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Beyond the S&P 500: Unlocking Growth with Mid-Cap and Small-Cap Exposure

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  //stocks-investing.news-articles.net/content/202 .. -growth-with-mid-cap-and-small-cap-exposure.html
  Published in Stocks and Investing on Monday, November 17th 2025 at 10:21 GMT by The Motley Fool

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Beyond the S&P 500: How to Expand Your Stock‑Market Exposure

The S&P 500 is the benchmark that most investors use to gauge the health of the United States’ equity market. It tracks 500 of the largest, most liquid companies and offers a convenient, low‑cost way to gain broad exposure to the U.S. economy. But for investors looking for higher returns, greater diversification, or simply a chance to spot the next big winner, the S&P 500 is only the starting point.

In a recent Motley Fool article, “Want to Invest in Stocks Outside of the S&P 500?” (published 17 Nov 2025), the author lays out a clear argument for why and how to broaden your portfolio beyond this traditional index. The piece goes far beyond a simple “add a mid‑cap ETF” suggestion; it offers a roadmap that takes into account risk tolerance, investment horizon, and the many opportunities that lie outside the 500 companies that dominate Wall Street. Below is a concise, yet comprehensive, summary of the key take‑aways, along with additional context from the links embedded in the original article.

1. Why the S&P 500 Is Not the Full Story

The article begins by highlighting three critical limitations of the S&P 500:

These factors create a strong incentive for investors to look beyond the S&P 500 if they want to capture growth while mitigating concentration risk.

2. Broadening the U.S. Lens

The Motley Fool article lists several U.S.‑centric indexes and ETFs that give exposure to the portions of the market that the S&P 500 leaves out.

2.1 The Total Market and Mid‑Cap

1. Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF (VTI) – Captures the entire U.S. equity universe, including large‑cap, mid‑cap, and small‑cap.
2. Vanguard Mid-Cap ETF (VO) – Focuses on mid‑cap companies (market caps between $2–$10 billion).
3. iShares Russell 2000 ETF (IWM) – The classic small‑cap index, containing about 2,000 companies below the Russell 3000.

These funds give a direct line to the high‑growth sectors that the S&P 500 overlooks. The article emphasizes that adding a mid‑cap or small‑cap tilt can boost long‑term returns by roughly 1–2 % per year, albeit with increased volatility.

2.2 The Thematic and Sector Twist

The author also points out that investors can further customize their exposure by selecting sector‑specific ETFs. Here are a few that the article recommends, along with their core focus:

These ETFs can be used to “tune” a portfolio toward specific themes, such as renewable energy or biotechnology, thereby increasing the potential for outsized gains when those sectors outperform the broader market.

3. Going Global

The article rightly stresses that the U.S. is no longer the sole growth engine. A handful of international indexes provide easy access to emerging markets and developed economies outside the U.S.

3.1 Emerging Markets

• iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (EEM) – 30+ countries, including China, India, and Brazil.
• Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF (VWO) – Similar coverage but with slightly lower expense ratios.

Both ETFs offer higher risk, higher potential reward, and can help a portfolio keep pace with the rapid economic growth occurring in Asia and Africa.

3.2 Developed Markets

• iShares MSCI EAFE ETF (EFA) – Europe, Australasia, Far East.
• SPDR S&P Global 100 ETF (SPGG) – Global mega‑cap companies.

These provide diversification against the U.S. market’s cyclical swings and give exposure to global conglomerates that are often absent from the S&P 500.

4. Picking Individual Stocks Outside the S&P 500

The article doesn’t stop at ETFs; it also gives a quick primer on choosing single names that sit outside the S&P 500 but could be game‑changing.

Key Qualities to Look For

1. Robust Fundamentals – Strong revenue growth, healthy cash flow, and a defensible competitive moat.
2. Innovation & Market Disruption – Companies that are creating new markets or revolutionizing existing ones.
3. Growth Potential – Firms with a clear pathway to become large‑cap players in the future.

The article gives a few illustrative examples (all of which, as of 2025, are not yet in the S&P 500 but have hit double‑digit revenue growth):

• Zoom Video Communications (ZM) – Remote‑work pioneer that has grown its user base rapidly.
• Palantir Technologies (PLTR) – Data‑analytics platform that’s expanding beyond government.
• Beyond Meat (BYND) – Plant‑based protein leader with international expansion.

By focusing on such companies, investors can position themselves for outsized gains that would otherwise be invisible when tracking only the S&P 500.

5. Managing Risk When You Expand

The article’s most valuable section is its risk‑management framework. Expanding beyond the S&P 500 can boost returns, but it also amplifies volatility. The suggested approach includes:

1. Diversification Across Asset Classes – Pair U.S. equity exposure with international, fixed‑income, and alternative investments.
2. Dollar‑Cost Averaging – Consistent investing over time smooths entry points into more volatile sectors.
3. Rebalancing – Periodically (quarterly or annually) adjust the portfolio to keep the desired asset‑class weights.

Finally, the article underscores that a well‑balanced portfolio may look like:

Such a structure keeps you grounded in the stability of the S&P 500 while allowing you to tap into the higher‑growth segments that the index deliberately excludes.

6. Final Thoughts

The Motley Fool article makes a compelling case: If your goal is to build a portfolio that can outperform the S&P 500 over the long haul, you need to add depth to your holdings. Mid‑cap and small‑cap ETFs give you the breadth you’re missing; sector‑specific and thematic ETFs help you capitalize on hot stories; international exposure reduces home‑bias risk; and individual stocks outside the index can become the next “growth story” of your lifetime.

The key takeaway? Start small, keep your costs low, and stay disciplined. A balanced approach that blends the S&P 500 with carefully chosen alternatives can yield better returns and better protection in an ever‑shifting global landscape.

This summary is based on the content of the original article “Want to Invest in Stocks Outside of the S&P 500?” from The Motley Fool (2025‑11‑17) and incorporates additional context from the linked resources within that article.