AAPL vs ANET: Backtested Momentum Signals Across 14 Years
How did Apple Inc. (AAPL) and Arista Networks (ANET) fare under JumpstartSignal's 5-stage screening pipeline across our full 2012–2025 walk-forward backtest? We flagged AAPL 8 times (16 signal days, first signal in 2012) and ANET 15 times (33 signal days, first signal in 2016). Every entry price, return, and SPY comparison below is from the frozen backtest snapshot.
Head-to-Head Stats
AAPL 🏆 SPOTLIGHT Apple Inc. · Technology
ANET 🏆 SPOTLIGHT Arista Networks · Technology
Per-Signal Returns
Each bar below shows the best return from one signal cluster, held from the entry date through Feb 1, 2026. The SPY return over the same period is shown alongside each entry, alpha is the gap between the two.
AAPL Signal Clusters
| Entry Date | Entry Price | Return | SPY Return | Alpha vs SPY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 4, 2012 | $12.40 | +1993% | +588% | +1405% |
| Mar 25, 2014 | $17.01 | +1426% | +350% | +1075% |
| Feb 5, 2015 | $26.69 | +872% | +301% | +571% |
| Apr 28, 2015 | $28.63 | +806% | +291% | +516% |
| May 1, 2017 | $33.93 | +665% | +231% | +434% |
| Nov 1, 2017 | $38.94 | +566% | +203% | +363% |
| May 14, 2018 | $44.01 | +490% | +186% | +304% |
| Jul 24, 2018 | $45.09 | +476% | +174% | +302% |
ANET Signal Clusters
| Entry Date | Entry Price | Return | SPY Return | Alpha vs SPY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 10, 2016 | $5.37 | +2540% | +267% | +2272% |
| Aug 4, 2017 | $10.75 | +1218% | +217% | +1001% |
| Oct 31, 2017 | $12.49 | +1035% | +204% | +831% |
| Jan 8, 2018 | $15.69 | +803% | +184% | +620% |
| Feb 14, 2018 | $18.88 | +651% | +188% | +462% |
| May 11, 2021 | $20.42 | +594% | +77% | +517% |
| Oct 19, 2021 | $24.13 | +487% | +60% | +428% |
| Dec 17, 2021 | $33.76 | +320% | +58% | +262% |
| Mar 25, 2022 | $34.55 | +310% | +58% | +253% |
| Jun 13, 2023 | $40.87 | +247% | +61% | +186% |
| Aug 31, 2023 | $48.81 | +190% | +57% | +133% |
| Nov 1, 2023 | $52.71 | +169% | +67% | +102% |
| Feb 9, 2024 | $70.61 | +101% | +40% | +60% |
| May 20, 2024 | $75.36 | +88% | +33% | +55% |
| Aug 30, 2024 | $88.34 | +60% | +24% | +36% |
What This Teaches
Signal frequency is not opinion; it's the pipeline firing or not firing against the same rules. Over the 2012–2025 window, ANET triggered entries 15× versus 8× for AAPL. The lesson here isn't that one company is better than the other; it's that the template is tuned for a specific kind of setup and this pair shows which stock's price behaviour kept offering that setup.
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FAQ
Is AAPL or ANET a better momentum stock?
In our 14-year backtest, AAPL had an average alpha of +621% per signal versus +481% for ANET. AAPL produced 8 SPOTLIGHT or OPPORTUNITY buy-signal clusters vs 15 SPOTLIGHT or OPPORTUNITY buy-signal clusters for ANET.
When did JumpstartSignal first flag AAPL?
Jan 4, 2012 at an entry price of $12.40 (SPOTLIGHT or OPPORTUNITY buy signal). That signal has returned +1993% held to the snapshot date, versus +588% for SPY over the same period.
When did JumpstartSignal first flag ANET?
Nov 10, 2016 at an entry price of $5.37 (SPOTLIGHT or OPPORTUNITY buy signal). That signal has returned +2540% held to the snapshot date, versus +267% for SPY.
Does this mean one stock is a buy and the other isn't?
No. Historical signal frequency and past returns are not buy recommendations. Our pipeline identifies entries that would have matched the template historically. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Use these pages as methodology research, not investment advice.
Where does the underlying data come from?
All entries on this page come from the R27 walk-forward validated backtest covering 2012–2025 (the 'seo_active' snapshot in our golden archive). Entry prices, returns, and SPY comparisons are computed from Stooq end-of-day OHLCV and frozen at snapshot time. See our methodology for details.