The Nasdaq-100 PowerShares QQQ (NasdaqGM: QQQ) fell below its 50-day simple moving average Tuesday for the first time since July with a four-day pullback in top holding Apple (NasdaqGS: AAPL) weighing on the tech-heavy ETF.
Apple shares slipped below $630 a share for the first time since August after piercing $700 last month.
The stock is the largest individual holding in QQQ at 19.1% of the portfolio, according to manager Invesco PowerShares.
The Nasdaq-100 stumbled below the 50-day average Tuesday while SPDR S&P 500 (NYSEArca: SPY) and SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average (NYSEArca: DIA) remain comfortably above the technical indicator.
“The lone sector below its 50-day is Technology, which is also the largest sector in the S&P 500 at roughly 20%. If it weren’t for Tech’s recent underperformance, the overall market would have already made a new high,” Bespoke Investment Group notes.
Apple shares were trading at $628 on Tuesday morning, down about 11% from the all-time high set in September. The company recently launched the latest version of its hot-selling iPhone. [Apple Drags Nasdaq-100 ETF on iPhone 5 Sales]
QQQ, the Nasdaq-100 ETF, is up 23.3% year to date, compared with a 17.8% gain for the S&P 500, according to Morningstar.
From a technical perspective, technical analysts are talking about a potential head and shoulders pattern forming in QQQ. This is a bearish topping formation.
PowerShares QQQ
Full disclosure: Tom Lydon’s clients own QQQ, SPY and AAPL.