The best performing sector as of midday Friday is the Financial sector, higher by 0.4%. Within the sector, Goldman Sachs Group Incorporated (NYSE: GS) and Intercontinental Exchange Incorporated (NYSE: ICE) are two large stocks leading the way, showing a gain of 1.7% and 1.7%, respectively. Among financial ETFs, one ETF following the sector is the Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (AMEX: XLF), which is up 0.5% on the day, and up 1.81% year-to-date. Goldman Sachs Group Incorporated, meanwhile, is down 4.46% year-to-date, and Intercontinental Exchange Incorporated is up 6.81% year-to-date. Combined, GS and ICE make up approximately 4.0% of the underlying holdings of XLF.
The next best performing sector is the Materials sector, higher by 0.4%. Among large Materials stocks, WestRock Co (NYSE: WRK) and International Paper Co (NYSE: IP) are the most notable, showing a gain of 3.6% and 1.8%, respectively. One ETF closely tracking Materials stocks is the Materials Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLB), which is up 0.5% in midday trading, and up 8.28% on a year-to-date basis. WestRock Co, meanwhile, is up 4.75% year-to-date, and International Paper Co is up 27.21% year-to-date. Combined, WRK and IP make up approximately 6.1% of the underlying holdings of XLB.
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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 Friday. As you can see, five sectors are up on the day, while four sectors are down.
| Sector | % Change |
|---|---|
| Financial | +0.4% |
| Materials | +0.4% |
| Technology & Communications | +0.3% |
| Industrial | +0.2% |
| Consumer Products | +0.1% |
| Services | -0.2% |
| Utilities | -0.3% |
| Healthcare | -0.3% |
| Energy | -0.6% |
