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For those investors looking for a simple and economical way to invest in the index, they may want to follow Warren Buffett’s lead.
The S&P 500, the broadest measure of stocks, hit a new all-time high this month and is trading just shy of that level with gains of 26% over the past year.
S&P 500
While the Oracle of Omaha’s Berkshire Hathaway is known for investing in companies such as Coke, American Express. Apple and his newest name, Chubb, it's also owned two exchange-traded funds for years, according to quarterly 13F SEC filings, that track what is considered the broadest measure of the stock market. On average, the S&P 500 has returned about 10% annually.
Warren Buffett, chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, speaks at the Fortune's Most Powerful Women Summit in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 13, 2015. (Kevin Lamarque/File / Reuters)
The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust trades under the ticker SPY, and Vanguard’s S&P 500 ETF trades under the ticker VOO.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SPY | SPDR S&P 500 ETF TRUST - USD DIS | 585.75 | -7.60 | -1.28% |
| VOO | VANGUARD S&P 500 ETF - USD | 538.50 | -7.04 | -1.29% |
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"You can’t just buy a few shares of the S&P 500, as you would have to buy all the individual stocks and that would be costly for individual investors to perform, underscoring why ETFs are prime example of efficient democratized access to various market exposures and asset classes" Matthew Bartolini, head of Americas Research at State Street Global Advisors, told FOX Business.
In comparing SPY with the performance of the SPX, on an annualized basis as of April 30, 2024, since its Jan. 22, 1993, inception, SPY has seen 10.12%, while the S&P 500 has seen 10.26% in return before taxes.
The Vanguard Group headquarters in Malvern, Pennsylvania, on Sept. 5, 2003. (Mike Mergen/Bloomberg via / Getty Images)
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Through April 30, 2024, VOO’s return since its Sept. 7, 2010, inception is 14% per year. This compares to 14.04% per year for the S&P 500 Index.
"It’s not possible to invest directly in an index, so an index-tracking ETF like VOO offers a convenient, low-cost way for investors to gain exposure to large-cap U.S. stocks," a Vanguard spokesperson told FOX Business.
Both funds count Microsoft, Nvidia, which are trading at all-time highs, and Apple as top holdings.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSFT | MICROSOFT CORP. | 415.00 | -11.89 | -2.79% |
| AAPL | APPLE INC. | 225.00 | -3.22 | -1.41% |
| NVDA | NVIDIA CORP. | 139.82 | -2.16 | -1.52% |
While the S&P 500 is the broadest benchmark, there are also ETFs that track the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Nasdaq Composite. These indices are also trading at record levels.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I:DJI | DOW JONES AVERAGES | 43398.38 | -46.61 | -0.11% |
| SP500 | S&P 500 | 5894.88 | +24.26 | +0.41% |
| I:COMP | NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX | 18797.014019 | +116.89 | +0.63% |
Invesco's QQQ ETF is a popular tech-focused fund tracking the Nasdaq, while SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (DIA) mirrors the Dow.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| QQQ | INVESCO QQQ TRUST - USD DIS | 500.24 | +3.67 | +0.74% |
| DIA | SPDR DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE ETF TRUST - USD | 434.51 | -2.92 | -0.67% |