Nuclear Energy vs the S&P 500 (NLR): is it outperforming?
Over the past month, NLR has outperformed the S&P 500 by 7.4 points. Here is where that puts it in the sector rotation — updated daily.
Where NLR sits on the rotation map
Nuclear 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.
NLR vs SPY: head-to-head returns
NLR (nuclear energy) and SPY (the S&P 500) side by side over every window Zensei tracks. The spread is the difference — positive means NLR won that window.
Data as of 2026-08-28 · computed from daily adjusted closes · how we measure
The read
Nuclear Energy (NLR) has just turned the corner. Over the longer, time-shifted window it trailed the S&P 500 by 18.6 points, but over the past month it has moved decisively ahead of the market — a 7.4-point edge that puts it in the Emerging quadrant. Ranked by one-month spread, it currently stands #23 of the 115 groups Zensei tracks.
On the shorter tape, NLR's momentum is weakening: the intraday trend that carried the move is cooling across the shorter windows. NLR's relative-strength line has dropped below its moving averages — the outperformance trend is fading. Both signals point the same direction here: the market is not rewarding this group on either horizon.
The exposure comes via VanEck Uranium+Nuclear Energy ETF, whose 13 tracked holdings are led by CONSTELLATION ENERGY CORP, PUBLIC SERVICE ENTERPRISE GROUP INC and BWX TECHNOLOGIES INC. Weighted by portfolio, the fund's holdings trade at roughly 42.8× earnings and 819.8× sales. The thing to watch from here is confirmation: emerging groups that hold a positive one-month spread long enough for the longer window to turn are the classic early-rotation entries — the ones that fail fall back quickly.
What's inside NLR
Top 5 of 13 tracked holdings, by portfolio weight.
Nuclear Energy vs the market — common questions
Is nuclear energy outperforming the S&P 500?
Right now, yes: over the past month NLR has outperformed the S&P 500 by 7.4 points. This page updates daily, so the answer reflects current market data rather than a dated article.
What is NLR?
NLR is VanEck Uranium+Nuclear Energy ETF, the fund Zensei uses to measure the nuclear energy group against the S&P 500 benchmark (SPY).
Which stocks are in NLR?
NLR's largest tracked positions are CONSTELLATION ENERGY CORP, PUBLIC SERVICE ENTERPRISE GROUP INC, BWX TECHNOLOGIES INC, CENTRUS ENERGY CORP CLASS A, URANIUM ENERGY CORP — 13 holdings in total. The full list, with each stock measured against the group, is part of Zensei Premium.
What quadrant is nuclear energy in right now?
As of the latest daily data, nuclear energy is in the Emerging quadrant — behind the market over the longer window, but ahead over the past month. The quadrant rules are documented on the Zensei methodology page.
Related sectors
Track nuclear 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.