SANTA MONICA, Calif., Jan. 6, 2000 (PRIMEZONE) -- Wilshire Associates Inc., a leader in investment management, consulting and technology services, said today that for the first time since 1993, the Wilshire 5000 Total Market Index (AMEX:^TMW), considered the broadest measure of the U.S. stock market, outperformed the widely-watched S&P 500 stock index in 1999.
Thomas Stevens, division head of Wilshire Asset Management, the investment management division of Wilshire Associates Inc., said the performance of microcap and Internet stocks, plus the inclusion of initial public offerings (IPOs) -- one of the U.S. stock market's hottest segments last year -- combined to boost the Wilshire 5000 index to its best performance since 1997 when it rose 31.29 percent.
"The key last year really was the microcaps, which rose nearly 41 percent," Stevens said. "But the blazing performance of Internet stocks and IPOs also helped make the performance so strong."
Unlike most major stock market indices, the Wilshire 5000 Total Market Index is reconstituted monthly, so IPOs are quickly added to the index.
"Most indices - the S&P 500 and Russell 3000, for example - are reconstituted once a year so newly public companies aren't quickly included," Stevens said. "But Wilshire adds new companies every month. The Wilshire 5000 has the advantage over other market measures of giving investors exposure to new companies and new industries without the volatility of directly investing in them. Mutual Funds based on the Wilshire 5000 - like the Wilshire 500 Index Portfolio - are the only way investors can participate in IPOs and new industries without having to play a high risk game."
According to data compiled by Wilshire Associates, the Wilshire 5000 rose 23.56 percent last year, compared with 20.99 percent for the S&P 500 index and 20.90 percent for the broad market Russell 3000 stock index. The last time the Wilshire 5000 beat the S&P 500 over a full year was in 1993, when it rose 11.28 percent versus a 9.99 percent gain for the S&P 500.
Within the Wilshire 5000, the microcap sector, which is comprised of the smallest companies after the first 2,500, rose 40.84 percent, according to Wilshire. In 1998, that group lost 7.43 percent.
Real-time performance information about the Wilshire 5000 is available through Wilshire Associate's Web site at www.wilshire.com.
Today, the Wilshire 5000 has a market cap of over $13 trillion and covers approximately 7,200 stocks traded on the NYSE, the AMEX and the NASDAQ with readily available pricing information. Unlike the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500, the Wilshire 5000 is a much more accurate reflection of the stock market and investors' portfolios.
In February 1999, Wilshire Associates launched the Wilshire 5000 Index Portfolio in order to provide investors with an officially sponsored mutual fund to track its Index.
Wilshire is a leader in providing investment management, investment consulting and investment technology services to a wide variety of institutional and high net worth investors worldwide. Wilshire has provided asset management, consulting and portfolio analytics to more than 400 institutional clients with assets of $1 trillion, including 20 of the largest Fortune 500 corporations. It has provided private equity services since 1984 and has advised clients in committing approximately $2 billion to private investments in the past ten years.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results. The Wilshire 5000 Total Market Index, Down Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 Index are unmanaged and are not available for direct investment. For more information about the Wilshire 5000 Index Portfolio, including fees and expenses, please obtain a prospectus by calling 1-800-200-6796.
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