Live Updates Live Coverage Updates appear automatically as they are published. UNH a Drag 10:57 am by Gerelyn Terzo UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) shares are extending their recent downward trend, shedding 4.

Buying the S&P 500 index is a great wealth-building investment. One of the lowest-cost ways to do that today is with the Vanguard S&P 500 Index ETF, which has a tiny 0.03% expense ratio. But is this exchange-traded fund (ETF) the best option for all investors?

The S&P 500 was moving closer to being little changed on the day, just ahead of the announced results from Treasury's $16 billion auction of 20-year notes. The index was down by roughly 4 points, or less than 0.

Investing in the S&P 500 comes with potential for strong returns but is not without risks, including market volatility. Here's what to know about those tradeoffs and how to minimize them.

And the Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight ETF will tend to have a higher yield than a market-cap weighted S&P 500 ETF because larger, popular stocks often have lower yields. By investing more in smaller, higher yielding stocks, the Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight ETF boosts the overall portfolio's yield by around 30 basis points.

An earlier rise for long-term Treasury notes followed Moody’s downgrade of the U.S. credit rating, raising national debt concerns.

Index funds provide efficient and low-cost broad market exposure, which makes them an ideal choice for long-term investment portfolios. Investors frequently look to S&P 500 index funds as well as “total market” index funds as their primary investment choices.

Live Updates Live Coverage Updates appear automatically as they are published. Stock Market Outlook: BofA 10:57 am by According to Bank of America, investor sentiment regarding the wider stock market has seen an uptick.

The S&P 500 continued its upward momentum on the strength of progress toward multiple trade deals in the past week. Click to read.

Fact checked by Vikki Velasquez The S&P 500, also popularly called "the market," is a benchmark that tracks the performance of around 500 of the U.S.'s largest publicly traded companies. The S&P 500 is inherently well-diversified and highly efficient.

US stocks slid Wednesday afternoon as bond yields continued to climb, putting pressure on equities. Investors weighed a flare-up in US-China tensions over chips and assessed retail earnings highlighted by Target (TGT) for insight into the economic impact of President Trump's tariffs.