We were reminded as we began our regular review of risk-off sectors that the majority of S&P 500 sectors are still in negative territory for 2023.
Information Technology, Communication Services, and Consumer Discretionary are each on pace for a banner year. Meanwhile, investing in any other space would have yielded a return substantially less than the benchmark index. Here’s how the sectors have stacked up since year-end:
The Health Care sector is near the bottom of the pile. It’s not so much because Health Care stocks are falling, but more that they just aren’t doing much of anything. The sector has been rangebound for 2 years now, stuck between the 161.8% Fibonacci retracement from the COVID selloff and the 2022 peak. Its current price is also sitting directly atop a flat 200-day moving average.