Mid-Day ETF Update: ETFs, Stocks Track Tech Stocks Surging Higher; Dow and S&P 500 Hit Intraday Highs

SPDR Select Sector Fund – Financial ( XLF ): +1%

SPDR S&P 500 ( SPY ): +0.7%

PowerShares QQQ Trust, Series 1 ( QQQ ): +1.5%

Broad Market Indicators

Broad-market exchange-traded funds, including SPY, IWM and IVV were higher, hitting or nearing new record highs. Actively traded PowerShares QQQ ( QQQ ) was up 1.5%.

U.S. stocks were higher at session’s half, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Standard & Poor’s 500 reaching intraday record highs – buoyed by gains in the tech sector.

Looking ahead, Chicago Fed President Charles Evans will give give a speech at the New York University at 7 p.m. ET.

Power Play: Health Care

Health care funds Health Care SPDR (XLV), Vanguard Health Care ETF (VHT) and iShares Dow Jones US Healthcare (IYH) were firmer. Likewise, Biotechnology fund iShares NASDAQ Biotechnology Index (IBB) was up 2.4%.

Novadaq Technologies Inc (NVDQ) soared 95.7% after it said it agreed to be bought by Stryker Corp (SYK) for US$ 11.75 per share in cash, implying a total equity value of approximately US$ 701 million. The transaction will be carried out by way of a court approved plan of arrangement under the Canada Business Corporations Act and will require the approval of, among others, the holders of at least 66.67% of NVDQ shares at a special meeting expected to be held on or about August 4.

Winners and Losers

Financial

Select Financial Sector SPDRs ( XLF ) was up 1%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X shares (FAS) was up 2.2%, while its bearish counterpart, FAZ, was down 2.2%.

KKR (KKR) rose 2.8% after saying that it and Harvest Properties, a full service commercial real estate investment firm, acquired 180 Grand Avenue in Oakland, California, from a partnership between Ellis Partners and Artemis Real Estate Partners for an undisclosed sum. The class A 15-story, multi-tenant office building totaling 278,596 square feet is located in the heart of the downtown Oakland, close to Lake Merritt and the Uptown district. KKR is making the investment primarily through its Real Estate Partners Americas Fund, it said on Monday.

Technology

Tech funds Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK), iShares Dow Jones US Technology ETF (IYW), iShares S&P North American Technology ETF (IGM) and iShares S&P North American Technology-Software Index (IGV) were firmer. SPDR S&P International Technology Sector ETF (IPK) was up 0.8%.

Among semiconductor ETFs, SPDR S&P Semiconductor (XSD) was up 1.5% while Semiconductor Sector Index Fund (SOXX) was up 1.6%.

Apple (AAPL) rose 2.4% after it said it is developing an augmented reality app with Ikea that allows users to try out virtual furniture at home. The app is expected to launch in the fall of 2017. In an interview with Di Digital, Inter Ikea’s digital transformation head, Michael Valdsgaad, said the new app “will be the first augmented reality (AR) app that will enable you to make buying decisions,” and hopes to eventually integrate a purchase option within the app. The Ikea-Apple app will “become the biggest AR-platform in the world overnight,” according to Valdsgaad.

Energy

Dow Jones U.S. Energy Fund (IYE) was down 0.2% and Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE) was down 0.4%.

Zion Oil & Gas (ZN) jumped 52.9% to the highest in six years after saying it reached an early milestone in the drilling of the MJ#1 well. The company said it began drilling earlier this month on the Megiddo-Jezreel #1, which is a deep, onshore well located in Israel’s Jezreel Valley. The Israeli company continues active drilling operations at a depth of 2,000 feet out of the proposed total depth of approximately 15,000 feet.

Commodities

Crude was down 0.7%. United States Oil Fund (USO) was down 0.6%. Natural gas was down 4.2% while United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) was down 4%.

Gold was down 0.8%. SPDR Gold Trust (GLD) was down 0.8%. Silver was 0.9% lower while iShares Silver Trust (SLV) was down 0.9%.

Consumer

Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR (XLP) and other consumer staples funds Vanguard Consumer Staples ETF (VDC) and iShares Dow Jones US Consumer Goods (IYK) were in the green.

Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR (XLY) and retail funds SPDR S&P Retail (XRT), PowerShares Dynamic Retail (PMR) and Market Vectors Retail ETF (RTH) were also higher.

Buffalo Wild Wings (BWLD) shares were down 1.6% Monday after the restaurant operator said it is now offering for sale certain of its company-owned restaurants and has selected 83 locations to be refranchised in the US and Canada. The company said restaurant and franchise investment banking firm Cypress Group will coordinate discussions and distribute offering materials with potential buyers. It will also entertain requests and contact parties regarding participation in the process.