Cohen & Steers REIT and Preferred and Income Fund, Inc. (RNP) is a ETF from Cohen & Steers Funds and State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) is a ETF from State Street Investment Management. Over the past year RNP returned +0.62% while SPY returned +21.37%. Year to date, RNP is up 7.58% versus a gain of 11.49% for SPY.

Over three years, RNP compounded at +10.42% per year against +20.76% for SPY; over five years the annualized figures are +3.34% and +12.94% respectively. Across the full 23-year window we track, SPY has the edge at +8.78% annualized vs +1.11%. Past performance does not guarantee future results.

RNP has been the more volatile fund, with annualized monthly volatility of 27.4% compared with 15.3% for SPY. Lower volatility generally means a smoother ride, though it often comes with lower long-run returns.

The deepest peak-to-trough decline in our data was -90.8% for RNP and -56.5% for SPY. Drawdown depth is worth weighing if you expect to sell during market stress rather than ride it out.

The two funds' monthly returns correlate at 0.70. They usually move together, but the gap leaves some room for diversification.

RNP charges 1.78% per year while SPY charges 0.09%. On a $10,000 position that is $178 vs $9 annually, a gap of $169 per year that compounds over a long holding period. On income, RNP currently yields 7.44% against 1.01% for SPY.