Thursday Sector Laggards: Utilities, Healthcare

Looking at the sectors faring worst as of midday Thursday, shares of Utilities companies are underperforming other sectors, showing a 0.1% loss. Within the sector, NRG Energy Inc (NYSE:NRG) and Pinnacle West Capital Corp (NYSE:PNW) are two large stocks that are lagging, showing a loss of 1.7% and 1.2%, respectively. Among utilities ETFs, one ETF following the sector is the Utilities Select Sector SPDR ETF (NYSE:XLU), which is down 0.1% on the day, and up 4.67% year-to-date. NRG Energy Inc, meanwhile, is down 12.26% year-to-date, and Pinnacle West Capital Corp is up 8.84% year-to-date. Combined, NRG and PNW make up approximately 1.9% of the underlying holdings of XLU.

The next worst performing sector is the Healthcare sector, up 0.1%. Among large Healthcare stocks, Eli Lilly (NYSE:LLY) and Baxter International Inc (NYSE:BAX) are the most notable, showing a loss of 1.5% and 1.3%, respectively. One ETF closely tracking Healthcare stocks is the Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLV), which is down 0.2% in midday trading, and up 8.92% on a year-to-date basis. Eli Lilly, meanwhile, is up 18.24% year-to-date, and Baxter International Inc is up 1.66% year-to-date. Combined, LLY and BAX make up approximately 4.4% of the underlying holdings of XLV.

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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 Thursday. As you can see, eight sectors are up on the day, while one sector is down.