The invention of market cap-weighted indices has been useful for the common investor by offering a easy and environment friendly strategy to acquire publicity to fairness markets. Nevertheless, hidden beneath the floor of some market cap-weighted indices lies ranges of focus hardly ever noticed in historical past.
On this submit, we study how elevated focus ranges have traditionally impacted returns, valuations, and long-term investor outcomes — and why at present’s market dynamics could also be setting the stage for a well-recognized ending.
The US inventory market has reached its highest focus stage in additional than 50 years, with the highest 10 shares comprising a weighting of 36%. A number of issues could come up when a couple of firms dominate the market.
The focus within the prime 10 shares necessitates that efficiency will probably be closely influenced by these handful of firms. Sturdy efficiency from these shares can drive the complete market greater, whereas any vital declines could disproportionately drag the market down. This dynamic can typically masks the efficiency of the remaining 490 shares, resulting in a skewed notion of general market well being.
Whereas there’s at all times an urge to proclaim, “this time is totally different,” market historical past tells us that whereas the plot could change, the story typically ends the identical. On this submit, we make the most of the highest 500 US shares, weighted by market cap (High 500), to look at how the highest 10 shares have traditionally carried out primarily based on ranges of focus and valuations, and why market members could also be unprepared for the aftermath of present occasions.
A inventory’s placement within the prime 10 could also be short-lived and unstable or it could final for many years (Determine 1). The Seventies and Nineteen Eighties had been dominated by industrial giants and vitality firms. IBM and Exxon Mobil spent a number of many years within the prime 10. The Nineteen Eighties and Nineteen Nineties additionally noticed a couple of pharmaceutical and telecommunications shares enter and exit the highest 10. Even tobacco producer Altria made a short look within the prime 10.
By 1999, the rise of expertise/progress firms was in full swing as the burden to the highest 10 shares rose to multi-decade highs. The 1998 to 2000 Expertise/Progress Bubble was the final nice cycle of market focus previous to our present excessive ranges. The 2000s noticed a decade of sturdy efficiency by worth names as a number of vitality and monetary firms rose to the highest 10. This got here to a crashing halt through the 2008 monetary disaster. The 2010s to current noticed a resurgence of expertise or technology-related firms that elevated the extent of market focus past that of the late Nineteen Nineties and early 2000s.
Determine 1: Largest Shares Change Incessantly Decade to Decade.
Represents the highest 10 largest shares primarily based on market cap from the five hundred largest US shares. Supply: Compustat. Calculation: Hartford Fairness Modeling Platform.
Market Cap Weight vs. Earnings Contribution
The burden of the highest 10 shares is at present 37% and has elevated at a far greater charge than their earnings contribution, which at present stands at solely 28%. This has created a big hole between their earnings contribution and weight (Determine 2).
The present hole between the market cap weight and the earnings weight is without doubt one of the widest since 1970. There have been two different events of a niche near this magnitude.
- In August of 2020, a niche appeared as the biggest shares led the way in which after the Covid bear market, forward of the anticipated earnings that had been projected following the “keep at dwelling” shift in spending. On this case the burden to the highest 10 remained regular because the market continued to rally and earnings contributions caught up.
- In 2000, the burden to the highest 10 additionally remained regular and earnings contributions caught up, however on this occasion firm earnings had collapsed, and the market misplaced 49%.
It’s not possible to foretell how the present hole will probably be resolved, however the latest hole fashioned because of the weight of the highest 10 going parabolic whereas their earnings contribution has remained regular. It might take a herculean effort for earnings contribution to catch up, however it’s potential.
Determine 2: Weight to High 10 Has Elevated Whereas Earnings Contribution Has Been Regular.
Date Vary: 12/31/1964 to 12/31/2024. Represents the highest 10 shares primarily based on market cap from the biggest 500 US shares. Supply: Compustat. Calculation: Hartford Fairness Modeling Platform.
Is it potential for at present’s prime 10 shares to take care of their market management? Determine 3 is a hypothetical illustration of the expansion of every inventory within the prime 10 if their previous 10-year return is extrapolated ahead. If the final 10-years repeats itself, the highest 10 would enhance to a weight of 73%. It might be ample to say that the present efficiency trajectory of the highest 10 shares is unsustainable.
