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HEADLINES:

Fed Tries To Refill Bulls' Fuel Tank As Cyclicals Take The Lead
Scott Martindale • Thu, May 23
Investors Stay Focused On Their Silver Linings Playbook
Scott Martindale • Thu, May 16 • 3 Comments
Bulls Start Their Move Into Cyclicals
Scott Martindale • Thu, May 9
Earnings Beat Rate By Sector
Bespoke Investment Group • Fri, Apr 26 • 1 Comment
Stocks May Stumble, But Will Not Fall
Scott Martindale • Thu, Apr 25
Stocks Succumb To The 'New News'
Scott Martindale • Thu, Apr 18 • 1 Comment
Bent But Not Yet Broken
Bespoke Investment Group • Mon, Apr 15 • 2 Comments
Bulls Reclaim Their Mojo As Healthcare Leads
Scott Martindale • Thu, Apr 11 • 2 Comments
Skittishness Neutralizes Bullish Conviction
Scott Martindale • Thu, Apr 4
Long-Term Sector Charts
Bespoke Investment Group • Wed, Apr 3 • 3 Comments
Transports Try To Prod Bulls Ever Forward
Scott Martindale • Thu, Mar 28 • 6 Comments
Bears Trot Out Cyprus In Vain Attempt To Derail Bulls
Scott Martindale • Thu, Mar 21 • 3 Comments
Rising Market Risk Ushers In A Time For Caution
SmartStops • Fri, Mar 15 • 3 Comments
Healthcare Sector Leads A Strong Market Forward
Scott Martindale • Thu, Mar 14
Why Asset Allocations Fail And What You Can Do About It
David Cretcher • Thu, Mar 7 • 6 Comments
Sector Detector: Lead, Follow, Or Get Out Of The Way
Scott Martindale • Thu, Mar 7 • 2 Comments
Sequestration And Money Pressure: Prepare For Deflation
David Cretcher • Thu, Feb 28 • 7 Comments
Market Provides A Welcome Entry Point
Scott Martindale • Thu, Feb 28 • 3 Comments
Bulls Seek New Blood To Boost Conviction
Scott Martindale • Thu, Feb 21 • 3 Comments
Best And Worst ETFs And Mutual Funds: Utilities Sector
David Trainer • Fri, Feb 15 • 2 Comments

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iShares' Chief Investment Strategist: Energy Is 'The' Sector For 2012; Avoid Utilities [Video]
Russ Koesterich • Tue, Dec 20, 2011 • 3 Comments
Treasury Rate Breakout Reflects on Utilities
Carlos X. Alexandre • Mon, Feb 7, 2011
Utility Energy Is Not Customer Energy
Vinod Dar • Wed, May 6, 2009
The U.S. Energy Utility Regulatory Model May Fail
Vinod Dar • Tue, Feb 10, 2009 • 1 Comment
Interest Rate Barometer Tells All: DJUA Index Hits a 52-Week Low
The Sovereign Society • Wed, Aug 6, 2008 • 1 Comment
Portfolio Building With Forward Looking Asset Allocation
Geoff Considine • Fri, Jan 19, 2007 • 10 Comments

Fed Tries To Refill Bulls' Fuel Tank As Cyclicals Take The Lead
Scott Martindale • Thu, May 23
Investors Stay Focused On Their Silver Linings Playbook
Scott Martindale • Thu, May 16 • 3 Comments
Bulls Start Their Move Into Cyclicals
Scott Martindale • Thu, May 9
Earnings Beat Rate By Sector
Bespoke Investment Group • Fri, Apr 26 • 1 Comment
Stocks May Stumble, But Will Not Fall
Scott Martindale • Thu, Apr 25
Stocks Succumb To The 'New News'
Scott Martindale • Thu, Apr 18 • 1 Comment
Bent But Not Yet Broken
Bespoke Investment Group • Mon, Apr 15 • 2 Comments
Bulls Reclaim Their Mojo As Healthcare Leads
Scott Martindale • Thu, Apr 11 • 2 Comments
Skittishness Neutralizes Bullish Conviction
Scott Martindale • Thu, Apr 4
Long-Term Sector Charts
Bespoke Investment Group • Wed, Apr 3 • 3 Comments
Transports Try To Prod Bulls Ever Forward
Scott Martindale • Thu, Mar 28 • 6 Comments
Bears Trot Out Cyprus In Vain Attempt To Derail Bulls
Scott Martindale • Thu, Mar 21 • 3 Comments
Rising Market Risk Ushers In A Time For Caution
SmartStops • Fri, Mar 15 • 3 Comments
Healthcare Sector Leads A Strong Market Forward
Scott Martindale • Thu, Mar 14
Why Asset Allocations Fail And What You Can Do About It
David Cretcher • Thu, Mar 7 • 6 Comments
Sector Detector: Lead, Follow, Or Get Out Of The Way
Scott Martindale • Thu, Mar 7 • 2 Comments
Sequestration And Money Pressure: Prepare For Deflation
David Cretcher • Thu, Feb 28 • 7 Comments
Market Provides A Welcome Entry Point
Scott Martindale • Thu, Feb 28 • 3 Comments
Bulls Seek New Blood To Boost Conviction
Scott Martindale • Thu, Feb 21 • 3 Comments
Best And Worst ETFs And Mutual Funds: Utilities Sector
David Trainer • Fri, Feb 15 • 2 Comments

There are no Transcripts on IDU.

