Jan. 23--Health Care REIT Inc., a Toledo-based health care real estate investment trust, will make its premiere soon on the broadly-watched Standard & Poors 500, the index announced Thursday evening. The trust replaces Sovereign Bancorp Inc., which is being acquired by Banco Santander SA, on the index.

Health Care REIT joins Owens-Illinois Inc. as the only Toledo-area companies included in the large-cap index of American companies. The S&P 500 is widely followed as a gauge of the U.S. stock market. It is also tracked by fund managers, and any change to the index is normally followed by heavy trading activity as market participants adjust their portfolios.

Over the years, other Toledo-area firms have held positions on the S&P 500, including what was then Manor Care Inc., which was removed in 2007 as the company went private; Owens Corning, Cooper Tire & Rubber Co., and what is now Dana Holding Corp.

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