- The S&P500 was up 0.85% for the week, upbeat results from financial firms, and airlines, along with a profitable quarter for Netflix, were a few of the drivers of positive performance in the index.
- Utilities sector bounced back after being the worst performer last week, gaining 3.4%. Dominion Energy (+6.6%) and Duke Energy (+5.8%) performed the best in the sector.
- Real Estate was close behind also up more than 3%. All constituents in the benchmark were gainers, except two holdings. Ventas Inc. rose 1.9% this week, representing 2.4% of the index, and took the top spot.
- Financials was up 2.4% led by a few fund companies including T Rowe Price (+2.1%) and Invesco (+1.9%) were at the top.
- Nine sectors advanced in total for the week, and only two sectors fell. Health Care and Energy both gave up ground for the period. Energy was down 2.7%, as oil prices continue to be volatile due to the conflicts in the Middle East.
- Year to date all sectors continue their upward momentum, all but one have double-digit returns so far.
ETF Tidbits
ETF – SPY (S&P500) – has become the first ETF to exceed $600-Billion in assets. Ron Day of ETF.com’s 10/18 article suggests that 2024 could be the best year in terms of ETF asset growth, on track to exceed $1-Trillion.
