IBM’s worst drop since 1999 was 59%
IBM (IBM) fell 59% from Jul 1999 to Oct 2002. It took 8.8 years from that peak to close at a new high, in May 2008. Over the same years the S&P 500 fell as much as 55%.
That drop is milder than most. It ranks 764th of the 986 stocks PortfolioAutopsy tracks, counted from the deepest.
Drawdown from the last high, 1999 to now
How IBM held up in each crash
| Crash | Years | IBM | S&P 500 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dot-com bust | 2000–02 | −58.3% | −47.5% |
| Financial crisis | 2007–09 | −44.3% | −55.2% |
| COVID crash | 2020 | −39.0% | −33.7% |
| 2022 rate shock | 2022 | −16.7% | −24.5% |
Each number is the deepest fall from a high inside that window, using daily prices with dividends reinvested.
See how IBM behaves inside your whole mix, with the worst 12 months, loss odds and crash replays. Free, no signup, and the math runs in your browser.
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What was IBM’s maximum drawdown?
IBM’s deepest fall since 1999 was 59.3%, from its high on July 13, 1999 to its low on October 9, 2002. The figure uses daily prices with dividends reinvested.
How long did IBM take to recover?
8.8 years. IBM first closed above its Jul 1999 high again on May 14, 2008.
Was IBM riskier than the S&P 500?
Over the same years, IBM’s worst drop was 59.3% against 55.2% for the S&P 500 (SPY), and its worst 12 months were −42.9% against −47.4%.
Compare with
Daily adjusted closes from Yahoo Finance, January 5, 1999 through October 13, 2026, dividends reinvested. Historical facts, not a forecast and not investment advice.