Income as a
Percentage of Total
Return of the S&P
500 Index
This chart illustrates income as a percentage of the monthly total return of the S&P 500. For example, in the 1980s dividends contributed 26% of the total return for the decade. Dividends layed a large role in terms of their contribution to total returns during the 1940s, 1960s, and 1970s, decades when total returns were lower than 10%. In contrast, dividends played a smaller role during the 1950s, 1980s, and 1990s when average annual total returns for the decade were well into double digits.