The Dow Jones Just Hit a Record High. History Says Stocks Will Do This Next.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI) tracks 30 large U.S. stocks. Inclusion is limited to companies that have excellent reputations, demonstrate sustained growth, and generate widespread interest among investors. To that end, the index is commonly regarded as a collection of blue chip stocks, though it also serves as one of three major barometers for the overall U.S. stock market, with the other two being the S 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) and the Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQINDEX: ^IXIC).

The Dow Jones traded sideways through the first 10 months of the year, but the index has soared 12% since the end of October on particularly strong momentum in four stocks: Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), Intel (NASDAQ: INTC), Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT), and Salesforce (NYSE: CRM). The upshot of that momentum is that the Dow Jones reached a record high on Wednesday, meaning the blue chip index just entered bull market territory.