Stock market Returns

What kind of returns might you expect in the stock market? One way to measure how the stock market has performed is to examine the rate of return of the S&P 500 Index. To see historical prices of the S&P 500 Index, go to Yahoo! Finance and click on the "S&P" link on the top left-hand side. Then click "Historical Prices" on the menu., select "Monthly" prices, and click the "Apply" button.

Required: Compute the 1-year, 3-year, and 5-year returns over time. Include the results of your calculations in the discussion. What do you conclude about the returns during each of these periods? For a bonus, calculate the returns for the same periods for the Dow Jones Average and NASDAQ. Do you see yourself being an investor in the stock market? Why or why not?