The best performing sector as of midday Tuesday is the Utilities sector, higher by 1.2%. Within that group, NRG Energy Inc (NYSE: NRG) and AES Corp. (NYSE: AES) are two of the day's stand-outs, showing a gain of 6.0% and 2.2%, respectively. Among utilities ETFs, one ETF following the sector is the Utilities Select Sector SPDR ETF (AMEX: XLU), which is up 1.0% on the day, and up 0.86% year-to-date. NRG Energy Inc, meanwhile, is up 26.26% year-to-date, and AES Corp. is up 3.06% year-to-date. Combined, NRG and AES make up approximately 2.1% of the underlying holdings of XLU.
The next best performing sector is the Consumer Products sector, up 1.0%. Among large Consumer Products stocks, PVH Corp (NYSE: PVH) and Mattel Inc (NASD: MAT) are the most notable, showing a gain of 6.6% and 5.2%, respectively. One ETF closely tracking Consumer Products stocks is the iShares U.S. Consumer Goods ETF (IYK), which is up 1.0% in midday trading, and up 1.57% on a year-to-date basis. PVH Corp, meanwhile, is up 5.54% year-to-date, and Mattel Inc is up 12.67% year-to-date. Combined, PVH and MAT make up approximately 0.8% of the underlying holdings of IYK.
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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 Tuesday. As you can see, four sectors are up on the day, while four sectors are down.
| Sector | % Change |
|---|---|
| Utilities | +1.2% |
| Consumer Products | +1.0% |
| Energy | +0.8% |
| Services | +0.6% |
| Healthcare | -0.0% |
| Materials | -0.2% |
| Technology & Communications | -0.7% |
| Industrial | -0.7% |
| Financial | -0.9% |
