You guys already know about StockCharts.com, but one feature I didn’t know about was the ability to chart two stocks against each other. Another way of thinking about it is to see the price of X in terms of Y — i.e., the performance of the Dow priced in Gold.

Here’s some of the comparisons I’ve found interesting:

Silver vs. Gold (a.k.a. Silver priced in Gold): You can see that the ratio of Gold/Silver price normally stays within a certain range, but with the upside blow-off that Silver is going through right now, the ratio is spiking to a rather noticeable high.

DJX vs. Gold: Think about this as the inflation adjusted returns of the Dow Jones Index. The bull market of the last three years doesn?t seem as bullish when I look at it this way.

NDX vs. DJX: When investors are seeking risk, you can see this ratio rise as the Nasdaq outperforms the Dow. When the ratio is falling, investors are more risk-averse (the Nasdaq underperforms compared to the Dow). The recent downturn in the ratio is one argument that the market is topping. (You can do a similar comparison of the S&P, Wilshire, QQQQ, etc.)

This tool is also good to compare a mutual fund against an index or underlying commodity. For example, here are a few comparisons that I found interesting:

NEM vs. Gold ? the bellwether Newmont has been underperforming gold… it would have been better to own bullion than to buy the stock.

TAVFX vs. S&P 500 ? One of the best value mutual funds has handily outperformed the S&P for the last three years. (Use this to decide if you want to buy an index fund or TAVFX?)

TAREX vs. Dow Jones REIT Index ? The out performance of Third Avenue funds is similar in REITs.

S&P Growth vs. S&P Value ? This one honestly shocked me… I expected growth was the stronger performer in the bull market we?ve been experiencing.