Index funds are mutual funds that seek only to mirror the performance of an underlying stock market index — not to outperform ...

Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Mike Patton covers the financial markets, economy, and national debt. The S&P 500 Index is one of the oldest and most watched ...

Adam Hayes, Ph.D., CFA, is a financial writer with 15+ years Wall Street experience as a derivatives trader. Besides his extensive derivative trading expertise, Adam is an expert in economics and ...

A stock index is a way to evaluate the performance of part or all of the stock market, typically by assessing the average behavior of the stocks that make up that index. But stock indices aren't just ...

Charlene Rhinehart is a CPA , CFE, chair of an Illinois CPA Society committee, and has a degree in accounting and finance from DePaul University. Vikki Velasquez is a researcher and writer who has ...