OREANDA-NEWS. July 07, 2016. Chicago Board Options Exchange© (CBOE©) today announced it has created a series of 13 “Enhanced Growth Indexes,” the second in a family of options-based strategy performance benchmarks designed to target the outcomes of specific investment strategies.

The CBOE S&P 500 Enhanced Growth Indexes measure the performance of a hypothetical portfolio of S&P 500® Index (SPX) FLexible EXchange® (FLEX®) options designed to provide targeted annual returns. CBOE began disseminating daily values for the new benchmarks on June 24, 2016.

The Enhanced Growth Indexes are similar in approach to the CBOE S&P 500 Buffer Protect Indexes that were announced in April, but target a different return profile.  Both series of indexes are designed for investors who seek to clearly define their investment objectives and risk-return parameters.

The Vest Financial Group Inc., an asset management firm that provides options-based investments through structured protective strategies and innovative technology solutions, will be the first to offer products on the Enhanced Growth Indexes.  These new products are intended to complement Vest products based on the CBOE S&P 500 Buffer Protect Indexes. CBOE made a majority equity investment in Vest in January 2016. 

Each of the indexes in the CBOE S&P 500 Enhanced Growth series is designed to track the returns of a hypothetical investment that, over a period of approximately one year, seeks to provide two-to-one enhanced returns on the appreciation of the S&P 500 Index up to a capped level, while providing one-to-one exposure to any losses.

The strategy utilizes options to target increased participation in positive returns up to a predetermined level – essentially allowing investors to better define their returns for the year. There is no premium or discount to enter into the strategy, compared with an outright investment in the S&P 500 Index.

The CBOE S&P 500 Enhanced Growth Indexes comprises 13 indexes, including 12 monthly series that roll on the third Wednesday of the month:

  • CBOE S&P 500 Enhanced Growth Index January Series (Ticker: SPEN01)
  • CBOE S&P 500 Enhanced Growth Index February Series (Ticker: SPEN02)
  • CBOE S&P 500 Enhanced Growth Index March Series (Ticker: SPEN03
  • CBOE S&P 500 Enhanced Growth Index April Series (Ticker: SPEN04)          
  • CBOE S&P 500 Enhanced Growth Index May Series (Ticker: SPEN05)
  • CBOE S&P 500 Enhanced Growth Index June Series (Ticker: SPEN06)
  • CBOE S&P 500 Enhanced Growth Index July Series (Ticker: SPEN07)
  • CBOE S&P 500 Enhanced Growth Index August Series (Ticker: SPEN08)
  • CBOE S&P 500 Enhanced Growth Index September Series (Ticker: SPEN09)
  • CBOE S&P 500 Enhanced Growth Index October Series (Ticker: SPEN10)
  • CBOE S&P 500 Enhanced Growth Index November Series (Ticker: SPEN11)
  • CBOE S&P 500 Enhanced Growth Index December Series (Ticker: SPEN12)

In addition, there is one balanced index, a composite of the 12 monthly series, in which each monthly series is allocated an equal weight at each monthly roll date:

  • CBOE S&P 500 Enhanced Growth Index Balanced Series (Ticker: SPEN)

Values for each of the indexes are published at the end of each trading day and can be accessed on the CBOE website, and through Market Data Express (via its MDI service) and authorized quote vendors. In addition, overviews and historical data for each of the indexes are available at www.cboe.com/enhancedgrowth.

About CBOE

CBOE, the largest U.S. options exchange and creator of listed options, continues to set the bar for options and volatility trading through product innovation, trading technology and investor education. CBOE Holdings offers equity, index and ETP options, including proprietary products, such as options and futures on the CBOE Volatility Index (VIX Index) and S&P 500 options (SPX), the most active U.S. index option.  Other products engineered by CBOE include equity options, security index options, Weeklys options, FLEX options and benchmark products such as the CBOE S&P 500 BuyWrite Index (BXM). CBOE Holdings is home to the world-renowned Options Institute, Livevol options analytics and data tools, and www.cboe.com, the go-to place for options and volatility trading resources.