What Is Nasdaq-100?
The Nasdaq-100 is a stock market index that consists of the 100 largest non-financial companies listed on the NASDAQ stock exchange. This index is based on the companies’ market capitalization and is used as a benchmark for the technology sector. It includes many of the most prominent technology companies, such as Apple, Amazon, Microsoft, Google, Facebook, and Tesla. Trade Nasdaq-100 on Headway – sign up now.
How is it calculated?
The NASDAQ, Inc. is responsible for calculating and maintaining the Nasdaq-100 index.
The index’s performance is determined by the weighted market capitalization of the companies included, which means that larger companies have a more significant impact on the index’s performance.
The Nasdaq-100 is highly popular among investors and analysts worldwide as it is a widely followed stock market index. It is often used to monitor the technology sector’s performance and aid in investment decisions.
Historical background
The Nasdaq 100 index was first introduced on January 31, 1985, with a base value of 125.
During the dot-com bubble of the late 1990s and early 2000s, the Nasdaq 100 experienced significant growth, peaking at 4,816.36 on March 27, 2000, before crashing and losing over 80% of its value by October 2002.
The index recovered from the dot-com crash and reached a new high of 2,859.12 on October 31, 2007, before declining sharply during the financial crisis of 2008-2009.
The Nasdaq 100 has experienced significant growth since the 2008-2009 financial crisis, driven in large part by the success of technology companies such as Apple, Amazon, and Microsoft. The index reached 5,000 for the first time on March 9, 2015, and has continued to climb higher in the years since.
The index reached its all-time high of 9,838.37 on November 27, 2020.
As of July 19, 2023, the Nasdaq 100 index closed at 15,011.09, up 20.84% year-to-date.
The 10 most active companies (July 2023)
| Name | Last price | Change % | Volume |
| AAPL | 195.10 | +0.71% | 19,991,341 |
| TSLA:UW | 291.26 | -0.71% | 18,967,892 |
| LCID:UW | 7.25 | +2.98% | 14,810,801 |
| GOOGLE:UW | 122.03 | -1.40% | 12,989,476 |
| AMAZON | 135.36 | +1.90% | 12,416,321 |
| AMD | 116.43 | -1.27% | 10,949,556 |
| MICROSOFT | 355.08 | -1.23% | 9,903,817 |
| CSCO | 52.43 | +2.32% | 9,245,291 |
| INTEL | 34.46 | -0.12% | 8,924,495 |
| NVDA | 470.77 | -0.88% | 7,520,968 |
How to trade Nasdaq-100?
Contract for Difference (CFDs) is one of the ways you can trade the Nasdaq-100 cost-effectively and efficiently. When you trade the index using CFDs, you can speculate on the direction of the underlying instrument (the Nasdaq-100) without owning it or any of its constituents. You can make use of leverage and you will have the ability to go both long and short.
This can prove especially useful during a downturn. Most investors want to avoid a reshuffling of their portfolio as the costs can quickly add up and it is incredibly difficult to time the market correctly. Therefore, instead of selling a large part of your portfolio when you anticipate a correction, you could use CFDs to speculate on falling prices.
Learn more about other indexes: S&P 500 and Dow Jones.
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