Thursday Sector Laggards: Technology & Communications, Services

In afternoon trading on Thursday, Technology & Communications stocks are the worst performing sector, showing a 1.5% loss. Within that group, Monolithic Power Systems Inc (Symbol: MPWR) and SBA Communications Corp (Symbol: SBAC) are two large stocks that are lagging, showing a loss of 7.2% and 6.4%, respectively. Among technology ETFs, one ETF following the sector is the Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (Symbol: XLK), which is down 1.4% on the day, and up 44.33% year-to-date. Monolithic Power Systems Inc, meanwhile, is up 55.99% year-to-date, and SBA Communications Corp, is down 21.57% year-to-date. MPWR makes up approximately 0.3% of the underlying holdings of XLK.

The next worst performing sector is the Services sector, showing a 0.5% loss. Among large Services stocks, Netflix Inc (Symbol: NFLX) and PulteGroup Inc (Symbol: PHM) are the most notable, showing a loss of 8.1% and 5.0%, respectively. One ETF closely tracking Services stocks is the iShares U.S. Consumer Services ETF (IYC), which is down 1.9% in midday trading, and up 28.04% on a year-to-date basis. Netflix Inc, meanwhile, is up 48.73% year-to-date, and PulteGroup Inc is up 69.29% year-to-date. Combined, NFLX and PHM make up approximately 3.9% of the underlying holdings of IYC.

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:

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

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