Utilities sector vs S&P 500 (XLU): is it outperforming?
Over the past month, XLU has underperformed the S&P 500 by 10.0 points. Here is where that puts it in the sector rotation — updated daily.
Where XLU sits on the rotation map
Utilities 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.
XLU vs SPY: head-to-head returns
XLU (utilities) and SPY (the S&P 500) side by side over every window Zensei tracks. The spread is the difference — positive means XLU won that window.
Data as of 2026-08-28 · computed from daily adjusted closes · how we measure
The read
Utilities (XLU) is losing its lead. It built a 4.9-point advantage over the S&P 500 across the longer, time-shifted window, but over the past month it has slipped 10.0 points behind the market — the Cooling quadrant of the rotation map. Ranked by one-month spread, it currently stands #113 of the 115 groups Zensei tracks — among the market's weakest pockets right now.
On the shorter tape, XLU's momentum is weakening: the intraday trend that carried the move is cooling across the shorter windows. XLU'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 Utilities Select Sector SPDR, whose 31 tracked holdings are led by NEXTERA ENERGY INC, SOUTHERN CO and DUKE ENERGY CORP. Weighted by portfolio, the fund's holdings trade at roughly 20.8× earnings and 3.3× sales. The thing to watch from here is whether this is a pause or a handoff: cooling groups sometimes reset and reclaim leadership, but a deepening one-month deficit usually means rotation has moved on.
What's inside XLU
Top 10 of 31 tracked holdings, by portfolio weight.
Utilities vs the market — common questions
Is utilities outperforming the S&P 500?
Right now, no: over the past month XLU has underperformed the S&P 500 by 10.0 points. This page updates daily, so the answer reflects current market data rather than a dated article.
What is XLU?
XLU is Utilities Select Sector SPDR, the fund Zensei uses to measure the utilities group against the S&P 500 benchmark (SPY).
Which stocks are in XLU?
XLU's largest tracked positions are NEXTERA ENERGY INC, SOUTHERN CO, DUKE ENERGY CORP, CONSTELLATION ENERGY CORP, AMERICAN ELECTRIC POWER CO INC — 31 holdings in total. The full list, with each stock measured against the group, is available with a free Zensei account.
What quadrant is utilities in right now?
As of the latest daily data, utilities is in the Cooling 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 utilities 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.