In the dot-com boom of the late 1990s, the Nasdaq-100 was altered to reduce the weighting of some tech giants. The move allowed the Nasdaq-100 to meet ETF diversification rules.
During the late 1990s, Microsoft grew to around 24% of the index and Intel accounted for roughly 15%. In December 1998, the first special rebalance of the index occurred to lower the weights of these and other names, said Nasdaq spokesman Wayne Lee in an email.
Apple shares rose 1.3% to $516 in Wednesday’s premarket trade.
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Full disclosure: Tom Lydon’s clients own AAPL.