The takeaway
Barings BDC Inc shows a moderate seasonal pattern over 10 years of data — strongest in August (+1.5%) and softest in March (−2.5%).
Right now
In July, the stock has risen 80% of years, averaging +1.5%, roughly 0.7 pts behind the S&P 500.
The full picture
Barings BDC Inc's most dependable month has been August, higher in 9 of 10 years; March has been its least reliable, up just 40% of the time.
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Month by month
The stock's clearest edge over the S&P 500 lands in January (+2.3 pts); it has trailed the market most in March (−3.5 pts).
“vs S&P” is Barings BDC Inc’s average for a month minus the S&P 500’s average for that same month — isolating Barings BDC Inc’s own seasonal edge from broad market drift.
Reality check
Over the last 5 years, August has closed higher 100% of the time versus 90% across the last 10 years — the pattern is holding.
Figures are the typical (median) August return and how often it rose — the last 5 years versus the last 10(the heatmap’s default window). This verdict stays anchored to that 10-year window even if you zoom the chart, so it never disagrees with the badges above.
In plain English
Strip the year back and a single month does the heavy lifting: August, up in 9 of 10 Augusts while the other eleven tend to blur together.
Its average (+1.5%) and median (+2.0%) land within a hair of each other — the tell of steady, year-after-year gains rather than one outlier doing the work. Crucially, the gain is the stock's own rather than a rising tide's: August has cleared the S&P 500 by +1.2 points above the index. That consistency sets it apart from the field, where the average stock manages August only about 52% of the time.
The strength clusters rather than stands alone — April–August forms a firm stretch that carries much of the year. The weaker half of the year is plainer: March has been the soft spot — the weakest of 5 months that average a loss (−2.5%), and the edge isn't year-round — the stock has trailed the S&P 500 in March, April, and December. Its roughest month on record was a −23.0% March in 2020 — a reminder of how hard even a seasonal name can fall.
August has now closed higher 8 years running. Reassuringly, the tendency has held its shape: the recent five years still track the years behind them.
The takeaway is less about when to buy than what to expect: August aside, the stock's months offer little reliable tilt.
Short answers on the stock's best month (August), its worst (March), and whether it really trades seasonally.
Yes, to a moderate degree. Since 2016 its best month (August, +1.5%) has run well ahead of its worst (March, −2.5%) — the heatmap above shows how steady that gap has been year to year.
August has been the strongest, averaging +1.5% and closing higher in 9 of 10 years since 2016.
It's the weakest, averaging −2.5% — historically a soft spot, though it still varies from year to year.
Explore
These names have the strongest July track records on record — a starting point for comparison.
Before you trade