Here Are the U.S. Stock Sectors to Watch in 2017

Bank of America (BAC) - Get Report expects the S&P 500 to gain steam in 2017, but there are a few sectors to keep an eye on. Savita Subramanian, head of U.S. equity and quantitative strategy at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, likes the financials and consumer discretionary sectors, but not materials. She favors health care as a defensive pick, over consumer staples. She likes telecommunications services due to high dividend yields and healthy valuations. Subramanian is steering clear of utilities and consumer staples. "Those are two overpriced bond proxies that we think are likely to disappoint rather than deliver," she said. The S&P 500 is up 4.7% since Donald Trump clinched the presidential election on November 8. The best performing S&P 500 sector since then has been financials, rising some 17.5%. TheStreet's Scott Gamm reports from New York.