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In this brief market review, we will take a look at the various asset classes, sectors, equity categories, ETFs, and stocks that moved the market higher, as well as the market segments that defied the trend by moving lower. Identifying the pockets of strength and weakness allows us to see the direction of significant money flows and their origin.

Another Week, Another Record High

The S&P 500 notched its 47th record high on Friday, reaching the 5862 mark. That puts the S&P 500 on the Top 10 list of years with the most new high days. Here's a look at the last four weeks.

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A Look at Monthly Returns

This next chart shows the monthly returns for the past year. October got off to a shaky start, but it is now solidly in the green. 

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S&P 500 Returns by Decade since the 1950s

For added context, here is a chart showing the average returns (CAGR) by decade since 1950. Our current decade is off to a good start.

During the decade beginning in 2000, an investor would have done better by avoiding the large-cap S&P 500 stocks. Two big bear markets - the Tech bubble bursting and the Global Financial Crisis of 2008 - certainly hurt.

At the opposite extreme, we find that the decade beginning in 1990 was the best an investor could have hoped for. 

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A Look at Drawdowns this Year

Here is a closer look at the pullbacks we've had in 2024, using a drawdown chart. The current drawdown is 0.0% after making a new high on Friday.

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A Look at the Bull Run since it Began Last October

The following chart highlights the 64.0% gain in the S&P 500 from the October 2022 low through Friday's close. We are firmly above the trendline, and it looks like we may have further to run before this rally is over. 

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Major Asset Class Performance

Next, here is a look at the performance of the major asset classes, sorted by last week's returns. I also included the returns since the Oct. 12, 2022 low for additional context.

The best performer last week was Blockchain, as Bitcoin rallied to a near record high. The worst performer was Volatility, as it continued to ebb from last month's mini spike. 

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Equity Sector Performance

For this report, I use the expanded sectors as published by Zacks. They use 16 sectors rather than the standard 11. This gives us added granularity as we survey the winners and losers.

It seems that investors were buying Construction and Utilities, while selling Energy and Healthcare.

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Equity Group Performance

For the groups, I separate the stocks in the S&P 1500 Composite Index by shared characteristics like growth, value, size, cyclical, defensive, and domestic vs. foreign.

The best-performing group last week was Small Cap Value. It appears that investors sold Foreign stocks and bought U.S. stocks. 

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The S&P Top 7

Here is a look at the seven mega-cap stocks that have been leading the market over the past year. These seven stocks account for 64% of the total year-to-date gain in the S&P 500. That's up from 53% just two weeks ago, reflecting the rekindled faith in the AI trade.

Participation in the bull market has broadened on a year-to-date basis, but it is beginning to narrow again. It looks like Nvidia (NVDA) was hit the hardest, while Apple (AAPL) shined.

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The S&P Top 7's Dominance is Reasserting Itself

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The 10 Best-Performing ETFs from Last Week

Uranium miners have been surging higher on the enticing promise of using nuclear power to run the mammoth server farms used by AI. It should be noted that Bitcoin miners also often draw massive amounts of power from the grid. 

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The 10 Worst-Performing ETFs from Last Week

The United States Oil ETF USO was the worst performer last week. China also took a hit as hopes have started to dim regarding the government's stimulus pledge.

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The 10 Best-Performing Stocks from Last Week

Next, here is a look at the 10 best-performing stocks in the S&P 1500 from last week.

Shares of Wolfspeed Inc. (WOLF) have surged higher since it announced State Street Corp's strategic acquisition of Wolfspeed Inc shares.

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The 10 Worst-Performing Stocks from Last Week

Here are the 10 worst-performing stocks in the S&P 1500 last week. 

Service Property Trust. (SVC) announced that it has reduced the quarterly distribution to $0.01 per share, according to Yahoo Finance.

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Final Thoughts

To recap, in the week just past, investors were:

• Selling large-caps and buying small-caps
• Selling foreign stocks and buying U.S. stocks
• Selling oil and buying uranium and gold
• Selling energy and buying construction

My view is that long-term momentum is still healthy, but there will be pullbacks along the way -- maybe even a 10% correction -- until the presidential election is over and settled. Therefore, I'm advising clients not to chase stocks, but to wait for pullbacks to put fresh cash to work.

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