Most stock ETFs wafted higher Friday as investors kept a close eye on the beleaguered financial industry.
Notwithstanding this week's woes for the CEOs of Wells Fargo (WFC) and Deutsche Bank (DB), the financial sector led the day's gains in the S&P 500.
SPDR S&P 500 (SPY), a proxy for the broad U.S. market, tacked on a 0.8% gain on the stock market today.
The $197.3 billion SPY ETF eked out a 0.1% weekly gain, finishing the month of September basically flat. It rose 3.8% in the third quarter to take its 2016 gain to 7.7%.
SPY now sits 2% below the all-time high of 219.60 it made in August.
Financial Select Sector SPDR (XLF) popped 1.4% Friday but posted a mild weekly loss. The ETF slumped hard on Thursday after banks came under fire amid disclosures about phantom accounts at Wells Fargo and reports that hedge funds are reducing exposure to the embattled German lender Deutsche Bank.
Shares of Deutsche Bank listed in the U.S. have been brutalized over the past year and fell to a record low on Thursday, but rallied 14.0% Friday. Shares of Wells Fargo hit a fresh 52-week low Friday.
IBD'S TAKE: As Deutsche Bank crumbles, learn more about which bank stocks could be buying opportunities.
For the week, energy was the best-performing sector in the S&P 500, up 4.4%. Utilities fared worst, down 3.8%.
Utilities Select Sector SPDR (XLU) fell every session of this week and lost support at the key 50-day moving average.
The sector is one of the best performers in the S&P 500 year to date, up 16.0%, but XLU now sits 7% below its July high.
12 Bellwether ETFs
Here's how major exchange traded funds across major asset classes performed today, with IBD Relative Price Strength (RS) Ratings.
The RS Rating is a measure of a stock's price performance over the last 12 months, compared with all stocks and ETFs, on a scale of 1 to a best-possible 99.
Following daily ETF market action can be key to successful investing:
SPDR S&P 500 (SPY), +0.8%, RS 50
PowerShares QQQ (QQQ), +0.7%, RS 67
SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average (DIA), +0.9%, RS 45
IShares Core S&P Mid-Cap (IJH), +0.8%, RS 58
IShares Russell 2000 (IWM), +1.1%, RS 65
IShares MSCI EAFE (EFA), +0.8%, RS 41
Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets (VWO), +0.7%, RS 65
SPDR Gold Shares (GLD), -0.3%, RS 67
United States Oil (USO), +0.6%, RS 19
IShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond (AGG), -0.1%, RS 37
PowerShares DB U.S.$ Bullish (UUP), 0%, RS 26
IPath S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures (VXX), -3.7%, RS 1