Weekend Investor: Water scarcity could be liquid gold for investors

at MarketWatch.com (Mar 1, 2013)
Conrad de Aenlle's Funds For Thought: Dividend ETFs may be first ‘fiscal cliff’ casualty

at MarketWatch.com (Dec 6, 2012)
Video: Trading Strategies for June: The Summer Slowdown

at MarketWatch.com (Jun 1, 2012)

IDU vs. ETF Alternatives

IDU Description

The iShares Dow Jones U.S. Utilities Sector Index Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of U.S. utilities stocks, as represented by the Dow Jones U.S. Utilities Index.
See more details on sponsor's website

Sector: Utilities

Country: United States

Key Info

In Your Portfolio: A Guide to Sector ETFs, Utilities ETFs
Asset Class Performance: Sectors

All
| Earnings
| Dividends
| M&A
| On the move

Friday, May 24, 2:25 PM There's some green on the screen about 90 minutes before the bell with the Dow (DIA, DOG) nosing into positive territory and the S&P 500 and Nasdaq now lower by only a hair. Today's weakest sector is the utilities (XLU -1.1%), continuing a bad month that's seen the once-leading group underperform the S&P by nearly 1000 basis points. YTD, the S&P's now ahead of utilities by about 500 bps. 2 Comments
Thursday, May 23, 12:50 PM The defensive utility sector (XLU -1%) isn’t looking very safe at the moment, as the break below the 50-day moving average suggests further weakness in the days ahead. Technician Ralph Acampora sees the break as a short-term sell for the Dow Jones Utility index but also a longer-term positive for the broader market as investors rotate out of defensive sectors and into more economically sensitive stocks. 1 Comment [Energy, Quick Ideas]
Monday, May 13, 2:13 PM Defensive stocks such as utilities (XLU -0.4%), which have led this year’s market surge, are fading, and investors should consider cyclical sectors such as tech and energy for long-term value, BlackRock's Russ Koesterich recommends. The utilities sector is overpriced and probably has more room to fall, but investors starved for yields should look at dividend-paying companies from outside the U.S. Comment! [Energy, Tech]
Thursday, May 9, 12:12 PM Stocks recover from early losses, returning to about unchanged in the noon hour. Notably lower today is the utility sector (XLU -1.2%) which is used to outperforming, but not this month. Ahead of the S&P 500 by about 700 basis points at the start of May, the XLU is now even with the broader market for the year. 3 Comments
Monday, May 6, 7:27 AM The S&P 500 (SPY) is fairly valued, says Goldman, but opportunity lies in cyclicals (XLY, XLE, XLI, XLB) which are more undervalued vs. defensives (XLU, XLP, XLV, XTL) than at any time in the last 15 years. "Given the 4 P/E multiple point head start, even a slight valuation normalization should translate into outperformance of cyclicals over defensives during the next 12 months." 1 Comment
Monday, April 29, 12:13 PM "Which has a higher P/E - Procter & Gamble (PG) or Google (GOOG)," asks the WSJ's Tom Lauricella. Enthusiasm for anything with yield has driven the P-E ratios of dividend payers (DVY) like P&G maybe way too high. Techs (XLK) with double-digit earnings growth, no debt, and massive cash balances trade at 12x, says MFS' James Swanson, while a utility (XLU) in Ohio is at 16x. "How far do you go with this game?" "Pretty far," says Templeton's Donald Taylor. "The macro environment (causing this) is not at all likely to change anytime soon." 7 Comments [Quick Ideas]
Thursday, April 4, 6:30 PM The big year for utility funds is pretty much over, ISI predicts, expecting regulated utilities to post a flat total return for the balance of 2013. Even though the Utilities ETF (XLU) has another 13% to go before matching its 2007 high, ISI views the group’s valuation at nearly 16x next year’s earnings, its exposure to a change in interest rates and its big outperformance YTD as key reasons to stay away. 3 Comments [Energy, Quick Ideas]
Monday, March 25, 9:51 AM iShares U.S. Utilities ETF (IDU) announces quarterly distribution of $0.8158. 12-month yield of 3.23% (as of 02/28/2013). For shareholders of record Mar. 27. Payable Apr. 01. Ex-div date Mar. 25. Comment! [Dividends]
