Tracking Error: What is it, and why does it matter?

by | Dec 8, 2011 | Investing 101, Jeremy Burger

During several recent discussions with clients, I’ve heard a common question, “Why isn’t my portfolio doing as well as the market?”  This inquiry, of course, leads to another question: “What is the market?” To most investors, the market is either the S&P 500 or the Dow Jones Industrial Index. While these two indices are often cited by news outlets, they only cover portions of the larger global market.

At Merriman, we have long advocated that the allocation of the equity portion of your portfolio include large company stocks, small company stocks, international stocks, emerging market stocks and real estate investment trusts. Each of these asset classes perform differently over time, sometimes dramatically so. Tracking error, the way we refer to it here, is the amount by which the performance of a portfolio differs from that of the major market indices. In some years, this difference will be positive, meaning your portfolio outperformed a major index like the S&P 500. However, there will be years like 2011 when these additional asset classes will lead your portfolio to underperform the S&P 500.

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