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Stock Returns for Dummies
Publication Date: December 2001
Publisher(s): Center for Economic and Policy Research
Author(s): Dean Baker
Topic: Economics (Economic theory)
Keywords: Financial projections; Relevant price index; Devaluation; Stock prices
Type: Report
Coverage: United States
Abstract:
This paper points out that there is no way to assess the credibility of proposals to invest Social Security money in the stock market without knowing advocates’ projections for long-term stock market returns. Stock returns have only two parts, dividends and capital gains. By definition, the return on stock must be equal to the sum of these two components, which can be derived from profit-growth projections.