As the U.S. stock market staggers, investors should keep in mind that U.S. large-company stocks produced a total return of 5.5 percent in 2007, the fifth year in a row that those stocks provided a positive total return. Thus, a fallback is not surprising. Longer-term, the numbers offer encouragement.
* Last year was the 23rd year out of the last 28 that large-company stocks have provided a positive return.
* An index of large-company stock total returns, valued at $1.00 on December 31, 1925, increased to $3,246 by the end of 2007, according to Morningstar.
* By comparison, a similar index of long-term government bond returns grew from $1.00 to $79 over that time span. Thus, long-term investors should have a substantial portion of their portfolio in stocks, despite market turbulence.
