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Wednesday Sector Laggards: Consumer Products, Utilities

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Looking at the sectors faring worst as of midday Wednesday, shares of Consumer Products companies are underperforming other sectors, showing a 0.8% loss. Within the sector, Estee Lauder Cos., Inc. (NYSE:EL) and McCormick & Co Inc (NYSE:MKC) are two large stocks that are lagging, showing a loss of 4.4% and 2.8%, respectively. Among consumer products ETFs, one ETF following the sector is the iShares U.S. Consumer Goods ETF (NYSE:IYK), which is down 0.9% on the day, and up 3.91% year-to-date. Estee Lauder Cos., Inc., meanwhile, is up 0.34% year-to-date, and McCormick & Co Inc is up 11.18% year-to-date. MKC makes up approximately 0.9% of the underlying holdings of IYK.

The next worst performing sector is the Utilities sector, showing a 0.3% loss. Among large Utilities stocks, Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) and Pinnacle West Capital Corp (NYSE:PNW) are the most notable, showing a loss of 1.6% and 1.2%, respectively. One ETF closely tracking Utilities stocks is the Utilities Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLU), which is down 0.3% in midday trading, and up 3.71% on a year-to-date basis. Eversource Energy, meanwhile, is down 4.30% year-to-date, and Pinnacle West Capital Corp is up 3.03% year-to-date. Combined, ES and PNW make up approximately 2.9% of the underlying holdings of XLU.

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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, six sectors are up on the day, while three sectors are down.