The S&P 500 closed unchanged on the day and the Dow was lower by 0.18%. Semiconductor equipment, airlines, materials, and utilities lagged the market today and insurance and asset managers outperformed. Materials stocks were lower on slashed China growth estimates.
Commodities were mixed on the day. Copper, grains, and natural gas were ahead of the tape while precious metals and crude were lower.
Financials finished higher than the broad market averages. Asset managers were the leading industry group in the sector. The bank index rose on the strength of regional banks. Insurance names were slightly higher also.
Healthcare was a particularly strong area. Large cap healthcare names saw heavy buying volume after selling off on the cyclical rally last week. Eli Lilly spiked by 2.66% and Pfizer rose by 2.26%. Biotech and drugstore stocks were also strong performers on the day.
Consumer staples outperformed consumer discretionary. Tesla bucked that trend as it rose by another 16% today. There was no real theme in the staples space. The area underperformed last week and was in favor today.
Airlines and truckers were a drag on the transports. Airlines saw profit taking after a large move higher over the past few weeks. Truckers were weak on an analyst downgrade.
Source: PFS Group
