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S&P 500
S&P 500: Energy and Healthcare Take the Lead as Tech Slips
Leadership in the S&P 500 is shifting from technology and communication services towards energy and healthcare. Over the four weeks to 30 October, the benchmark fell 1.1%, while its equal-weighted counterpart gained 4.4%. The divergence points to sector rotation: market leadership is broadening despite pressure on the headline index.
S&P 500 slips as market breadth improves
The S&P 500 ended October near 7,580, down 1.8% on the final trading day and 3.1% below its record high. Beneath the surface, however, participation has improved: 59% of index constituents are trading above their 200-day moving average, up from 41% at the start of October.
Longer-term market breadth has therefore strengthened. Weakness among the largest index constituents is masking the more resilient performance of many other stocks.
Sector rotation relative to the S&P 500 and selected stocks.
Energy and healthcare lead the sector rotation
The sector matrix places energy and healthcare ahead of the S&P 500 over both three months and four weeks. Consumer staples have also joined the leading group, while technology and communication services are losing relative strength.
| Sector | Four-week performance relative to the S&P 500 |
|---|---|
| Energy | +12.9 percentage points |
| Healthcare | +12.3 percentage points |
| Consumer staples | +12.8 percentage points |
| Technology | −6.4 percentage points |
| Communication services | −13.0 percentage points |
These figures measure outperformance or underperformance against the index, rather than observed capital flows. Weakness in communication services is particularly pronounced: Alphabet and Meta fell 17.3% and 15.3%, respectively, over four weeks.
Refiners and healthcare stocks in focus
Marathon Petroleum Corp (24 Hours) and Phillips 66 (24 Hours) stand out alongside healthcare names Revvity Inc (24 Hours), Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc (24 Hours), Agilent Technologies Inc (24 Hours) and Veeva Systems Inc. Their R² readings range from 0.82 to 0.93, indicating relatively consistent upward trends over the three-month window. This does not establish whether those trends will continue.
All six stocks are trading below their regression trend lines. Marathon Petroleum sits 6.8% below its line and Revvity 4.9% below. These pullbacks put the durability of the existing uptrends in focus.
S&P 500 outlook for November
Oil prices, refining margins, interest rates and investor scrutiny of AI spending remain key to the rotation. Energy and healthcare lead on relative strength, with consumer staples following. Improving market breadth is constructive, but it does not by itself confirm a renewed rally in the broader index.
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