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By Frank Holmes
In case you haven't noticed, the S&P 500 Index is looking a little different these days.
Once a subindustry of the financials sector, real estate now has its own zip code in the universe of blue chip stocks. It's the first time since 1999 that such a change has been made to the S&P's composition.
The new sector has a weighting of nearly 3 percent, all of it taken out of financials.
As I told CNBC Asia's Bernie Lo recently, I think real estate's promotion will attract more institutional and individual investors to the space. It tells them this is no longer a niche market but one with a distinct and significant presence, with its own unique business drivers.
This has been a long time coming, to be perfectly honest. Ever since the housing and financial crisis, real estate investment trusts (REITs) have been pulling in some serious cash as more become available for trading on the New York Stock Exchange and elsewhere. Altogether, REITs currently have a market cap of over $1 trillion, according to REIT.com.
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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
This article was provided by our partner Tom Lydon of etftrends.com.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
