The NYSE AMEX Composite Index [1] is a stock market index which utilized as a method to measure a portion of the stock market. It is an index that is employed by many news and financial services firms as a barometer or benchmark to calculate the performance of certain portfolios such as mutual funds [2].
The index is made up of stocks that are part of the NYSE [3] Amex equities market. It is a market capitalization [4] – weighted index meaning the weight of the stocks will depend on the prices of the shares and also how many of the shares are still outstanding.
This index is used primarily to assess the total changes that occur in the NYSE Amex equities market. It was formerly known to be called the American Stock Exchange [5] (Amex) Composite Index. The symbol under which it can be found is XAX.
It also takes the collective value of all the common shares or ADRs [6] – also known as American depositary receipts [6] – of all the AMEX – listed companies, REITs [7], master limited partnerships and closed-end investment vehicles and provides an overview.
The New York Stock Exchange [3] Euronext acquired the American Stock Exchange in October of 2008. They named it the New York Stock Exchange Alternext US. It was later changed to New York Stock Exchange Amex Equities in 2009. It is used essentially to view stocks for emerging and growing companies. The index, back in December of 1995 had a base value of 550.