Indices & ETFs

Indices

Indices or equally indexes are used in finance to compare the performance of a group of investments overtime. The group of investments is typical a related category such as the 100 largest companies or companies that are in a specific industry such as communication services.

A stock index is a tool that measures the performance of a group of stocks in a particular market or industry. The group of stocks in an index are chosen to represent a particular market or industry, and their collective performance is used to measure the overall health of that market or industry.

See detailed explanations of the below indices:

• The Dow Jones Industrial Average
• The Wilshire 5000 Total Market Index

Index Ticker Symbols

Toga Times frequently references financial data in the Week in Numbers report on major US Stock Indices and S&P 500 Sector Indices. The below is a list of official Exchange Traded Funds (ETF)s ticker symbols by index.

An ETF is traded just like a stock but its performance aims to match that of a specific portfolio or investment, such as the performance of an index like in the below list. For example DIA is an ETF that aims to match the performance of the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) index and is easily traded like any other stock. ETFs have extremely low fees unlike mutual funds and have significantly more investment freedom as investors can trade them just like any individual stock.