It's been all about energy stocks in the S&P 500 this year. But not entirely.
Ten non-energy S&P 500 stocks, including materials firm CF Industries, information technology Enphase and materials firm Mosaic, joined energy firms to be up 30% or more this year. And that's quite a feat as roughly two-thirds of the S&P 500 stocks up that much this year are all in the energy sector.
Seeing stocks in more sectors joining in the market's summer trend is a welcome sign for the S&P 500, which continues to struggle to break even this year. The S&P 500 is still down more than 12% this year.
"The recent market decline is a normal digestion of gains after being rebuffed at the 200-day moving average," said Sam Stovall, chief market strategist at CFRA.
S&P 500 Energy Dominates
If you're tired of seeing energy stocks dominate the S&P 500, it's easy to see why. Energy started rallying in January and hasn't stopped.
The Energy Select Sector SPDR is up more than 50% this year. That makes it, by far, the strongest performing sector in the S&P 500. Utilities are a remote second with the Utilities Select Sector SPDR up 7.4% on the year. And looking at the top 10 stocks in the S&P 500 really shows energy's grip on this market. Eight of the top 10 stocks in the S&P 500 are all from the energy sector.
But that doesn't mean you can't find winners outside of the oil patch.
S&P 500 Winners Outside Of Energy
If you're wondering where you could make the most money outside of energy this year the choice is CF Industries.
Shares of the fertilizer company are up more than 65% this year, which actually tops the remarkable gains of some top energy firms like Exxon Mobil. Why all the enthusiasm? Investors aren't going to have to wait long for some remarkable profit growth. Analysts think the company will earn $19.19 a share in 2022. And if they're right, that would mark profit growth of nearly 200%. Also joining this theme is potash company Mosaic. Shares of the materials company are up more than 55% this year.
What's the only big winner in S&P 500 technology? It's not any of the megacaps like Apple or Microsoft. It's solar power software company Enphase. Shares of the company, with its leading CEO, are up more than 60% this year. Again, it's a story of growth. Analysts think the company's profit will surge nearly 70% this year and another 23% in 2023.
And in health care? McKesson, a provider of medical equipment is the go-to. Shares are up more than 45%, delivering an energy stock-like gain. Analysts think the company's profit will rise more than 2% in fiscal 2023. But here's the important part: persistence. Profit is seen rising every year from now until at least 2027.
And that counts for something in a time investors seem to like a sure thing.
Biggest S&P 500 Gainers This Year Outside Of Energy
All are up 30% or more this year
| Company | Symbol | YTD stock % ch. | Sector |
|---|---|---|---|
| CF Industries | 65.9% | Materials | |
| Enphase Energy | 63.9 | Information Technology | |
| Mosaic | 57.6 | Materials | |
| McKesson | 47.6 | Health Care | |
| Nielsen Holdings | 35.7 | Industrials | |
| Archer-Daniels-Midland | 34.5 | Consumer Staples | |
| Cardinal Health | 34.2 | Health Care | |
| Corteva | 33.8 | Materials | |
| Vertex Pharmaceuticals | 32.6 | Health Care | |
| Lamb Weston | 30.3 | Consumer Staples |
Sources: IBD, S&P Global Market Intelligence
Follow Matt Krantz on Twitter @mattkrantz
