Recently I wrote that the Energy and Financials sectors are no longer undervalued and are in fact now getting into overheated territory. Tech is very overbought even still after this selloff. I wanted to look at the rest of the S&P 500 sector ETFs to see if any of them are decent values. My assumption is that none are because the S&P is near all-time highs, but let’s check anyway.
Utilities (XLU):
Not bad, actually.
Healthcare (XLV):
Close to all-time highs, but not terrible on the RSI. Still, though, much closer to overbought than oversold.
Consumer discretionary/cyclical (XLY):
Definitely in overbought territory.
Consumer staples (XLP):
Not cheap by any means, but definitely not overbought.
Materials (XLB):
Overbought.
Telecoms (XTL):
Overbought. The rally has already happened.
Retail (XRT):
Somehow the most overbought of them all. At an all-time high.
Communications (XLC):
It’s a relatively new ETF from SPDR so there’s not much historical data, but it’s in overbought territory on the RSI.
Semiconductors (XSD):
Significantly overbought.
Pharmaceuticals (XPH):
Not terrible, actually. RSI is still 64 so it’s by no means a bargain.
Gold (GLD):
Still not far off of all-time highs. Looks like it has already rolled over into a bear market, though. I see more downside than upside here. But then again, it is gold, not a company with a balance sheet.
Biotech (XBI):
Looks to be rolling over, but still quite overheated.
Homebuilders (XHB):
All-time high. Definitely overbought.
Metals & mining (XME):
Nowhere near all-time highs, but getting close to overbought territory on RSI.
Real estate (XLRE):
Not horrible, actually. I assumed this would be way higher and clearly into overbought territory given the surge in home prices this past year.
So those are the main sectors, and then some, of the S&P 500.
Of the 15 ETFs listed, none are screaming buys. If I had to pick two that I think look the best, I’d say Utilities and Healthcare, and that’s only because they’re the least overbought on the RSI.
The “value plays” are few and far between out there. Just about everything is richly valued right now.
That’s why I don’t buy (literally and figuratively) this “sector rotation” talk. There’s no real “safe” sectors right now.
My portfolio is currently hedged; I’m anticipating a serious correction at some point in the near future, but I also have long plays in case the market keeps going up.