West Texas Intermediate futures are higher by nearly 5% Wednesday. The United States Oil Fund (NYSEArca: USO) is up more than 20% over the past month, good enough for new bull market territory.
New found oil ebullience has pushed the Energy Select Sector SPDR (NYSEArca: XLE) higher by nearly 9% over the past month and those good vibes are matriculating to XLE’s equal-weight counterpart, the Guggenheim S&P Equal Weight Energy ETF (NYSEArca: RYE).
The $158 million RYE has climbed nearly 14% over the past month. That could be confirmation more upside is ahead for the ETF, which debuted in November 2006 and is home to 41. Chris Kimble of Kimble Charting Solutions notes that RYE recently found support at the bottom of a five-year rising channel, which could be a bullish for an ETF that has spent most of the past four months trading sideways.
XLE was the worst performer among the nine sector SPDR ETFs in 2014, but there are signs the energy sector is starting to turn around. For example, a ratio comparison of the largest equity-based energy ETF against the S&P 500 indicates energy stocks are perking up against the broader market. When the S&P 500/XLE ratio is heading upward, that means energy stocks are weakening relative to the broader market. [Good News for Energy ETFs]
An energy resurgence will benefit RYE in part because the ETF is not heavily allocated to the sector’s mega-cap names. While Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM) and Chevron (NYSE: CVX), the two largest U.S. oil companies, often combine for close to 30% or more of the weight of ETFs like XLE, those stocks combined for just 4.6% of RYE. RYE’s holdings range in weight from almost 2.1% to nearly 2.8%.