Materials Sector Surges as Steel and Healthcare Stocks Shine

The midday trading on Monday reveals that the Materials sector leads the market with a rise of 1.4%. Significant contributors to this surge are Steel Dynamics Inc. (Symbol: STLD) and Nucor Corp. (Symbol: NUE), boasting gains of 5.5% and 4.7%, respectively. Tracking these materials stocks closely is the Materials Select Sector SPDR ETF (Symbol: XLB), which is up 0.9% for the day, but down 0.19% year-to-date. Steel Dynamics has a 5.03% increase year-to-date, while Nucor follows closely with a 4.03% rise. Together, STLD and NUE comprise about 4.8% of XLB’s total holdings.

Healthcare Stocks Also Perform Well

Following the Materials sector, the Healthcare sector has increased by 1.0%. Key performers within this sector include Align Technology Inc. (Symbol: ALGN) and Incyte Corporation (Symbol: INCY), which have risen by 5.8% and 4.1%, respectively. The Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (Symbol: XLV) is up 0.3% midday and shows a year-to-date gain of 1.33%. Align Technology is up 5.72% for the year, while Incyte has increased by 4.94%. Together, these stocks represent roughly 0.5% of XLV’s underlying assets.

To visualize the stock performance over the past year, a chart comparing these stocks and ETFs is presented below:

Sector Overview: Midday Performance Snapshot

As of Monday afternoon, here’s how various sectors in the S&P 500 are performing, with five sectors showing gains while three are in the red:

25 Dividend Giants Widely Held By ETFs »

Also see:

• LFEQ Videos
• APTM YTD Return
• FEBO YTD Return

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