Thursday's ETF Winners & Losers

The iShares Dow Jones U.S. Aerospace & Defense (ITA Quote) exchange-traded fund was one of very few winners during a losing session Thursday, thanks to a gain in shares of Boeing (BA Quote).

The aircraft company supported the ETF and kept the Dow Jones Industrial Average from slumping further into negative territory. Boeing reached an all-time high of $98.84 a share one day after CEO Jim McNerney backed the aerospace giant's outlook for the next two years. Boeing was recently up $2.56, or 2.7%, to $98.13. The rise buoyed the iShares Dow Jones U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF, which was adding 29 cents, or 0.5%, to $61.04.

Utility-related ETFs were among the biggest losers of the session. Among individual names, FPL Group (FPL Quote) was down 3.3%, Exelon (EXC Quote) slid 3.1%, American Electric Power (AEP Quote) was lower by 2.7%, and Duke Energy (DUK Quote) eased 1.5%.

The Ultra Utilities ProShares (UPW Quote) was shedding $3.13, or 4%, to $88.87. The Vanguard Utilities ETF (VPU Quote) lost $1.46, or 2%, to $86.69. The Utility HOLDRs (UTH Quote) was falling by $2.65, or 1.9%, to $147.32.

ETFs tracking metals and mining were also among the day's worst performers. Gold was recently lower by $7 to $655.60 an ounce, and silver was falling by 21 cents to $12.89 an ounce.

The PowerShares DB Base Metals (DBB Quote) ETF was falling by 90 cents, or 3.1%, to $25.94. The PowerShares DB Silver (DBS Quote) ETF was off 56 cents, or 2.2%, to $25.16. The Market Vectors Gold Miners (GDX Quote) ETF was lower by 81 cents, or 2.1%, to $38.51. The Market Vectors Steel (SLX Quote) ETF was down $1.18, or 1.8%, to $63.42.

Bundled securities tracking semiconductors were also losing ground. Various holdings were lower by 1% or more, including Intel (INTC Quote), Maxim Integrated (MXIM Quote), Xilinx (XLNX Quote), and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD Quote).

The Ultra Semiconductor ProShares (USD Quote) ETF was shedding $1.82, or 2.3%, at $76.92. The SPDR S&P Semiconductor (XSD Quote) ETF eased 88 cents, or 1.7% to $51.01. The Semiconductor HOLDRs (SMH Quote) ETF was recently down 39 cents, or 0.6%, to $36.23. The PowerShares Dynamic Semiconductors (PSI Quote) ETF was lower by 17 cents, or 1%, at $18.71.