Investing with Exchange-Traded Funds Made Easy: A Start-to-Finish Plan to Reduce Costs and Achieve Higher Returns, Second Edition

Chapter 8. When to Live Large: An Asset Allocation Model for Small- versus Large-Cap ETFs

The 1998 to 2005 period witnessed huge discrepancies between the performance of large and small-cap stocks.^[1] In 1998, for example, large-cap stocks (Russell 1000 Index) gained 27 percent, whereas small-caps (Russell 2000 Index) lost 3 percent. However, starting at the end of 1998 and continuing through the first quarter of 2006, the tables turned. During this latter period, large-cap stocks have gained 23 percent, whereas small-caps nearly doubled. (The total return of the Russell 2000 Index was 99 percent from 1/1/1999 to 3/31/2006.) This example is historically extreme but not unique. There have been great rewards for investors who have made good decisions ...