The stock market barometer that\u2019s most followed by investors is the Standard & Poor\u2019s 500 Index (SPX), or for short, the S&P 500. Launched in 1957 by rating agency Standard and Poor\u2019s, the index is comprised of a \u201cbasket\u201d of 500 U.S.-traded public companies with a market capitalization of at least US$ 12.7 billion. The index includes familiar names like Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, Alphabet (Google) and Meta (Facebook). Each of the 11 primary sectors is assigned a \u201cweighting\u201d with the Information Technology sector having the largest at roughly 28%, followed by Healthcare (14%), Financials (12%), and Consumer Discretionary (10%). The smallest of the 11 sectors, with each weighted at under 3%, include Utilities, Real Estate and Materials.<\/p>\n
Follow us on: LinkedIn<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n By Charles Marleau CIM\u00ae<\/sup> and William Mitchell CIM\u00ae<\/sup><\/p>\n