Determine 3: Present Trajectory of High 10 is Unsustainable.
High 500 primarily based on the five hundred largest US shares. Chart makes use of present weights and previous 10-year returns and applies them for 50 years into the longer term. Previous efficiency doesn’t assure future outcomes. Supply: Compustat. Calculation: Hartford Fairness Modeling Platform.
Now that it has been established that the highest 10 have reached excessive ranges of focus, we are going to take into account whether or not focus has influenced ahead returns. We divided the High 500 US shares into the highest 10 and Backside 490. Each had been equal-weighted and rebalanced month-to-month. Subsequent, we used the weights in Determine 2 and mixed them with the ahead five-year return differential between the High 10 Equal Weight and Backside 490 Equal Weight.
For the complete evaluation, the Backside 490 Equal Weight outperformed the High 10 Equal Weight in 69% of rolling five-year durations. After we divided our observations equally into thirds, the very best ranges of focus nonetheless led to Backside 490 Equal Weight outperformance.
The third of the time the market was most concentrated, the highest 10’s weight ranged from 23% to 39%. The Backside 490 Equal Weight’s ahead five-year return outperformed after 88% of these durations (Determine 4).
Within the center third of focus ranges, the Backside 490 Equal Weight outperformed 80% of the time. We noticed the reverse of this pattern within the lowest third of focus ranges.
When High 10 focus ranges stayed under roughly 19%, the Backside 490 Equal Weight outperformed 39% of the time, so there’s a time and place the place the percentages barely favor market cap-weighting.
Determine 4: When High 10 Focus is Above 23%, Backside 490 Equal Weight Has Outperformed 88% of the Time Over the Subsequent 5 Years.
Date Vary: 12/31/1964 – 12/31/2024. Previous efficiency doesn’t assure future outcomes. Based mostly on the five hundred largest US shares by market cap. High 10 Equal Weight and Backside 490 Equal Weight are equal weighted and rebalanced month-to-month. Supply: Compustat. Calculation: Hartford Fairness Modeling Platform.
Do Historic Valuations Affect Ahead Returns?
Along with focus ranges, we additionally examined historic valuations to find out in the event that they influenced ahead returns. The worth-to-earnings ratio (P/E ratio) of the High 10 Equal Weight in comparison with the Backside 490 Equal Weight is at an excessive not seen because the peak of the 2000 expertise bubble (excluding the COVID-19 interval, which affected earnings figures).
The widest valuation unfold between the High 10 Equal Weight and Backside 490 Equal Weight occurred at the start of 2000 because the expertise bubble reached most inflation. Outdoors of the expertise bubble interval, the following widest valuation spreads occurred this 12 months. Whereas valuation metrics are horrible market timing instruments within the close to time period, they’ve traditionally offered some indication of long-term efficiency.
Determine 5: High 10 Equal Weight and Backside 490 Equal Weight Historic P/E Ratios.
Date Vary: 12/31/1964 – 12/31/2024. Based mostly on the five hundred largest US shares by market cap. High 10 Equal Weight and Backside 490 Equal Weight are equal weighted and rebalanced month-to-month. Supply: Compustat. Calculation: Hartford Fairness Modeling Platform.
When evaluating historic relative valuations, primarily based on P/E ratios of the Backside 490 Equal Weight versus the High 10 Equal Weight, the present relative valuation would rank within the prime decile. Traditionally, when the Backside 490 Equal Weight has been this discounted relative to the High 10 Equal Weight, the Backside 490 Equal Weight outperformed by nearly 7% over the next 5 years, on common.
Moreover, there was just one remark the place the relative valuation was within the prime decile and the Backside 490 Equal Weight didn’t outperform over the next five-year interval.
Determine 6: Backside 490 Equal Weight is Discounted Relative to High 10 Equal Weight.
Date Vary: 12/31/1964 – 12/31/2024. Previous efficiency doesn’t assure future outcomes. Based mostly on the five hundred largest US shares by market cap. High 10 Equal Weight and Backside 490 Equal Weight are equal weighted and rebalanced month-to-month. Above 0% the Backside 490 Equal Weight outperformed, under 0% the High 10 Equal Weight outperformed. Supply: Compustat. Calculation: Hartford Fairness Modeling Platform.
