An index collects data from a variety of companies across industries. Together, that data forms a picture that helps investors compare current price levels with past prices to calculate market performance. The Russell 2000 is an index of 2,000 small-cap companies that was first launched in 1984. It is widely used as a benchmark for U.S. small-cap stocks. The index comprises 2,000 of the smallest companies in the Russell 3000, which itself covers roughly 98% of the stocks publicly traded in the U.S.
- Instead, here are 10 of the largest Russell 2000 companies, just to give you an idea of the types of companies that make up the index.
- While this has caused many investors to adopt a “fearful” wait-and-see approach, we’re leaning into our best ideas that can grow regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate.
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- Many trading systems utilize moving averages as independent variables and market analysts frequently use moving averages to confirm technical breakouts.
- The key methodology for determining the components of the Russell 2000 involves selecting the 2,000 smallest companies by market capitalization from the Russell 3000 index.
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Created in 1896, it is one of the oldest stock indexes, and its performance is widely considered a useful indicator of the health of the entire U.S. stock market. Founded in 1993, The Motley Fool is a financial services company dedicated to making the world smarter, happier, and richer. The Russell 2000 index, sometimes abbreviated as Russell 2K, is the most widely used index of small-cap stocks — those with a relatively small market capitalization. The Russell 2000 index, sometimes abbreviated Russell 2K, is the most widely used index of small-cap stocks, or those with a relatively small market capitalization. There are no hard-and-fast rules for when a stock is a small cap. The Motley Fool reaches millions of people every month through our premium investing solutions, free guidance and market analysis on Fool.com, top-rated podcasts, and non-profit The Motley Fool Foundation.
The table below highlights a breakdown of the index by industry. The Russell 2000 Index was launched in 1984 by the Frank Russell Company. It is a U.S. index managed by FTSE Russell, a subsidiary of the London Stock Exchange (LSE) Group. The index finished at 2,125 on Thursday, its highest closing level since January 2022. The takeaway is that while these aren’t exactly tiny enterprises, they aren’t giant companies either. That’s the key difference between the Russell 2000 and the “headline” indexes.
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This means that the 2,000 companies that comprise the index don’t contribute equally to its performance. Larger companies have a proportionally greater impact than smaller ones. The index’s returns can be replicated by investors who take the trouble to create a sizeable and complex portfolio that mirrors the index.
The index is the most widely quoted measure of the overall performance of small-cap to mid-cap stocks. It represents approximately 7% of the total Russell 3000 market capitalization and is made up of the bottom two-thirds in terms of company size of the Russell 3000 index. The larger index reflects the movements of nearly 96% of all publicly traded U.S. stocks. It’s no surprise that best days of the week to trade forex many funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) mirror or are based on the Russell 2000. A stock market index shows how investors feel an economy is faring.
- It’s also worth noting that many Russell 2000 stocks are included in both subindexes.
- The other big difference between the Russell 2000 and other major indices is that it tracks small-cap stocks.
- The largest stock by market cap on the index was $58.43 billion.
How major US stock indexes fared Monday, 6/23/2025
Richardson Electronics’s stock price of $10.39 implies a valuation ratio of 14.6x forward P/E. If you’re considering RELL for your portfolio, see our FREE research report to learn more. Read our free research report to see why you should think twice about including PANL in your portfolio, it’s free. Get stock recommendations, portfolio guidance, and more from The Motley Fool’s premium services. Mondee Holdings was the smallest company included in the Russell 2000 index as of June 15, 2025. The stock had lost virtually all of its value over the last year, but it was still included because the annual reconstitution of the index had not taken place yet.
The Russell 2000 is rebalanced every June, and companies are added, deleted, or kept. Many investors compare small-cap mutual funds’ movements against the index’s movement. The key methodology for determining the components of the Russell 2000 involves selecting the 2,000 smallest companies by market capitalization from the Russell 3000 index.
Russell 2000 Ishares ETF (IWM)
Barchart Plus Members have 10 downloads per day, while Barchart Premier Members may download up to 100 .csv files per day. Available only with a Barchart Plus or Premier Membership, you can base a Stock Screener off the symbols currently on the page. This lets you add additional filters to further narrow down the list of candidates. At the top, you’ll find a histogram containing today’s high and low price. The histogram shows where the open and last price fall within that range. Upgrade to MarketBeat All Access to add more stocks to your watchlist.
Click the “+” icon in the first column (on the left) to view more data for the selected symbol. Scroll through widgets of the different content available for the symbol. The “More Data” widgets are also available from the Links column of the right side of the data table. In theory, the direction of the moving average (higher, lower or flat) indicates the trend of the market. Many trading systems utilize moving averages as independent variables and market analysts frequently use moving averages to confirm technical breakouts. While this has caused many investors to adopt a “fearful” wait-and-see approach, we’re leaning into our best ideas that can grow regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate.
For dynamically-generated tables (such as a Stock or ETF Screener) where you see more than 1000 rows of data, the download will be limited to only the first 1000 records on the table. For other static pages (such as the Russell 3000 Components list) all rows will be downloaded. Also unique to Barchart, this feature allows you to scroll through all the symbols on the table in a chart view. Copyright © 2025 FactSet Research Systems Inc.© 2025 TradingView, Inc.
To be included in the Russell 3000 index, companies must meet certain minimum share price and free float requirements — and these criteria for inclusion extend to the Russell 2000 index. The Russell 2000’s components are updated at the end of June each year, and companies that are either too big or too small are removed from the index. The Russell 2000 is a market cap-weighted index, as are the majority of popular stock indexes — the Dow Jones Industrial Average being the main exception.
Instead, here are 10 of the largest Russell 2000 companies, just to give you an idea of the types of companies that make up the index. Please log in to your account or sign up in order to add this asset to your watchlist.
Investing in S&P 500 ETFs
One good example is the Vanguard Russell 2000 ETF (VTWO -1.55%), which invests in all the stocks in the index according to their relative weights. With a small (0.10%) expense ratio, the ETF’s fees are low, and its long-term performance should be virtually identical to the index. Conversely, the Russell 2000 value index comprises hundreds of value stocks from the index. It’s also worth noting that many Russell 2000 stocks are included in both subindexes. As of May 2025, 1,423 stocks were in the Vanguard Russell 2000 Value ETF (VTWV -1.03%) and 1,125 in the Vanguard Russell 2000 Growth ETF (VTWG -1.32%).
