Equal weight vs cap weight today
Does the typical stock keep up with the largest companies?
Close of Friday 6 November 2026 · updated every trading day
Where is it now?
How well does the typical stock keep up with the largest?
Better than usual
High · higher than in 8 of 10 months since 2006
What is it?
This gap compares two baskets of the same 500 largest US companies. In one, each company counts the same. In the other, each company counts by its size. When the gap is below zero, the largest companies did better than the typical one.
How we measure it
We take the 500 largest US companies by market value at the start of each month. In one basket each company counts the same. In the other, each company counts by its size. The gap is the return of the first basket minus the return of the second, with dividends.
Over 5 years, per year: −3.4 pts
Why it is high now
AI-writtenWritten for the close of Wednesday 4 November 2026AI writes this text each trading day from our own figures for this page. We check every number against those figures before we show the text. It gives facts only. It is not advice.
The gap is 3.3 percentage points, a High level. The average company gained 14.8% over 1 year, against 11.6% for the cap-weighted index. Falls at large companies like Alphabet, Broadcom and Oracle held back the cap-weighted index. Big gains at small companies like Sandisk lifted the equal-weight average.
What changed?
AI-writtenWritten for the close of Wednesday 4 November 2026AI writes this text each trading day from our own figures for this page. We check every number against those figures before we show the text. It gives facts only. It is not advice.
The gap eased from 3.5 a month ago, and it rose by 11.3 points from -8 a year ago.
HistoryEach point is one month. The dot is today. Labels mark well-known moments in the market.
The 1-year gap since 2007
What does it mean for a long-term investor?
AI-writtenWritten for the close of Wednesday 4 November 2026AI writes this text each trading day from our own figures for this page. We check every number against those figures before we show the text. It gives facts only. It is not advice.
A cap-weighted index gives big companies more weight. An equal-weight average counts each company the same. A positive gap means gains spread beyond the largest names. One indicator alone does not time the market.
What does it not tell you?
The gap does not tell you which basket does better next. A narrow market can stay narrow for years. The gap also does not show if the largest companies are priced high or low.