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Primer on U.S. stock price indices

Author

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  • Peter Fortune

Abstract

The measurement of the \"average\" price of common stocks is a matter of widespread interest. Investors want to know how \"the market\" is doing, and to be able to compare their returns with a meaningful benchmark. Money managers often have their compensation tied to performance, typically measured by comparing their results to a benchmark portfolio, so they and their clients are interested in the benchmark portfolio's returns. And policymakers want to judge the potential for sudden adjustments in stock prices when differences from \"fundamental value emerge. ; This article discusses some of the issues in constructing and interpreting stock price indices. The author focuses on the most widely used indices: the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the Standard & Poor's 500, the Russell 2000, the NASDAQ Composite, and the Wilshire 5000. Each of these indices is intended to be a benchmark portfolio for a different segment of the universe of common stocks. He compares the movements in the five popular indices over the last two decades and examines the correlations between the returns on each of the stock price indices. His findings suggest that the Dow 30, the S&P 500, and the Wilshire 5000 are similar and capture the movements in a different segment of the market than do the NASDAQ Composite and the Russell 2000.

Suggested Citation

  • Peter Fortune, 1998. "Primer on U.S. stock price indices," New England Economic Review, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, issue Nov, pages 25-40.
  • Handle: RePEc:fip:fedbne:y:1998:i:nov:p:25-40
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Fama, Eugene F, et al, 1969. "The Adjustment of Stock Prices to New Information," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 10(1), pages 1-21, February.
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    Cited by:

    1. Cheng Jiang, 2018. "The Asymmetric Effects of Monetary Policy on Stock Market," Quarterly Journal of Finance (QJF), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 8(03), pages 1-27, September.
    2. Richard W. Kopcke & Matt Rutledge, 2004. "Stock prices and the equity premium during the recent bull and bear markets," New England Economic Review, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, pages 63-85.
    3. Peter Fortune, 1999. "Are stock returns different over weekends? a jump diffusion analysis of the \"weekend effect\"," New England Economic Review, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, issue Sep, pages 3-19.

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