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Congress purchases: does it beat the S&P 500?

The 10 stocks most bought by House members (filings over $15k) in the last 45 days, by filing date. Kept as a control: research says there is no edge here.

+20.7%/yr

Jan 2, 2020 to Oct 27, 2026, after trading costs. After a 28% tax on gains: +14.7%/yr vs +11.9%/yr for the S&P 500 (+2.8% a year). Worst drop -34%.

Verdict: Not proven

$360S&P $259

Year by year

YearStrategyS&P 500
2020+46.3%+18.2%
2021+22.2%+28.3%
2022-11.5%-18.0%
2023+22.9%+25.9%
2024+13.5%+24.7%
2025+27.0%+17.6%
2026+28.4%+13.7%

How we tested it

Trades happen the trading day after the information became public, so there's no hindsight. We charge 5 basis points per trade, cap any stock at 25%%, keep 2%% in cash, and keep companies that were later delisted or acquired. Returns include dividends. The strategy's rules were frozen before the results were known, and we report "not proven" when the edge could be luck (t-statistic below 2).

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