Tuesday, March 12, 9:48 AM The trailing P/E ratio on the S&P 500 (SPY) has creeped up to 15.25 from just above 13 late last spring, writes Bespoke. There's nothing unusual about rising valuations during rallies, they say, but keep it on your radar. Contributing most of late to rising multiples have been Staples (XLP) and Discretionary (XLY), but dividend favorites Telecoms (XTL) and Utilities (XLU) continue to trade at nosebleed (for them) valuations. 3 Comments
Friday, March 8, 2:59 PM A check of sector performance YTD finds financials (XLF), consumer discretionary (XLY), healthcare (XLV), consumer staples (XLP), energy (XLE), and industrials (XLI) all ahead of SPY's 9% gain. Utilities (XLU) are lagging just a bit, but the biggest drag is tech (XLK), up 4.9%. Not bad considering Apple's 19% decline. Comment!
Thursday, February 7, 2:50 PM Exelon's (EXC) dividend cut is a bad sign for income investors, Paul Ausick writes, citing the forces that led EXC's move which exert a similar power over other utilities: higher depreciation and amortization expenses due to added capital spending, and a variety of costs - warmer weather, low electricity demand, tighter emission regulations - over which they have little or no control. 12 Comments [Energy]
Thursday, January 24, 1:31 PM A look at the relative strength of S&P 500 sectors vs. the overall average over the past year finds 3 - Consumer Discretionary (XLY), Financials (XLF), and Health Care (XLV) outperforming. Big outperformers a few months back, Telecom (IYZ) and Utilities (XLU) now trail. Underperforming badly not long ago, Energy (XLE) and Industrials (XLI) claw their way back. 2 Comments
Wednesday, January 16, 4:33 PM Tech (XLK) is the new defensive sector, its 14.8 PE ratio continuing to trail traditional cautious plays like telecom (IST), consumer staples (XLP), and utilities (XLU). At a lofty 22 PE ratio, telecom leads all S&P sectors - it's a pretty fancy multiple for a slow-growth sector, but investors are attracted by the lofty yield. The S&P (SPY) as a whole has creeped up to a 14.8 ratio. 2 Comments
Tuesday, January 8, 3:29 PM Vanguard's recent expense reduction means 9 of its 10 sector ETFs are now the cheapest available to U.S. investors. With an annual expense ratio of just 0.14%, VOX, VPU, VCR, VDC, VDE, VHT, VIS, VGT, and VAW stack up favorably vs. the 0.18% charged by State Street's Sector SPDRs (XLU, XLY, XLP, XLE, XLF, XLV, XLK, XLI, XLB and XTL which charges 0.35%) and the 0.47%-0.48% iShares sector ETFs (RXI, KXI, IYE, IYF, IYZ, IYH, IDU, IYW, IYM, IYJ) charge. At 0.19%, Vanguard Financials (VFH) is still slightly more expensive than the Financial SPDR (XLF). 2 Comments
Sunday, January 6, 8:56 AM While the preferred stock (PFF) led the income pack in 2012 with a total return of 18.2%, the current risk-reward profile isn't great, says Barclays' Shobhit Gupta, with the upside capped by the issuer call option, and significant downside if rates rise. One overlooked class for investors: Convertible Bonds (CWB). Barron's overview of the income sector. 26 Comments [Quick Ideas]
Thursday, January 3, 8:12 AM Americans are using more electronic gadgets, but electricity use is barely growing, posing a challenge for utility companies. PEG, NU and others are pouring money into high-voltage transmission lines, while others are slashing spending. EXC is cutting investment in nuclear plant expansions by $1B and in renewable energy projects by $1.3B as it tries to avoid a credit downgrade. 9 Comments [Energy]

David Jackson
"Dividend stocks will be fine; but not utilities" -- http://seekingalpha.com/a/lls1 $XLU $VPU $IDU $RYU
11/14/12
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Dr. Kris
Utilities rockin' up +2-4% today! ETF new highs: IDU & XLU etfs. Stock highs: MGEE, IDA, CNL, PNM, GNRC, HOS, EIX; LG, GAS, GAS, WGL; XEL.
10/27/11
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Dr. Kris
Ute brutes: 15 electric & multi utilities hitting new highs; Ute ETFs $XLU & $IDU breaking out to new highs. Sector is sizzlin'!
9/20/11
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ETFdesk
WaysToPlay: Rosenberg: U.S. MONEY VELOCITY AND THE S&P 500 http://bit.ly/5kIpWc $IDU $SDS $SPY $XLU #ETF #MKT #Utilities #Gold #FX
12/15/09
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ETFdesk
WaysToPlay: Pimco's Gross Champions Utilities http://bit.ly/3Y0Lzd $IDU $XLU #ETF #MKT
11/19/09
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IDU iShares Dow Jones US Utilities ETF

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iShares Dow Jones US Utilities ETF