Baillie Gifford examines whether technology stocks truly dominate long-term stock market outcomes, using decades of U.S. equity data to break down which industries actually drive extreme winners and losers. The findings challenge a common narrative, showing just 0.32% of firms created half of total wealth, while tech as a group appears more often among disappointments than standout winners.
Extreme Stock Market Performers, Part II: Do Technology Stocks Dominate?
Arizona State
Hendrik Bessembinder
Research
15 Pages
Key Takeaways
Extreme Return Skewness: Only 86 firms, or about 0.33% of all stocks, accounted for 50% of total net wealth creation from 1926 to 2020.
High Failure Rate: Roughly 58% of stocks underperformed Treasury bills, reinforcing that most individual equities fail to beat even low-risk benchmarks.
Industry Tail Outcomes: Technology represented about 22% of top wealth creators but also showed elevated presence among worst performers, highlighting wide dispersion within sectors.
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