Here's How the S&P 500, Nasdaq, and Dow Jones Did In Q3 2025

Group 1 - September 2025 marked a significant departure from historical trends, as U.S. equities reached new highs during the third quarter, recovering from earlier lows in April [1][3] - The optimism in the market was driven by better-than-expected Q2 earnings, ongoing AI-related investments, and expectations of Federal Reserve rate cuts [1][2] - Major equity indexes saw substantial gains in the third quarter, with the Russell 2000 rising by 12.02%, Nasdaq Composite by 11.24%, S&P 500 by 7.79%, and Dow Jones by 5.22%, all achieving record highs [3][4] Group 2 - The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite experienced their best third quarter since 2020 and best September since 2010, while the Dow Jones also finished the quarter at a record high [4] - Year-to-date performance for the indexes shows significant increases, with Nasdaq up 17.34%, S&P 500 up 13.72%, Russell 2000 up 9.37%, and Dow up 9.06% [5] - Historical data suggests that the fourth quarter could continue this upward trend, with the S&P 500 averaging a 4.2% gain from October to December in previous years [6]