Stocks have surged more than 300 percent during this historic bull market thanks in large part to Apple.
Apple’s stock alone accounts for 4.1 percent of the S&P 500’s gain since March 9, 2009, according to data from Howard Silverblatt of S&P Dow Jones Indices. That date is widely considered to be the start of the current bull market, which is on track to become the longest ever.
The bull market turns 3,453 days old this Wednesday. Barring a 20 percent decline between now and then, it would mark the longest bull market in history, according to S&P.
Apple shares have skyrocketed more than 1,700 percent since the bull market started. Earlier this month, the company’s market cap hit $1 trillion, making it the first U.S. publicly traded company to reach the mark.
But Apple is not the only major contributor of gains of this bull market. Silverblatt’s data shows Microsoft shares account for 2.4 percent of the S&P 500’s gain, while J.P. Morgan Chase and General Electric have added about 2 percent and 1.7 percent, respectively.
At the sector level, tech has been the biggest contributor of gains during this bull market. The sector is responsible for 22.3 percent of the S&P 500’s gain in that time period. Consumer discretionary ranks second, contributing about 16 percent of the gain, while financials accounted for 13 percent.
Through Friday’s close, the S&P 500 has risen 321.3 percent since March 9, 2009. Ed Yardeni, president and chief investment strategist at Yardeni Research, says the current bull may have more room to run.
“Given what we know today, we believe that the current expansion could continue … well into next year and beyond,” Yardeni said in a note to clients on Monday, highlighting the strength in corporate earnings. “There’s no doubt that earnings growth will fall from over 20% this year to under 10% next year. So what? Earnings should still be growing in record-high territory in 2019. Stock prices should follow suit.”
