Thursday's S&P Sector Recap

By Benjamin Lee
Benzinga Staff Writer
July 28, 2011 5:50 PM

Symbols: AEE, AEP, AES, AFL, AKAM, AKS, AMP, AMT, ATI, AVP, BMC, BMY, BSX, CAM, CBG, CCE, CF, CLF, COG, COV, DHI, DOW, DTE, DV, EFX, EQT, FAST, FIS, GAP, GT, IP, IPG, LIFE, LM, LSI, LUK, MJN, MSI, MUR, MWW, MYL, NKE, OI, PCP, S, SBUX, SYMC, T, TLAB, TWC, VAR, VLO, VZ, WFM, WM, XL, XOM

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The S&P 500 traded in positive territory for most of Thursday's session, led by technology stocks, but selling pressure began to hit the index in the late afternoon hours, causing nearly every Sector to dive into the red.

The Telecomm and Industrials Sectors, which had been weak for most of the session, built upon earlier session losses and led the S&P decline.

The late day selloff was fueled by uncertainty going into Thursday's House budget vote. Traders took the index's early pop as an opportunity to either lock in gains or get short ahead of tonight's outcome.

Thursday's S&P Sector Breakdown is as follows:

The S&P 500 Telecomm Sector was the worst performing area of the index in Thursday's session, finishing down 2.1% on the day. The worst performing stocks in the S&P Telecomm Sector in today's action were:

1) Sprint Nextel (NYSE: S): Shares of Sprint finished down 15.9% from Wednesday's close to $4.34.

2) AT&T (NYSE: T): Shares of AT&T finished down 2.3% from Wednesday's close to $29.26.

3) Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ): Shares of Verizon Communications finished down 1.5% from Wednesday's close to $25.66.

Strength in the Sector:The following Telecomm stocks showed signs of strength in Thursday's session, despite negative overall sector performance:

1) American Tower (NYSE: AMT): Shares of American tower finished up 2.7% from Wednesday's close to $52.60.

2) Luecadia National (NYSE: LUK): Shares of Leucadia finished up 0.9% from Wednesday's close to $33.31.

The S&P Industrials Sector was the second worst performing area of the index in Thursday's action, finishing down 0.9% on the session. The weakest stocks in the S&P Industrials Sector in today's action were:

1) Monster Worldwide (NYSE: MWW): Shares of Monster Worldwide finished down 9.2% from Wednesday's close to $11.93.

2) Owens Illinois (NYSE: OI): Shares of Owens finished down 9% from Wednesday's close to $23.54.

3) Waste Management (NYSE: WM): Shares of Waste Management finished down 8% from Wednesday's close to $32.68.

Strength in the Sector: The following Industrials stocks showed signs of strength in Thursday's session, despite negative overall sector performance:

1) Fidelity National Information Services (NYSE: FIS): Shares of Fidelity finished up 2.2% from Wednesday's close to $30.65.

2) Precision Castparts (NYSE: PCP): Shares of Precision Castparts finished up 2% from Wednesday's close to $159.13.

3) Fastenal (NASDAQ: FAST): Shares of Fastenal finished up 1.8% from Wednesday's close to $33.86.

The S&P Oil & Gas Sector lost 0.7% in Thursday's trading session. The worst performing stocks in the S&P Oil & Gas Sector in today's action were:

1) Murphy Oil (NYSE: MUR): Shares of Murphy finished down 4.5% from Wednesday's close to $63.89.

2) Valero Energy (NYSE: VLO): Shares of Valero finished down 2.4% from Wednesday's close to $24.84.

3) Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM): Shares of Exxon finished down 2.2% from Wednesday's close to $81.46.

Strength in the Sector: The following Oil & Gas stocks showed signs of strength in Thursday's action, despite negative overall sector performance:

1) Cameron International (NYSE: CAM): Shares of Cameron International finished up 9.2% from Wednesay's close to $55.23.

2) Cabot Oil & Gas (NYSE: COG): Shares of Cabot finished up 6.9% from Wednesday's close to $75.83.

3) EQT (NYSE: EQT): Shares of EQT finished up 4.4% from Wednesday's close to $63.92.

The S&P Utilities Sector lost 0.6% in Thursday's session. The weakest performing stocks in the S&P Utilities Sector in today's action were:

1) AES (NYSE: AES): Shares of AES finished down 2% from Wednesday's close to $12.46.

2) Ameren (NYSE: AEE): Shares of Ameren finished down 1.4% from Wednesday's close to $29.35.

3) American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP): Shares of American Electric finished down 1.4% from Wednesday's close to $37.16.

Strength in the Sector: The following Utilities stocks showed signs of strength in Thursday's session, despite negative overall sector performance:

1) DTE Energy (NYSE: DTE): Shares of DTE finished up 0.3% from Wednesday's close to $50.88.

The S&P Consumer Services Sector lost 0.5% in Thursday's session. The weakest performing stocks in the S&P Consumer Services Sector in today's action were:

1) Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE: IPG): Shares of Interpublic finished down 16.3% from Wednesday's close to $10.13.

2) Time Warner Cable (NYSE: TWC): Shares of Time Warner finished down 4.8% from Wednesday's close to $73.43.

3) DeVry (NYSE: DV): Shares of DeVry finished down 3.6% from Wednesday's close to $61.86.

