Lower Forever | Dividend Season | Happy Homebuilders

September 16, 2020 | Hoya Capital

Lower Forever | Dividend Season | Happy Homebuilders Daily Recap Sep 16 Written By Daily Recap A renewed sell-off in large-cap technology stocks dragged U.S. equity markets lower Wednesday despite dovish comments from Federal Reserve Chair Powell and solid retail sales and strong housing data. After gaining ground on Monday and Tuesday, the S&P 500 finished lower by 0.4% today while the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 dipped 1.6% after a reported FTC anti-trust probe into Facebook.

Real estate equities outperformed again today. The broad-based Equity REIT ETF finished higher by 0.5% with 13-of-18 property sectors in positive territory, led by the shutdown-sensitive mall and student housing sectors. Homebuilder Sentiment jumped to the strongest levels on record in September, driven by a surge in Home Buyer Traffic, which far exceeded previous record levels. Perhaps a "close second" to the housing industry in the velocity and magnitude of its V-shaped rebound has been the retail industry, which has regained all of the lost ground during the pandemic.

Real Estate Daily Recap A renewed sell-off in large-cap technology stocks dragged U.S. equity markets lower Wednesday despite dovish comments from Federal Reserve Chair Powell and solid retail sales and strong housing data. After gaining 2% through the first two trading days this week, the S&P 500 ETF ( SPY ) finished lower by 0.4% while the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 ( QQQ ) dipped 1.6%. Real estate equities outperformed again today as the broad-based Equity REIT ETF ( VNQ ) finished higher by 0.5% with 13 of 18 property sectors in positive territory, led by the shutdown-sensitive mall and student housing sectors.

The Mortgage REIT ETF ( REM ), meanwhile, gained 1.6% today. Today's late-day sell-off came despite assurances from the Federal Reserve that it would keep interest rates near zero for at least three more years and continue to provide monetary support “until labor market conditions have reached maximum employment and inflation is on track ...