5 Beaten-Down ETF Buying Opportunities

Select Sector Utilities SPDR

One of the traditional safe-haven sectors when stocks are trending lower is utilities. These are slow, steady dividend payers that hold their ground when times are tough in the economy, and in the equity markets. Yet right now, the market has a bullish appetite, and that means we’ve seen a lack of taste for the Select Sector Utilities SPDR (NYSE:XLU), which holds the biggest energy and power providing stocks around. So far in 2012, we’ve seen a 2.8% slide in XLU. However, I think this trend can reverse course with a flip of the investor sentiment switch. If this rally starts to wobble, look for XLU to see an investor flight to quality that could power the shares higher.