At the beginning of 2011, the S&P 500 Index had a value of 1282.62. At year‐end, the index value was 1300.58; thus, for 2011, the percent change was a meager 1.40%. Is this all that equity investors earned during 2011? No, the index also provided a dividend yield of 2.13%, which produces a total return of 3.53% for 2011.