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The best performing sector as of midday Friday is the Energy sector, up 1.6%. Within that group, Valero Energy Corp (Symbol: VLO) and Marathon Petroleum Corp. (Symbol: MPC) are two large stocks leading the way, showing a gain of 3.5% and 2.7%, respectively. Among energy ETFs, one ETF following the sector is the Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (Symbol: XLE), which is up 1.8% on the day, and up 11.27% year-to-date. Valero Energy Corp, meanwhile, is up 21.80% year-to-date, and Marathon Petroleum Corp. is up 20.23% year-to-date. Combined, VLO and MPC make up approximately 7.3% of the underlying holdings of XLE.

The next best performing sector is the Utilities sector, up 1.1%. Among large Utilities stocks, Entergy Corp (Symbol: ETR) and NiSource Inc. (Symbol: NI) are the most notable, showing a gain of 3.5% and 3.3%, respectively. One ETF closely tracking Utilities stocks is the Utilities Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLU), which is up 0.8% in midday trading, and up 14.60% on a year-to-date basis. Entergy Corp, meanwhile, is up 12.42% year-to-date, and NiSource Inc. is up 10.85% year-to-date. Combined, ETR and NI make up approximately 3.2% of the underlying holdings of XLU.

Comparing these stocks and ETFs on a trailing twelve month basis, below is a relative stock price performance chart, with each of the symbols shown in a different color as labeled in the legend at the bottom:

Here's a snapshot of how the S&P 500 components within the various sectors are faring in afternoon trading on Friday. As you can see, six sectors are up on the day, while one sector is down.

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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.