ROI Since Jan 2008
PWCC 100 |
246 % |
S & P 500 |
89 % |
PWCC 100 Index representing the investment performance of professionally-graded trading cards over the past decade . Data compiled as of June 8 , 2018 .
with VintageCardPrices . com . PWCC has been collecting and tracking these figures since 2008 .
To be included in the indices , all cards must have traded a minimum of 10 times over the past 10 years , with at least two sales in the last 12 months . This means that many of the most valuable cards ( for example , the 1909 T206 Honus Wagner or 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle in grades higher than PSA 8 ) are not included because they do not meet the trade frequency requirement . The PWCC indices are dynamic , and cards are included in or omitted from the indices in compliance with the trade frequency requirement .
An outlier algorithm is triggered if a recent sale widely over- or under-performs current market averages ; subsequent sales will either validate the flagged sale for inclusion in the index or confirm its omission as an outlier .
Sales that satisfy both the trade frequency and outlier criteria are sorted by average market sales price , which is calculated as the average of the last three auction sales , to avoid inaccurate representation of volatility due to a single sale , and then segmented into the various PWCC indices .
Only auction sales are included in the indices , as private or buy-it-now retail sales do not represent a true gauge of an open supply-and-demand marketplace . All data consist of cards graded by Professional Sports Authenticator ( PSA ). These cards represent 80 % of the market population for graded trading cards and , thus , afford the greatest number of directly comparable sales .
Only grades PSA 3 and up are considered for years 1929 and prior , grades PSA 4 and up for years 1930 – 1949 , grades PSA 5 and up for years 1950 – 1960 , grades PSA 7 and up for years 1961 – 1969 , grades PSA 8 and up for years 1970 – 1979 and grades PSA 9 and up for years 1980 and after . Cards from 2000 and later are not included in the indices at this time ; however , most cards ( approximately 98 %, according to PWCC ’ s calculations ) that trade with sufficient frequency and value to be considered investment-caliber were manufactured before 1987 .
PWCC ’ s data show that investmentcaliber trading cards have continued to perform well in a variety of market conditions over the past decade , including during the Great Recession .
As of June 8 , 2018 , the S & P 500 had achieved an 89 % return on investment ( ROI ) over the past 10 years , while the PWCC Top 500 index achieved a 10-year ROI of 146 %. The PWCC Top 100 performed even better , generating a 10-year ROI of 246 % ( see Figure 1 ). The PWCC 2500 slightly underperformed the S & P 500 but still provided a very respectable 72 % ROI .
Although 10 years is not a long track record in the grand scheme of things — and , as with any investment , past performance is no guarantee of future results — the indices do show that the most valuable vintage cards have consistently outperformed stocks over the past decade .
The first stock index , the Dow Jones Industrial Average , introduced in 1896 , proved to be an extremely useful concept , enabling investors to better understand the overall movements of the stock market and providing a benchmark for investment performance . Other indices soon followed , and today there are stock indices of all shapes and sizes , both investable and benchmark-only . As trading cards transition from what was once purely a hobby into a real alternative asset class , collectors
34 FINANCIAL HISTORY | Summer 2018 | www . MoAF . org