Archstone-Smith Slated for S&P 500

Standard & Poor's has announced that it will add Archstone-Smith to the S&P 500 Index after the close of trading Dec. 17.The Englewood, Colo.-based multifamily real estate investment trust will be added to the REIT sub-industry component of the S&P 500. According to the JP Morgan equity REIT research team, this is the seventh REIT to be included in the S&P 500 Index, bringing the total group weighting to 0.553%. The REIT will be added in the financials sector and will account for 0.066% of the Index, putting it among the top 325 constituents, according to JP Morgan. "We view this as further evidence that the group is gaining widespread visibility," JP Morgan said, adding that it expects the REIT's addition to the index to generate a demand for 19.6 million shares of Archstone-Smith.