Guide

How to read Sector Analysis

Sector Analysis tracks the 11 S&P 500 sector ETFs (SPDR: XLK, XLE, XLV, and so on). It shows today's move, whether volume favors buyers or sellers, and which sectors have momentum relative to SPY — with staged buy and sell signals.

Sector performance

A heatmap of each sector ETF's daily % change. Green is up, red is down, and the color is fully saturated at ±2.5%. It is a one-day reading, so treat it as confirmation of a trend rather than a trend by itself.

Sector volume pressure

Over the last 15, 30, or 60 trading days, volume on up days (close > open) is compared with volume on down days. The buy ratio is the share of that volume traded on up days.

Label	Buy ratio	Meaning
Accumulation	≥ 55%	Buyers in control
Neutral	45% – 55%	No clear side
Distribution	≤ 45%	Sellers in control

Compare windows: a higher 15-day ratio than 60-day ratio means buying is accelerating; a lower one means it is fading.

Sector momentum

Each sector's return is shown relative to SPY over 1 week, 1 month, 3 months, and 6 months. A positive number means the sector beat the market over that window.

Column	What it shows
Score	Weighted relative return: 1M 40%, 3M 40%, 6M 20%. The table is ranked by it.
> 50D	Whether the price is above (▲) or below (▼) its 50-day moving average.
30D vol	30-day buy ratio from the volume pressure calculation.
1W	Shown for early hints only — not used in the score, quadrant, or signals.

Quadrants

Quadrants follow a Relative Rotation Graph: 3-month relative strength (ahead of or behind SPY) against whether the last month is faster than the 3-month average pace.

Quadrant	Relative strength	Direction	Meaning
Leading	Ahead of SPY	Accelerating	Has momentum
Weakening	Ahead of SPY	Slowing	Momentum fading
Lagging	Behind SPY	Slowing	No momentum
Improving	Behind SPY	Accelerating	Early turnaround, unconfirmed

Sectors typically rotate Leading → Weakening → Lagging → Improving → Leading, but they can also flip back and forth near the center.

Buy and sell signals

Signals stage entries and exits instead of all-at-once decisions. A sector is confirmed when its price is above the 50-day average and its 30-day buy ratio is at least 50%.

Buy signal	When	Action (new position)
Avoid	Lagging or Weakening	No momentum to buy into
Starter	Improving, not confirmed	Consider a small first slice
Add	Improving and confirmed	Consider adding
Buy	Leading and confirmed	Momentum with confirmation
Wait	Leading, not confirmed	Wait for the warning sign to clear

Sell signal	When	Action (held position)
Hold	Leading or Improving, no warning signs	Keep the position
Watch	Leading or Improving with a warning sign	Hold, but watch closely
Trim	Weakening, no other warning signs	Consider selling a small slice
Reduce	Weakening plus a warning sign	Consider selling more
Exit	Lagging	Consider exiting what is left

Warning signs are a price below the 50-day average or a 30-day buy ratio under 50%. Signals for one sector can differ by side — for example Starter for a buyer and Watch for a holder means a turn has begun but is not confirmed.

Important caveats

Not financial advice. Signals are mechanical and informational, not recommendations.
Relative, not absolute. A sector can beat SPY and still fall if SPY is falling faster.
Lagging indicators. 1- and 3-month windows react slowly and can flip when relative strength is near zero.
Volume is a proxy. Up-day versus down-day volume approximates buying and selling pressure; it does not measure actual order flow.
Data freshness. Daily bars are cached for up to 15 minutes, so intraday moves may lag slightly.

Access Sector Analysis from the Analysis page under the Sectors tab.