Wednesday Sector Leaders: Utilities, Healthcare

The best performing sector as of midday Wednesday is the Utilities sector, higher by 2.7%. Within the sector, American Electric Power Co Inc (Symbol: AEP) and Xcel Energy Inc (Symbol: XEL) are two large stocks leading the way, showing a gain of 3.8% and 3.7%, respectively. Among utilities ETFs, one ETF following the sector is the Utilities Select Sector SPDR ETF (Symbol: XLU), which is up 2.6% on the day, and down 0.96% year-to-date. American Electric Power Co Inc, meanwhile, is up 0.65% year-to-date, and Xcel Energy Inc is up 2.06% year-to-date. Combined, AEP and XEL make up approximately 8.7% of the underlying holdings of XLU.

The next best performing sector is the Healthcare sector, up 1.1%. Among large Healthcare stocks, Baxter International Inc (Symbol: BAX) and Johnson & Johnson (Symbol: JNJ) are the most notable, showing a gain of 3.9% and 3.8%, respectively. One ETF closely tracking Healthcare stocks is the Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLV), which is up 1.7% in midday trading, and down 1.31% on a year-to-date basis. Baxter International Inc, meanwhile, is down 16.96% year-to-date, and Johnson & Johnson, is down 7.01% year-to-date. Combined, BAX and JNJ make up approximately 9.1% of the underlying holdings of XLV.

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 Wednesday. As you can see, three sectors are up on the day, while six sectors are down.

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Also see:

• Closed End Funds List
• NMRK Insider Buying
• Top Ten Hedge Funds Holding NTT

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