Big Names in S&P 500 Overshadow the Risk of a Volatility Jump
- Correlation of biggest S&P 500 companies is near a record low
- But correlation for equal-weighted index version above average
This article is for subscribers only.
Shares of the largest US companies are moving wildly out of sync, creating a sense of calm in the S&P 500 Index not seen in years. But it’s a different story when it comes to the rest of the market.
While a Cboe gauge of implied correlation for the 50 largest S&P 500 stocks has recently hit a record low, the equity index’s equal-weighted counterpart is close to the 64th percentile relative to the past year, according to an analysis from Susquehanna International Group. That dynamic signals that even though the big names are trading more independently, investors see the others moving much more in tandem.