Elevated focus and valuation ranges have typically preceded durations of heightened volatility and drawdowns for the biggest shares. In most of the most extreme market drawdowns, the High 10 Equal Weight has underperformed the Backside 490 Equal Weight, together with the latest bear market in 2022.
Determine 7: The Largest Shares Have Extra Volatility than Generally Perceived.
Date Vary: 12/31/1964 – 12/31/2024. Previous efficiency doesn’t assure future outcomes. Based mostly on the five hundred largest US shares by market cap. High 10 Equal Weight and Backside 490 Equal Weight are equal weighted and rebalanced month-to-month. Supply: Compustat. Calculation: Hartford Fairness Modeling Platform.
Not solely do durations of excessive focus and relative valuations result in heightened volatility, however they’ve additionally led to disappointing long-term returns generally known as “misplaced many years.” There have been a number of misplaced many years all through market historical past, with most of them occurring after durations of maximum market focus and relative valuations.
The unwinding of the focus constructed up through the Nineteen Nineties expertise/progress bubble led to a misplaced decade (Determine 8) as a result of the return of a market cap-weighted High 500 was destructive over a 10-year interval. One other misplaced decade (Determine 9) occurred after an egregious episode of market focus within the Sixties led to a 10-year interval with destructive returns for the biggest shares, however constructive returns for the center of the market. These misplaced many years demonstrated the ability of diversification because the Backside 490 Equal Weight typically outperformed the High 500.
Determine 8: Annualized Returns for the Misplaced Decade March 31st 2000 – March 31st 2010.
| High 500 | -0.99% |
| High 10 Equal Weight | -6.63% |
| Backside 490 Equal Weight | 2.55% |
| Subsequent 500 Equal Weight | 5.44% |
Date Vary: 3/31/2000 – 3/31/2010. Previous efficiency doesn’t assure future outcomes. High 10represents the biggest 10 largest shares by market cap out of the highest 500 largest US shares. High 10 is equal weighted and rebalanced month-to-month. Backside 490represents the following largest 490 shares by market cap weight out of the highest 500 largest US shares. The Backside 490 is equal weighted and rebalanced month-to-month. Subsequent 500 represents next-largest 500 US shares by market cap, after the primary 500 largest US shares. Subsequent 500 is equal weighted and rebalanced month-to-month. Supply: Compustat. Calculation: Hartford Fairness Modeling Platform.
Determine 9: Annualized Returns for the Misplaced Decade December 31st 1964 to December 31st 1974.
| High 500 | 1.24% |
| High 10 Equal Weight | -0.44% |
| Backside 490 Equal Weight | 3.09% |
Date Vary: 12/31/1964 – 12/31/1974. Previous efficiency doesn’t assure future outcomes. High 10represents the biggest 10 largest shares by market cap out of the highest 500 largest US shares. High 10 is equal weighted and rebalanced month-to-month. Backside 490represents the following largest 490 shares by market cap weight out of the highest 500 largest US shares. The Backside 490 is equal weighted and rebalanced month-to-month. Supply: Compustat. Calculation: Hartford Fairness Modeling Platform. *Subsequent 500 was excluded from evaluation attributable to lack of shares in beginning universe.
Over the past 10 years, market cap-weighted indices have dominated the funding panorama, like previous episodes of market focus within the Sixties and Nineteen Nineties. Whereas market cap-weighted indices have been useful for the common investor, are these similar buyers ready if we enter one other misplaced decade like those that transpired after previous incidents of market focus?
Market historical past reveals us the continuation of this focus will probably be tough to realize, except we will envision a world the place 10 shares make up greater than two-thirds of the market into the 2030s.
Fashionable portfolio principle has taught skilled buyers the advantages of diversification. Possibly it’s time to diversify in a extra intentional strategy to cut back excessive market focus.
Disclosure
Hartford Funds Distributors, LLC. Member FINRA. Hartford Funds could or might not be invested within the firms referenced herein; nonetheless, no explicit endorsement of any services or products is being made.
