utilities ETFs

Last year, the Energy Select Sector SPDR (ETF) (NYSE: XLE) jumped 28 percent as energy, the seventh-largest sector weight in the S&P 500 ranked as one of the best-performing groups in the benchmark U.S. equity index. Recent Performance This year, the S&P 500 is climbing without much...

Utilities SPDR (ETF) (NYSE: XLU) and rival utilities exchange-traded funds are surging. XLU, the largest utilities ETF by assets, is higher by 6.6 percent and resides about half a percent below its 52-week high. The rival Vanguard Utilities ETF (NYSE: VPU) is higher by 6.2 percent and is just 0.2...

The consumer staples and utilities sectors have long been the favored destinations of defensive, income-minded investors. This is due to the higher dividend yields and lower volatility compared to other sectors. The downside of these sectors is that they aren't always great for short-term...

Last year represented a tale of two views for utilities stocks and exchange-traded funds. ETFs such as the Utilities SPDR (ETF) (NYSE: XLU) burst out of the gates early in the year as investors favored defensive, low volatility, high dividend sectors. By virtue of its bond-like characteristics but...

It seems like only yesterday that utilities stocks and exchange-traded funds, such as the Utilities SPDR (ETF) (NYSE: XLU), were setting the market ablaze. Sure, XLU, the largest utilities ETF by assets, is still up 14.5 percent year-to-date, good for one of the better performances among the sector...

One perception of September is it marks the start of autumn. In financial markets, that does not necessarily mean the return of risk appetite. Over the past 20 years, the S&P 500 has averaged a September loss of 0.3 percent. Keeping with the theme of needing to wait a little while longer before...

At a time when Treasury yields are near historic lows and the Utilities SPDR (ETF) (NYSE: XLU) sports a dividend yield of 3.1 percent with a year-to-date return of nearly 20 percent, it is easy to understand investors' enthusiasm for the utilities sector. By virtue of its bond-like...

The combination of the utilities sector ranking as easily the best-performing sector this year, interest rates that appear to be remaining low for the foreseeable future and investors' overt preference for defensive sectors, it stands to reason that some market observers view utilities stocks...

Although stocks surged Monday, just 14 exchange-traded funds hit all-time highs. Indicating that conservative, lower beta fare is still in style, six of the seven sector ETFs that hit new highs Monday were consumer staples, telecom or utilities funds. Of the seven ETFs in the all-time high club,...

A simplistic view would be to say the Utilities SPDR ETF (NYSE: XLU) and the Energy Select Sector SPDR (ETF) (NYSE: XLE) are impressing this year. So is the Materials Select Sector SDPR (NYSE: XLB). Beyond that, there is not a lot to brag about among the major sector exchange-traded funds. The...

Nearly six months into 2016, many investors know the deal with utilities stocks. The sector with a reputation for lulling the investment community to sleep is, in a good way, betraying that reputation. Just look at the Utilities SPDR (ETF) (NYSE: XLU). XLU, the largest utilities exchange-traded...

The Energy Select Sector SPDR (ETF) (NYSE: XLE), the largest equity-based exchange-traded fund tracking the energy sector, is up more than 10 percent in the second quarter. That extends a run that has XLE up 12.5 percent year-to-date, a showing that, among the sector SPDR ETFs, has been trumped...

It can be argued that Ryu is one of the most popular characters from the famous "Street Fighter" video game franchise. You weren't really playing with Dhalsim, were you? There is another RYU that deserves more popularity: The Guggenheim S&P 500 Equal Weight Utilities ETF (NYSE: RYU). A More...

Solidifying the notion that boring can be beautiful, the utilities sector and its relevant exchange-traded funds are acting like the NASDAQ of the 1990s. Well, that is hyperbole, but the Utilities SPDR (ETF) (NYSE: XLU) is up 12.5 percent year-to-date. Utilities ETFs And The S&P Additionally,...

Leading up to the Federal Reserve raising interest rates last month, the first such move by the U.S. central bank in nearly a decade, utilities stocks and exchange-traded funds were widely seen as vulnerable to higher U.S. borrowing costs. Historical data confirms that utilities stocks are the most...