Happy Birthday, Bull Market

On March 9, 2009, eight years ago today, the S&P 500 Index bottomed out at 667. Since then:

• The S&P has risen more than 350 percent, closing at 2363 yesterday.
• Over the past eight years, the index's average annual return was 14.9 percent.
• The Dow Jones industrial average is up 200 percent.
• Apple has risen nearly 1,000 percent.
• Home Depot is up more than 600 percent, while American Express and Walt Disney Co. are both up by more than 500 percent.