The S&P 500, the benchmark U.S. equity index, closed above 2,000 for the first time on Tuesday, about 16 and a half years after it first touched 1,000.
With Tuesday’s gain of 0.1%, the S&P 500 is up 1.1% over the past month, not a jaw-dropping performance but one that has been enough to stoke substantial inflows to S&P 500 tracking ETFs.
Amid the run to 2,000, investor poured over $3.4 billion into the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (NYSEArca: SPY) in the week ended Aug. 25, the first day in which the S&P 500 traversed 2,000 before settling below that much ballyhooed level. SPY, the world’s largest ETF by assets, is still saddled with year-to-date, but data confirm that the S&P 500’s ascent to 2,000 is a boon for SPY and its rivals. [S&P 500 ETFs Hauling in Cash]
Over the same period, the iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (NYSEArca: IVV) and the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (NYSEArca: VOO) added a combined $574 billion. VOO and IVV are two of the top-six asset-gathering ETFs this year.
In fact, no ETF has added more new assets this year than the $5.22 billion added by VOO. During the third quarter, only the iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (NYSEArca: EEM) has gained more assets than IVV. [Big ETFs Performing Well]
Gains for the S&P 500 are not just buoying traditional cap-weighted ETFs tracking the index. The Guggenheim S&P Equal Weight ETF (NYSEArca: RSP) added $213 million for the week ended Aug. 25, or about $22 million more than was allocated to IVV. [Pay Attention to Equal-Weight S&P 500 ETF]
RSP has lived up to its reputation of outperforming the cap-weighted S&P 500 with a year-to-date gain that is 100 basis points ahead of the cap-weighted index.
Fun facts courtesy of S&P Dow Jones Indices:
- The 2000.02 close surpassed the prior record high of 1997.92 set on [August 25, 2014]
- Crossed the 2000 intra-day mark for the first time on August 25, 2014.
- 30 new record highs YTD
- 66 of the original 500 companies remain in the S&P 500 today
- S&P 500 surpassed 1000 for the first time on February 2, 1998 when it closed at 1001.27
o 225 issues remain in the S&P 500 today
SPDR S&P 500 ETF
ETF Trends editorial team contributed to this post. Tom Lydon’s clients own shares of EEM, RSP and SPY.