aug 29, 2025 → Nov 28, 2025 | 91 | +10.3% | +6.3% | +4.0% |
Key Characteristics
- •The ten strongest-momentum names from across our core models
- •Rules-based selection, re-ranked and rebalanced every quarter
- •Built from the combined holdings of Core 20, Tepper Tactical, and Market Masters: our map of where institutional money is moving
- •Built to ride market leadership, not to minimize risk
- •A concentrated growth sleeve, best paired with a diversified core
Rebalance Schedule
Coming SoonApex Momentum rebalances four times a year, on the 20th to 25th of February, May, August, and November, for two reasons: the quarterly 13F window shows us where institutional money is moving, and buying on this schedule means every position is held through at least one full earnings season. We own businesses that prove themselves quarter after quarter, not trade around the proving. Pro members get the trade list by email the moment we publish.
Apex Momentum vs S&P 500
Sector weights as of 2026-05-04. Posture is one of several lenses we use to read a portfolio — never used in isolation.