Clean Energy vs the S&P 500 (ICLN): is it outperforming?
Over the past month, ICLN has underperformed the S&P 500 by 12.0 points. Here is where that puts it in the sector rotation — updated daily.
Where ICLN sits on the rotation map
Clean Energy highlighted against the 11 broad S&P 500 sectors. Vertical: 1-month spread vs the S&P 500. Horizontal: the longer, time-shifted window — the methodology explains the math.
ICLN vs SPY: head-to-head returns
ICLN (clean energy) and SPY (the S&P 500) side by side over every window Zensei tracks. The spread is the difference — positive means ICLN won that window.
Data as of 2026-07-13 · computed from daily adjusted closes · how we measure
The read
Clean Energy (ICLN) is losing its lead. It built a 2.2-point advantage over the S&P 500 across the longer, time-shifted window, but over the past month it has slipped 12.0 points behind the market — the weakening quadrant of the rotation map. Ranked by one-month spread, it currently stands #106 of the 115 groups Zensei tracks — among the market's weakest pockets right now.
On the shorter tape, ICLN's momentum is weakening: the intraday trend that carried the move is cooling across the shorter windows. ICLN's relative-strength line has broken below its long-term average — the long-term outperformance trend is no longer intact. Both signals point the same direction here: the market is not rewarding this group on either horizon.
The exposure comes via iShares Global Clean Energy ETF, whose 16 tracked holdings are led by BLOOM ENERGY CORP CLASS A, FIRST SOLAR INC and NEXTPOWER INC CLASS A. Weighted by portfolio, the fund's holdings trade at roughly 47.5× earnings and 12.1× sales. The thing to watch from here is whether this is a pause or a handoff: weakening groups sometimes reset and reclaim leadership, but a deepening one-month deficit usually means rotation has moved on.
What's inside ICLN
Top 5 of 16 tracked holdings, by portfolio weight.
Clean Energy vs the market — common questions
Is clean energy outperforming the S&P 500?
Right now, no: over the past month ICLN has underperformed the S&P 500 by 12.0 points. This page updates daily, so the answer reflects current market data rather than a dated article.
What is ICLN?
ICLN is iShares Global Clean Energy ETF, the fund Zensei uses to measure the clean energy group against the S&P 500 benchmark (SPY).
Which stocks are in ICLN?
ICLN's largest tracked positions are BLOOM ENERGY CORP CLASS A, FIRST SOLAR INC, NEXTPOWER INC CLASS A, ENPHASE ENERGY INC, PLUG POWER INC — 16 holdings in total. The full list, with each stock measured against the group, is part of Zensei Premium.
What quadrant is clean energy in right now?
As of the latest daily data, clean energy is in the weakening quadrant — still ahead over the longer window, but behind the market over the past month. The quadrant rules are documented on the Zensei methodology page.
Related sectors
Track clean energy against the whole market
Zensei Edge maps 100+ sectors and themes against the S&P 500 — with the stocks inside each one, rotation history and alerts when leadership changes hands.