Standard & Poor's Announces Changes to S&P 500, Other Indexes
Standard & Poor's announced Thursday it will make changes to several U.S. indexes, including the widely used S&P 500 index, which it claims is the best single gauge of large-cap U.S. equities.
The changes to the S&P 500, S&P MidCap 400 and SmallCap 600 Indexes will take effect after the close of trading on Dec. 17.
As always, some of the changes are due to acquisitions. Telecommunication company Cablevision Systems (CVC) will replace King Pharmaceuticals (KG) in the S&P 500. King is being acquired by Pfizer (PFE).
Three more changes in the S&P 500 are based on market capitalization. Three companies from the S&P MidCap 400 will switch places with three S&P 500 components. The companies moving to the S&P 500 all have market caps above $7 billion, the companies moving to the S&P MidCap 400 all have market caps between $1 billion and $3.5 billion.
F5 Networks (FFIV), Netflix (NFLX) and Newfield Exploration (NFX) from the S&P 400 will switch places with the The New York Times (NYT), Office Depot (ODP) and Eastman Kodak (EK) in the S&P 500.
Changes Reflect Our Evolving Economy
Not surprising, this is a classic case of new vs. old. F5 is a communications equipment company, Netflix provides video rentals by mail and on-demand via streaming video services, and Newfield is in the oil and gas exploration business.
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In contrast, The New York Times is part of the declining print media, Office Depot's products and services may be less relevant in these days of computers and virtual offices, and Eastman Kodak, which once supplied film and cameras and later tried to position itself as provider of "imaging technology products and services to the photographic and graphic communications" was never able to recover from the shift away from film cameras. Eastman Kodak was removed from the Dow Jones Industrial Average index in 2004.
Similar changes based on market cap are prompting three switches between the S&P 400 MidCap and the S&P SmallCap 600 , which tracks companies with market caps below $500 million.
Oil and gas exploration company SM Energy (SM), software firm Concur Technologies (CNQR), and Chinese American bank East West Bancorp (EWBC) will move up to the S&P 400. Education services provider Corinthian Colleges (COCO), financial services institution Wilmington Trust (WL) and specialty retailer Coldwater Creek (CWTR) will move down to the S&P 600.
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