In afternoon trading on Thursday, Utilities stocks are the best performing sector, losing just 0.2%. Within that group, Duke Energy Corp (Symbol: DUK) and Entergy Corp (Symbol: ETR) are two of the day's stand-outs, showing a gain of 0.7% and 0.7%, respectively. Among utilities ETFs, one ETF following the sector is the Utilities Select Sector SPDR ETF (Symbol: XLU), which is down 0.2% on the day, and up 3.67% year-to-date. Duke Energy Corp, meanwhile, is up 2.95% year-to-date, and Entergy Corp is up 3.89% year-to-date. Combined, DUK and ETR make up approximately 10.0% of the underlying holdings of XLU.
The next best performing sector is the Energy sector, losing just 0.3%. Among large Energy stocks, Valero Energy Corp (Symbol: VLO) and Schlumberger Ltd (Symbol: SLB) are the most notable, showing a gain of 2.1% and 1.7%, respectively. One ETF closely tracking Energy stocks is the Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE), which is up 0.2% in midday trading, and up 41.41% on a year-to-date basis. Valero Energy Corp, meanwhile, is up 47.41% year-to-date, and Schlumberger Ltd is up 29.23% year-to-date. Combined, VLO and SLB make up approximately 8.0% of the underlying holdings of XLE.
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 Thursday. As you can see, none of the sectors are up on the day, while nine sectors are down.
| Sector | % Change |
|---|---|
| Utilities | -0.2% |
| Energy | -0.3% |
| Consumer Products | -0.4% |
| Healthcare | -0.7% |
| Financial | -1.4% |
| Materials | -1.4% |
| Technology & Communications | -1.8% |
| Industrial | -1.8% |
| Services | -1.9% |
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
