How To Calculate Standard Deviation Of Stock Returns In Excel. As the following screenshot shows, the result is the same as before, a standard deviation of 10.25%. Using excel we calculate some basic stock porfolio characteristics (return, alpha, beta, and standard deviation).
In calculating the standard deviation of the stock, you get the square root of the variance, which returns the value back to its original form, making the data much easier to apply and evaluate. Prior to the calculation of standard deviation in excel, we need to calculate the sum & mean (average) values for the datasets. 2) take the natural log of (p1/po) 3) calculate average of the sample.