Given the amount of data that these maps provide, values are shown in colors to help you quickly zero in on what you’re looking for. The best maps of the market also have features that make research both informative and fun. The bubble version of the map shows stocks in the S&P 500, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, or any index in bubbles of different colors. A pop-up chart appears with stock data when you hover over a bubble, such as payout ratio or average volume. The MarketCarpet map lets you view charts of data on groups of different securities, such as S&P sector ETFs, market summary, major indexes, cryptocurrencies, Fidelity mutual funds, Rydex mutual funds, ProFunds mutual funds, and S&P/TSX composite. One section of the SharpCharts map depicts stocks in the market as squares. Another section features a line graph of the stock. You can change the time frame of the stock map by using the slide bar at the bottom. The line graph updates right away when you click on a square. The U.S. Market Barometer is a grid that lets you see how nine asset classes have performed compared to each other in areas such as growth, core, value, large-cap, mid-cap, and small-cap. You get detailed data on the risk of the asset class when you click on a square in the grid, and you can see how it performs. The data on the U.S. market is updated each day at market close, but you can also see a mini-map of the asset class over the past day, year, three years, or five years. The tool shows that “the market” is not one cohesive entity that always moves the same. Use the Global Market Barometer on the same page for a view of the world equities markets. Green regions highlight countries with gains in Morningstar global equities market indexes. Red depicts countries with losses. You can view data in the same time frames as you can in the U.S. Market Barometer. Clicking on a category takes you to a page of stocks that fall into that sector. Click “Heatmap View” for a view of stocks there. Each has a green or red square showing the gains or losses over the past day. A pop-up appears with detailed information about the stock when you hover over a square: share price, price changes, and market cap. The heat map features squares in five colors representing individual securities in the sector. The map shows price changes over the last hour, six hours, 12 hours, or 24 hours. The map zooms in on the securities in that sector when you click on a square. Hover over any square to open a pop-up with the price change over the time frame of your choice. Click “Zoom Out” to go back to the sector view of the stock market map. Stock market maps allow you to get a quick snapshot of a stock’s performance before you do deeper research. They can show someone with a long-term investment strategy why diversification matters by detailing how certain sectors and asset classes move up and down over time. You can use the insights gained from a map of the market to make more informed picks about which securities to add to or remove from your portfolio. This can help you achieve your short- or long-term investment goals.
