Technology Sector Leads Market Gains Midday Thursday

As of midday Thursday, the Technology & Communications sector is outperforming others, rising by 0.8%. Microsoft Corporation (Symbol: MSFT) and Arista Networks Inc (Symbol: ANET) are the standout performers within this category, with gains of 8.7% and 7.6%, respectively. The Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (Symbol: XLK), which tracks this sector, is up 2.3% today but remains down 7.44% year-to-date. In contrast, Microsoft has seen a year-to-date increase of 2.13%, while Arista is down 19.90%. Together, MSFT and ANET comprise about 15.9% of XLK’s holdings.

Utilities Sector Shows Stable Growth

Following technology, the Utilities sector ranks as the next best performer, climbing 0.4%. Noteworthy stocks in this sector include Constellation Energy Corp (Symbol: CEG), with an impressive gain of 8.2%, and Vistra Corp (Symbol: VST), which has risen by 6.3%. The Utilities Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLU), which tracks utility stocks closely, is up 0.5% during midday trading and has a year-to-date increase of 5.52%. Year-to-date, Constellation is up 8.28%, while Vistra has made a slight increase of 0.12%. Together, CEG and VST account for approximately 9.9% of XLU’s holdings.

Performance Analysis Over the Past Twelve Months

To further analyze stock performance, we’ve compiled a chart comparing these stocks and ETFs over the trailing twelve months. Each symbol is color-coded as indicated in the legend below:

Here’s an overview of the S&P 500 components within various sectors during Thursday afternoon trading. Currently, six sectors have posted gains, while three sectors are showing losses.

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