Wednesday Sector Laggards: Energy, Utilities

The worst performing sector as of midday Wednesday is the Energy sector, showing a 1.9% loss. Within the sector, Marathon Petroleum Corp. (Symbol: MPC) and Valero Energy Corp (Symbol: VLO) are two of the day's laggards, showing a loss of 5.4% and 4.6%, respectively. Among energy ETFs, one ETF following the sector is the Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (Symbol: XLE), which is down 2.0% on the day, and down 0.55% year-to-date. Marathon Petroleum Corp., meanwhile, is down 2.61% year-to-date, and Valero Energy Corp is up 0.24% year-to-date. Combined, MPC and VLO make up approximately 6.1% of the underlying holdings of XLE.

The next worst performing sector is the Utilities sector, showing a 0.8% loss. Among large Utilities stocks, NRG Energy Inc (Symbol: NRG) and FirstEnergy Corp (Symbol: FE) are the most notable, showing a loss of 2.8% and 1.9%, respectively. One ETF closely tracking Utilities stocks is the Utilities Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLU), which is down 0.8% in midday trading, and up 2.25% on a year-to-date basis. NRG Energy Inc, meanwhile, is up 8.55% year-to-date, and FirstEnergy Corp, is down 2.04% year-to-date. Combined, NRG and FE make up approximately 3.4% of the underlying holdings of XLU.

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 Wednesday. As you can see, seven sectors are up on the day, while two sectors are down.

25 Dividend Giants Widely Held By ETFs »

Also see:

• GPI YTD Return
• Funds Holding IOO
• CSB Options Chain

The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.