S&P 500 Pushes Toward 25% Gain Since March 9th

At 842, the S&P is pushing near a 25% gains since it bottomed for the year-to-date at 677 on March 9th.

The bank stocks continue an extraordinary run over that period. Citigroup (C) is up 120% and Bank of America (BAC) has risen nearly 100%. GE (GE) has recovered from concerns about its financial unit and it up 40% for the period.

The large tech stocks have not outperformed that market. Microsoft (MSFT) and Cisco (CSCO) are up about the same amount as the S&P. Media and internet companies have fallen behind the market. Google (GOOG) is up less than 10% and TimeWarner (TWX) is flat.

Big oil has not done terribly well. Exxon (XOM) is up only 8%, well below that improvement for the S&P. Big Pharm has also had a mediocre run with Pfizer (PFE) and Merck (MRK) doing no better than the market index.

Douglas A. McIntyre