The Russell 2000 Index is a small-cap U.S. stock market index that makes up the smallest 2,000 stocks in the Russell Index. It was started by the Frank Russell Company in 1984. The index is maintained by FTSE Russell, a subsidiary of the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG).

Russell 2000
Index between 1978–2012
Foundation1984; 40 years ago (1984)
OperatorFTSE Russell
Exchanges
Trading symbol
  • ^RUT
  • RUT
  • RTY
Constituents1,947 (February 29, 2024)
TypeSmall-cap
Weighting methodFree-float capitalization-weighted
Related indicesRussell 3000 Index
Websiteftse.com/products/indices/russell-us

Overview

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The Russell 2000 is by far the most common benchmark for mutual funds that identify themselves as "small-cap", while the S&P 500 index is used primarily for large capitalization stocks. It is the most widely quoted measure of the overall performance of small-cap to mid-cap company shares. It is commonly considered an indicator of the U.S. economy due to its focus on small-cap companies in the U.S. market. The index represents approximately 7% of the total market capitalization of the Russell 3000 Index.[1] As of 31 December 2022, the weighted average market capitalization of a company in the index is approximately $2.76 billion and the median market capitalization is approximately $950 million. The market capitalization of the largest company in the index is approximately $8.1 billion.[2]

It first traded above the 1,000 level on May 20, 2013, and above the 2,000 level on December 23, 2020.

Similar small-cap indices include the S&P 600 from Standard & Poor's, which is less commonly used, along with those from other financial information providers.

Example Members of Russell 2000
Company Symbol
ADTRAN Holdings, Inc. ADTN
Alight, Inc. ALIT
Championx Corporation CHX
Chart Industries Inc GTLS
Denali Therapeutics, Inc. DNLI
Dorman Products, Inc. DORM
EverQuote, Inc. EVER
Fulton Financial Corp. FULT
Spok, Inc. SPOK
Tilly's, Inc. TLYS
Workiva WK

Record values

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Category All-Time Highs[3]
Closing 2,442.74 Monday, November 8, 2021
Intraday 2,458.86 Monday, November 8, 2021

Annual returns

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Year Price return Total return
1995 26.21% 28.45%
1996 14.76% 16.49%
1997 20.52% 22.36%
1998 −3.45% –2.55%
1999 19.62% 21.26%
2000 −4.20% –3.02%
2001 1.03% 2.49%
2002 −21.58% –20.48%
2003 45.37% 47.25%
2004 17.00% 18.33%
2005 3.32% 4.55%
2006 17.00% 18.37%
2007 −2.75% –1.57%
2008 −34.80% –33.79%
2009 25.22% 27.17%
2010 25.31% 26.85%
2011 −5.45% –4.18%
2012 14.63% 16.35%
2013 37.00% 38.82%
2014 3.53% 4.89%
2015 −5.71% –4.41%
2016 19.48% 21.31%
2017 13.14% 14.65%
2018 −12.18% −11.01%
2019 23.72% 25.52%
2020 18.36% 19.96%
2021 13.69% 14.82%
2022 –21.56% –20.44%
2023 15.09% 16.93%

Investing

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Many fund companies offer mutual funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that attempt to replicate the performance of the Russell 2000. Their results will be affected by stock selection, trading expenses, and market impact of reacting to changes in the constituent companies of the index. It is not possible to invest directly in an index.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Index factsheet Russell 2000 Index" (PDF). Retrieved February 23, 2024. As of January 31, 2024
  2. ^ "Russell 2000® Index Factsheet". ftserussell.com. December 31, 2022. Retrieved January 11, 2023.
  3. ^ "Russell 2000 (^RUT) Historical Data - Yahoo Finance".
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  • Russell 2000 Index Fact Sheet
  • Russell US Indexes
  • Russell Investment Group
  • Business data for Russell 2000 Index: