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The S&P 500 ended 2020 with a 16.26% gain for the year and closed at a record high on Thursday, a remarkable performance after a drastic sale in February and March.
Some of the names on the broad market index have had particularly strong years, with six stocks gaining over 100%.
Main S&P 500 actions of 2020
| Ticker | Company | 2020 price return |
|---|---|---|
| TSLA | Tesla | 743.1% |
| ETSY | Etsy | 301.6% |
| NVDA | Nvidia | 121.9% |
| PYPL | PayPal | 116.5% |
| LB | L brands | 105.5% |
| ALVA | Albermarle Corp. | 102.1% |
| OMG | Advanced micro devices | 99.8% |
| FCX | Freeport-McMoRan | 98.6% |
The rise of the S&P 500 would have been even more dramatic if the first two names on the list had started the year on the index. Both electric vehicle maker Tesla and e-commerce company Etsy were added to the S&P 500 during the last four months of the year.
These actions also represent two of the main themes of the market this year, since the actions related to green energy have had strong years, as well as those like Etsy, which were well equipped for a world that stays at home.
The top eight also include two semiconductor stocks from Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices. It was a strong year for the sector in general, with the PHLX Semiconductor index growing 51%, surpassing even the high-tech Nasdaq Composite.
The S&P 500 is a weighted, highly capitalized stock market group in the United States and is the benchmark that many professional investors compare to. Many exchange-traded funds and popular mutuals are compared to the S&P 500, with more than $ 11 trillion linked or compared to the index in December 2019, according to the S&P Dow Jones Indices.
The constituents of the index are frequently mixed throughout the year by a committee of the S&P Dow Jones Indices. The organization announced on Wednesday that Enphase Energy would join the index on January 7, replacing Tiffany & Co., which is being acquired by LVMH.