Tag Archives: IIS
The Importance of Order
We all know that stock market returns vary substantially over time. For example, the S&P 500®’s performance between 1981 and 2020 ranged from -37% (2008) to +38% (1995). The market’s compound annual return for this period was 11.5%. Investors, however, live with actual portfolio values, not abstract rates of return. Obviously, and other things equal,…
- Categories S&P 500 & DJIA
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- S&P 500 & DJIA
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Chugging Along
In the last three months, the Canadian equity market climbed another three percentage points, bringing the S&P/TSX Composite Index up to an impressive 20.4% YTD through Sept. 16, 2021. In a strong bull market environment, low volatility indices are expected to lag—and they typically have. But overall, the S&P/TSX Composite Low Volatility Index has held…
- Categories Factors
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Headwinds on the Active Horizon
Active managers’ performance was disappointing in 2020, despite the market’s heightened volatility. As the market continues to march upward in 2021, it’s natural to wonder if current conditions are favorable for stock pickers. We expect active managers’ difficulties to persist. We can think of volatility in terms of its components: dispersion and correlation. Active managers…
- Categories S&P 500 & DJIA
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Stalwarts Continue to Increase Presence in the S&P 500 Low Volatility Index
If the equity market’s report card so far in 2021 is any indication, it’s on track to be another stellar year. Through Aug. 19, 2021, the S&P 500® is up 17%. The gains were achieved steadily; apart from January, the benchmark has been up every month in 2021. Predictably, in such an environment the S&P…
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Strength of Savings
In the 20 years ending in 2020, 94% of all large-cap U.S. managers lagged the S&P 500®. Mid- and small-cap results were almost equally disappointing. A notable consequence of these shortfalls in active performance has been the rise in passive investing, one of the most significant trends in modern financial history. Our recent Annual Survey…
- Categories Equities
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U.K. Small Caps: Mind the Gap!
A gap between the 12-month performances of the S&P United Kingdom SmallCap and S&P United Kingdom SmallCap Select Index hints at a “junk rally” in U.K. stocks, but the longer-term data suggests that those looking to participate in an ongoing recovery in the world’s fourth-largest economy might be wise to maintain a selective approach. As…
- Categories Equities, Factors
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2021, Index Construction, index investment strategy, investability, liquidity, profitability, S&P United Kingdom, S&P United Kingdom BMI, S&P United Kingdom SmallCap, S&P United Kingdom SmallCap Select, S&P United Kingdom SmallCap Select Index, Sherifa Issifu, size, small caps, smallcap, Smallcap Select, UK, UK equities, United Kingdom
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- 2021, Index Construction, index investment strategy, investability, liquidity, profitability, S&P United Kingdom, S&P United Kingdom BMI, S&P United Kingdom SmallCap, S&P United Kingdom SmallCap Select, S&P United Kingdom SmallCap Select Index, Sherifa Issifu, size, small caps, smallcap, Smallcap Select, UK, UK equities, United Kingdom
The Good Days of Yesteryear
With the S&P/TSX Composite Index up 16% YTD through June 17, 2021, the Canadian equity market seems to have put the pandemic in the rearview mirror. In this environment, predictably, the S&P/TSX Composite Low Volatility Index underperformed, up 11% over the same period. One-year volatility levels (no longer capturing the uncontrolled panic at the onset…
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Valuing Equal Weight
We have previously discussed the impact of Equal Weight’s rebound on its exposure to the momentum factor. We now turn our attention to its exposure to the value factor, as the recovery in smaller caps and value stocks has been an important tailwind for the strategy. The S&P 500® Equal Weight is typically biased toward…
A Return to Normalcy?
The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic a year ago produced the highest-ever monthly volatility reading for the S&P 500® in March 2020. Volatility began to decline as the market’s recovery began, but if we measure volatility on a 12-month trailing basis, as we do in Exhibit 1, we see the sustained impact of last year’s…
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Concentrating on Technology
After the dominant performance of large-cap technology stocks in 2020, concentration concerns naturally come to mind. The HHI, or Herfindahl-Hirschman Index, is a widely-used concentration measure; it’s defined as the sum of the squared index constituents’ percentage weights (usually taken as whole numbers). For example, the HHI for an equally-weighted 50 stock portfolio is 200…