The S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average just completed their best month of the year thanks to investors’ growing risk appetite, but a few notable stocks were forced to watch the rally from the sidelines, including several in one limping sector.
November was kind for much of the stock market, but not to everyone.
Only 12% of S&P constituents ended November in the red, according to FactSet data.
Payroll processor Paycom brought up the rear of that dubious group, as its shares fell 26% this month after the firm’s 2024 sales guidance came in far below analyst forecasts.
Health insurance giant Cigna was the second-biggest loser, dipping 15% this month as investors reacted sourly to a report the company planned to merge with rival Humana.
Silicon Valley titan Cisco’s 7% November share price drop was the steepest of any S&P component with a market value over $100 billion, owing its slump to tepid revenue guidance, while shares of retail giant Walmart notched a 5% monthly decline after a similar post-earnings fall.
Energy was the only one of the S&P’s 11 sectors to fall in November, slipping 2% as crude oil prices declined dramatically; shares of industry leaders like ConocoPhillips, Exxon and Hess all slid this month.
Shares of pharmacy chain Walgreens Boots Alliance also fell in November, dropping 4% and hitting their lowest price since the 1990s.
The S&P and Dow both rose 8% this month. November was the S&P’s best month since July 2022 and fourth-best month this decade, as a mostly strong batch of third-quarter earnings and a strengthening belief in loosening monetary policy inspired the broad rally. Information technology was the top-returning sector, building its case as the crown jewel of 2023 as the group including red-hot mega-cap names like Microsoft, Apple and Nvidia enjoyed earnings beats.
Energy was the top-performing sector in 2022 as crude prices soared following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and investors flocked toward the strong cash-generating stocks amid recession concerns, worries that the market has seemingly moved past in 2023.