- Texas Pacific, Generac Holdings, and Coca-Cola Consolidated, as well as telecom cos T-Mobile and Verizon, posted strong stock gains last month.
- The S&P 500 information technology index declined for a fourth straight month.
- The Magnificent Seven stocks declined overall, with Apple alone bucking the selloff; Corning, Dell, and SanDisk were among tech outliers.
Stock market investors rotated into defensive, income-generating sectors in February as high-growth technology names came under heavy pressure amid mounting concerns over stretched AI-linked valuations and rising geopolitical tensions.
Steadier returns and reliable dividends regained favor, with utilities leading monthly gains. Energy, materials, and consumer staples also outperformed, underscoring a broader shift toward resilience, cash flow stability, and capital preservation over aggressive growth bets.
Top Gainers In February
Texas Pacific Land Corporation, which generates oil and gas royalties from its vast holdings in the Permian Basin, surged more than 50% last month, making it the top performer in the S&P 500. On the tech-heavy side, Charter Communications, Inc. led the Nasdaq Composite gainers.
Power equipment maker Generac Holdings Inc. climbed 32%, while telecom stalwarts T-Mobile U.S., Inc. and Verizon Communications Inc. advanced 18.2% and 12.6%, respectively.
On the consumer front, Coca-Cola Consolidated, Inc., the largest Coca-Cola bottler in the U.S., jumped 32.3%, while PepsiCo, Inc. gained 18.3%.
Tech Selloff
The technology sector, which powered markets to record highs through late last year, has since unraveled under mounting pressure. Investor sentiment has soured amid eye-popping AI capital expenditure plans from Big Tech, raising concerns about returns. At the same time, Anthropic has unsettled established software players with a wave of lower-cost AI tools that promise greater automation and reduced reliance on large workforces.
The S&P 500 information technology declined 4% in February, its fourth straight month in the red. The Roundhill Magnificent Seven ETF (MAGS) declined 7.3%, its steepest fall in 11 months. Not even Wall Street AI darling Nvidia posting its 14th consecutive earnings beat seems to be enough for investors these days. The stock, in fact, ended February down over 7% — its worst month since November.
Among the Mag 7 names, only Apple bucked the monthly selloff, as its apprehension about going big on AI has proved a crowd-pleasing move.
Of the tech outliers, Corning gained 37.3%, while Dell Technologies gained 29% due to company-specific news. SanDisk continued its ascent amid memory chip shortages, rising 32%.
Retail Now Eyes Energy Stocks
On Stocktwits, the retail sentiment for Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) was 'neutral' as of the last reading. The sentiment was 'extremely bullish' for the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE), 'neutral' for the Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLU), 'bearish' for the Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLP).
The energy sector saw sentiment boost amid the U.S. strikes in Iran, which investors expect will lead to a sustained "war premium" and rising oil prices due to potential supply shocks and surging shipping costs.
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