Indexes and Benchmarks
Russell 2000
A stock index that tracks smaller U.S. public companies.
Also called: Russell 2000 Index
What it means
The Russell 2000 is an index made up of small-cap U.S. companies. It is often used as a rough measure of how smaller public businesses are performing compared with larger firms in indexes like the S&P 500.
Why it matters
It gives users a way to understand how small-company stocks may behave differently from large-company stocks.