Cash Plays Defense

Money flows into defensive stocks Thursday lifted tradable funds focused on consumer staples, drug makers and utilities as tech failed to press the prior session's gains.

The Pharmaceutical HOLDR (PPH | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) rose 2.6%, registering the day's biggest gain among the exchange-traded funds. 

Among the basket of pharmaceuticals components, Pfizer (PFE | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) gained 2 to 44 3/4, Allergan (AGN | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) 2 1/8 to 70 1/2, Forest Labs (FRX | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) 4 15/16 to 112 13/16 and Watson Pharmaceutical (WPI | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) 2 15/16 to 65 13/16.

Reinforcing the defensive picture, the Consumer Staples SPDR (XLP | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) added 2.4% while the Cyclical/Transportation (XLY | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) gave up 1.4%.

The tradable tech funds backpedaled following Wednesday's gains. The B2B Internet HOLDR (BHH | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating), which notched Wednesday's sharpest improvement among the ETFs with a 9.4% rise, fell 10.4% on Thursday, the session's sharpest loss among the tradable funds.

The Internet Architecture HOLDR (IAH | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) declined 3.1%, the Internet Infrastructure HOLDR (IIH | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) 2.6%, the Semiconductor HOLDR (SMH | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) 2.5%, the Internet HOLDR (HHH | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) 2.2%, the Technology SPDR (XLK | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) 1.4%.

For more on slumping semiconductors, read my chart analysis of Micron Technology (MU | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) in Trading The News.