Here's the Average Stock Market Return in the Last 10 Years, and What Wall Street Expects in the Future

Core Insights - As of September 2025, approximately 5,500 companies were listed on the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq Stock Exchange [1] Index Performance - The S&P 500 returned 216% over the last decade, compounding at an annual rate of 12.1% [4][6] - The Dow Jones Industrial Average returned 159% over the last decade, compounding at an annual rate of 10% [6][8] - The Nasdaq Composite returned 336% over the last decade, compounding at an annual rate of 15.8% [6] S&P 500 Details - The S&P 500 measures the performance of 500 large U.S. companies, covering about 80% of domestic equities by market value [4] - The five largest holdings in the S&P 500 by weight are Nvidia (7.9%), Apple (7.1%), Microsoft (6.3%), Alphabet (5.4%), and Amazon (3.8%) [7] Dow Jones Industrial Average Details - The Dow Jones Industrial Average tracks the performance of 30 large U.S. companies and is considered a blue chip index [8] - The five largest holdings in the Dow Jones by weight are Goldman Sachs (10.4%), Caterpillar (7.3%), Microsoft (6.4%), American Express (4.6%), and Amgen (4.5%) [8]