Chart of the Day - Tuesday, December 31st, 2019

Today's Chart of the Day was shared in a note from LPL Financial Research. It's a table that breaks down the performance of the S&P 500 in each decade going back to 1950. Over the past decade, the index averaged an annual return of 11.2% (13.5%, including dividends.) The 1950s, 1980s, and 1990s all saw better average annual returns than the 2010s did. However, this past decade was much better than the previous decade (the 2000s), where the S&P 500 averaged an annual loss of 2.7%. Also, investors saw 242 record highs over the past decade, versus a measly 13 record highs in the 2000s. 2019 turned out to be an excellent year for investors with the S&P 500 ending the year up nearly 30%, marking the best year for the index since 2013.