Friday Sector Laggards: Utilities, Materials

In afternoon trading on Friday, Utilities stocks are the worst performing sector, showing a 0.3% loss. Within that group, Vistra Corp (Symbol: VST) and AES Corp (Symbol: AES) are two large stocks that are lagging, showing a loss of 3.4% and 1.8%, respectively. Among utilities ETFs, one ETF following the sector is the Utilities Select Sector SPDR ETF (Symbol: XLU), which is down 0.5% on the day, and up 23.08% year-to-date. Vistra Corp, meanwhile, is up 47.86% year-to-date, and AES Corp is up 17.23% year-to-date. Combined, VST and AES make up approximately 5.4% of the underlying holdings of XLU.

The next worst performing sector is the Materials sector, showing a 0.3% loss. Among large Materials stocks, Newmont Corp (Symbol: NEM) and Albemarle Corp. (Symbol: ALB) are the most notable, showing a loss of 7.5% and 2.7%, respectively. One ETF closely tracking Materials stocks is the Materials Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLB), which is down 0.4% in midday trading, and up 5.72% on a year-to-date basis. Newmont Corp, meanwhile, is up 146.27% year-to-date, and Albemarle Corp. is up 9.13% year-to-date. Combined, NEM and ALB make up approximately 9.8% of the underlying holdings of XLB.

Comparing these stocks and ETFs on a trailing twelve month basis, below is a relative stock price performance chart, with each of the symbols shown in a different color as labeled in the legend at the bottom:

Here's a snapshot of how the S&P 500 components within the various sectors are faring in afternoon trading on Friday. As you can see, six sectors are up on the day, while two sectors are down.

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Also see:

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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.