Ivy Portfolio
Ivy Portfolio is a tactical asset allocation strategy reviewed on a monthly cadence. Its hypothetical backtest runs through 2026-08-19. BestFolio supplies the public rule or approach and backtest context; current signals, allocations, and paid interactive data remain restricted to Pro access. The recorded 2009 publication or construction boundary separates pre-publication simulation from later market observations under fixed rules; all returns remain hypothetical. Users review each scheduled signal and place any resulting trades in their own brokerage. BestFolio does not execute trades or provide personalized investment advice.
- Cadence
- Monthly
- Backtest data through
- 2026-08-19
- History boundary
- The recorded 2009 publication or construction boundary separates pre-publication simulation from later market observations under fixed rules; all returns remain hypothetical.
- Rule / approach
- 1. Equal-weight allocation: 20% each to VTI, VEU, VNQ, AGG, DBC 2. For each asset: if price > 200-day SMA → hold the 20% allocation 3. If price <= 200-day SMA → move that 20% to cash (BIL) 4. Monthly rebalance on last trading day
- BestFolio supplies
- the public rule or approach and backtest context; current signals, allocations, and paid interactive data remain restricted to Pro access
- Customer action
- Review each scheduled signal and place any required trades in your own brokerage; BestFolio does not execute orders.
- Costs and exclusions
- net of a modeled one-way transaction cost (10 bps, scaled up to 3x under stress); taxes, fund-expense drift, or market impact are not modeled
- Freshness
- The latest available backtest ends 2026-08-19. A run timestamp is not exposed here, so no stronger freshness claim is made.
- Next expected action
- First trading day of September; scheduled 2026-09-01 at 09:30 ET. Review the published signal before placing any trade.
Ivy Portfolio at a glance
Ivy Portfolio is a tactical asset allocation (TAA) strategy by Meb Faber & Eric Richardson across US Equity, International Equity, REITs, US Aggregate Bonds, rebalanced monthly. Backtested 1986-02-28 to 2026-08-19 (40.3 years): 7.5% CAGR, 1.16 Sharpe, -17.9% max drawdown, 7.1% volatility.
- Type
- Tactical (TAA)
- Author
- Meb Faber & Eric Richardson
- Rebalancing
- Monthly
- Risk
- Moderate
- Period
- 1986-02-28 to 2026-08-19
- CAGR
- 7.5%
- Sharpe
- 1.16
- Max Drawdown
- -17.9%
- Volatility
- 7.1%
Ivy Portfolio — Tactical Asset Allocation Strategy
The Ivy Portfolio, inspired by the endowment allocation strategies of Yale and Harvard as described by Meb Faber and Eric Richardson, is an equal-weight 5-asset portfolio with a trend-following overlay. Each of the five asset classes receives a 20% allocation, but if an asset is trading below its 200-day simple moving average, that 20% slice is moved to cash (BIL). This provides systematic downside protection while maintaining broad diversification across major asset classes.
Ivy Portfolio: frequently asked questions
- What is Ivy Portfolio?
- Five-asset equal-weight portfolio (US stocks, intl stocks, REITs, bonds, commodities) with a 200-day SMA trend filter. Below-trend assets shift to cash, providing systematic downside protection. Monthly rebalancing.
- Who created the Ivy Portfolio strategy?
- Ivy Portfolio was developed by Meb Faber & Eric Richardson. It is based on Faber, M. & Richardson, E. (2009). The Ivy Portfolio.
- What is the historical return and maximum drawdown of Ivy Portfolio?
- Backtested from 1986-02-28 to 2026-08-19, Ivy Portfolio returned 7.5% CAGR with a -17.9% maximum drawdown and a Sharpe ratio of 1.16. Past performance does not guarantee future results.
- How often is Ivy Portfolio rebalanced?
- Ivy Portfolio is rebalanced monthly. BestFolio publishes the updated allocation signal each period.
- Is Ivy Portfolio a tactical asset allocation strategy?
- Yes. Ivy Portfolio is a tactical asset allocation (TAA) strategy: it adjusts its holdings based on market signals each period rather than holding a fixed allocation.
Backtest Performance (1986-02-28 to 2026-08-19)
| Metric | Ivy Portfolio |
|---|---|
| CAGR | 7.5% |
| Max Drawdown | -17.9% |
| Sharpe | 1.16 |
| Sortino | 1.53 |
| Volatility | 7.1% |
| Calmar | 0.42 |
| Total Return | 1720.6% |
| Backtest Period | 40.3 years |
Strategy Details
- Type
- Tactical (TAA)
- Rebalancing
- monthly
- Risk Level
- moderate
- Variants
- 1
- Author
- Meb Faber & Eric Richardson
- Source
- Faber, M. & Richardson, E. (2009). The Ivy Portfolio
Asset Classes
- US Equity
- International Equity
- REITs
- US Aggregate Bonds
- Commodities
Categories
Further reading
New to this approach? Read what tactical asset allocation is and how it works.
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