An index constituent is a single member of an index. A constituent is typically a stock or company that is part of a larger index such as the S&P500 or Dow Jones Industrial Average. The aggregate of all the constituents make up the index, and generally each constituent has to meet the requirements and be selected to be included in the index.
For example, to become a constituent in the S&P500, a stock has to meet certain requirements with regard to market cap, market exposure, liquidity, etc. Indexes also periodically review their constituents to make sure they are meeting the minimum requirements, and if they don't, the index may remove the constituents from the index. This can negatively affect the constituents' reputation with investors.
The easiest way to review the constituents for Morningstar Indexes is through the corporate Web site.
Log on to indexes.morningstar.com.
From the Take Action menu on the right-hand side of the screen, click on View Index Data.
Use the Search feature to locate a specific index or index category, such as "target risk".
Click on the index to view related data.
Click on the icon in the Index Constituents column to see the composition of the index.
