Utilities Select Sector SPDR (NYSEArca: XLU) and other defensive, dividend-paying sector ETFs were crushing the S&P 500 until mid-April.
However, the utilities ETF’s year-to-date performance edge has been completely erased so far in May.
Among the nine major S&P 500 sector ETFs, only XLU is in the red for the month with a 3.6% decline. The utilities ETF is trailing the S&P 500 by nearly 7 percentage points in May. [Sector Rotation: Defensive ETFs Lead Outflows]
Yet Investors Intelligence technical analyst says a defensive rotation may actually be commencing back into the utilities.