Wednesday's ETF Winners & Losers
Exchange-traded funds tracking basic materials were among the top performers of Wednesday's session, thanks to a nearly 2% gain in
Alcoa
(AA)
.
Before the opening bell, Bear Stearns downgraded
Alcan
(AL)
to peer perform from outperform. Last month, Alcoa made a $27 billion bid for Alcan, and Bear Stearns said it was doubtful that Alcan would receive a rivaling bid.
The
Ultra Basic Materials ProShares
(UYM)
ETF was recently adding $1.88, or 2.2%, to $87.16. The
Materials Select Sector SPDR
(XLB)
was gaining 56 cents, or 1.4%, to $40.12. The
iShares Dow Jones U.S. Basic Materials
TheStreet Recommends
(IYM)
ETF was higher by 87 cents, or 1.3%, to $69.48.
Energy-related ETFs were also among the winners Wednesday, as the latest read on crude and gasoline stocks had oil and gas prices moving higher.
The Energy Department's weekly inventory report showed a meager gain of 100,000 barrels in crude inventories. Gasoline stocks were unchanged from last week, and distillate stocks rose by only 300,000 barrels. The front-month July crude contract was up 33 cents to $65.68 a barrel, and gasoline was adding 2 cents at $2.14 a gallon.
The
SPDR S&P Oil & Gas Equipment & Services
(XES)
ETF was adding 87 cents, or 2.4%, to $36.15. The
Oil Services HOLDRs
(OIH)
was higher by $3.44, or 2.1%, to $170.56. The
iShares Dow Jones U.S. Oil Equipment Index
(IEZ)
ETF was recently up $1.12, or 1.9%, to $56.06. The
PowerShares Dynamic Oil & Gas Services
(PXJ)
was rising 51 cents, or 2.1%, to $25.04.
The
B2B Internet HOLDRs
(BHH)
ETF was also among the gainers of the day as holding
Checkfree
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added 2.1%. The ETF was recently higher by 4 cents, or 2.7%, to $2.29.
On the losing side, the
iShares Dow Jones U.S. Healthcare Provider
(IHF)
ETF was among the few decliners, down 0.5%. The ETF suffered from losses in holdings
Humana
(HUM)
,
Cigna
(CI)
and
Coventry Health
(CVH)
.
The iShares Dow Jones U.S. Healthcare Provider was down 36 cents to $59.40.
The
Internet Infrastructure HOLDRs
(IIH)
ETF was also losing ground, due to declines of 1.2% or more in holdings
NaviSite
(NAVI)
and
InfoSpace
(INSP)
. The ETF was recently lower by 3 cents, or 0.6%, to $5.39.