Strength in the Sector: The following Consumer Services stocks showed signs of strength in Thursday's session, despite negative overall sector performance:

1) Gap (NYSE: GAP): Shares of Gap finished up 3% from Wednesday's close to $19.52.

2) Whole Foods Market (NASDAQ: WFM): Shares of Whole foods finished up 2.6% from Wednesday's close to $67.14.

3) Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX): Shares of Starbucks finished up 2.6% from Wednesday's close to $39.98.

The S&P Basic Materials Sector lost 0.2% in Thursday's session. The weakest performing stocks in the S&P Basic Materials Sector in today's action were:

1) Cliffs Natural Resources (NYSE: CLF): Shares of Cliff's finished down 4.3% from Wednesday's close to $89.53.

2) Allegheny Technologies (NYSE: ATI): Shares of Allegheny finished down 2.8% from Wednesday's close to $59.01.

3) AK Steel (NYSE: AKS): Shares of AK Steel finished down 2.3% from Wednesday's close to $12.13.

Strength in the Sector: The following Basic Materials stocks showed signs of strength in Thursday's action, despite negative overall sector performance:

1) International Paper (NYSE: IP): Shares of International Paper finished up 2.2% from Wednesday's close to $30.53.

2) CF Industries (NYSE: CF): Shares of CF finished up 1.9% from Wednesday's close to $158.83.

3) Dow Chemical (NYSE: DOW): Shares of Dow Chemical finished up 1.1% from Wednesday's close to $35.37.

The S&P Health Care Sector lost 0.1% in Thursday's trading session. The worst performing stocks in the S&P Health Care Sector in today's action were:

1) Varian Medical Systems (NYSE: VAR): Shares of Varian finished down 7.6% from Wednesday's close to $62.00.

2) Life Technologies (NASDAQ: LIFE): Shares of Life Technologies finished down 5.3% from Wednesday's close to $45.83.

3) Covidien (NYSE: COV): Shares of Covidien finished down 1.7% from Wednesday's close to $50.72.

The following Health Care stocks showed signs of strength in Thursday's action, despite negative overall sector performance:

1) Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX): Shares of Boston Scientific finished up 8.5% from Wednesday's close to $7.28.

2) Bristol Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY): Shares of Bristol Myers finished up 1.5% from Wednesday's close to $29.05.

3) Mylan (NASDAQ: MYL): Shares of Mylan finished up 1.3% from Wednesday's close to $23.20.

The S&P Financials Sector managed to close slightly in positive territory, gaining 0.03% on the session. The strongest performing stocks in the S&P Financials Sector in today's action were:

1) Equifax (NYSE: EFX): Shares of Equifax finished up 4.5% from Wednesday's close to $34.65.

2) Ameriprise Financial (NYSE: AMP): Shares of Ameriprise finished up 4.3% from Wednesday's close to $53.78.

3) Aflac (NYSE: AFL): Shares of Aflac finished up 4.1% from Wednesday's close to $45.98.

Weakness in the Sector: The following Financial stocks showed signs of weakness in Thursday's action, despite positive overall sector performance:

1) CB Richard Ellis Group (NYSE: CBG): Shares of CB finished down 8.2% from Wednesday's close to $21.05.

2) Legg Mason (NYSE: LM): Shares of Legg Mason finished down 4.1% from Wednesday's close to $29.30.

3) XL Group (NYSE: XL): Shares of XL finished down 2.5% from Wednesday's close to $20.69.

The S&P Consumer Goods Sector gained 0.06% in Thursday's trading session. The strongest performing stocks in the S&P Consumer Goods Sector in today's action were:

1) Mead Johnson (NYSE: MJN): Shares of Mead Johnson finished up 6.3% from Wednesday's close to $71.76.

2) DR Horton (NYSE: DHI): Shares of DR Horton finished up 2.6% from Wednesday's close to $11.90.

3) Nike (NYSE: NKE): Shares of Nike finished up 2% from Wednesday's close to $90.48.

Weakness in the Sector: The following Consumer Goods stocks showed signs of weakness in Thursday's action, despite positive overall sector performance:

1) The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. (NYSE: GT): Shares of Goodyear finished down 7.2% from Wednesday's close to $15.93.

2) Avon Products (NYSE: AVP): Shares of Avon finished down 3.9% from Wednesday's close to $26.65.

3) Coca-Cola Enterprises (NYSE: CCE): Shares of Coca-Cola finished down 3.5% from Wednesday's close to $28.31.

The S&P Technology Sector was the strongest performing area of the index in Thursday's session, gaining 0.2% on the day. The strongest performing stocks in the S&P Technology Sector in today's action were:

1) LSI (NYSE: LSI): Shares of LSI finished up 14.1% from Wednesday's close to $7.35.

2) Symantec (NASDAQ: SYMC): Shares of Symantec finished up 5.8% from Wednesday's close to $19.49.

3) Motorola Solutions (NYSE: MSI): Shares of Motorola Solutions finished up 4.6% from Wednesday's close to $46.37.

Weakness in the sector: The following Technology stocks showed signs of weakness in Thursday's session, despite positive overall sector performance:

1) Akamai Technologies (NASDAQ: AKAM): Shares of Akamai finished down 19.1% from Wednesday's close to $23.84.

2) BMC Software (NASDAQ: BMC): Shares of BMC finished down 8.8% from Wednesday's close to $44.61.

3) Tellabs (NASDAQ: TLAB): Shares of Tellabs finished down 4.5% from Wednesday's close to $4.04.