LIVE MARKETS-Tech vs. Healthcare: BofA clients rotate as equity inflows continue
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TECH VS. HEALTHCARE: BOFA CLIENTS ROTATE AS EQUITY INFLOWS CONTINUE
BofA’s Jill Carey Hall says investors kept buying U.S. stocks last week as the S&P 500 .SPX rose 2.3%, marking a second straight week of net inflows. The move was driven mainly by equity ETFs, which pulled in $3.8 billion after a record $6.8 billion the week before, along with another $500 million into individual stocks.
In a note out on Wednesday, Hall said that hedge funds have now been buyers for five straight weeks, while private clients flipped to selling after two weeks of buying. Large caps were the only size category to attract inflows.
On the corporate side, buybacks picked up from the prior week but are still running below post-financial-crisis averages for this time of year—a pattern seen through most of 2026. Buybacks have slowed most in tech, while activity has picked up in financials and energy.
Tech stocks were a clear favorite, seeing their biggest inflows since mid-March, with the sector on track for more than 50% year-over-year earnings growth in the first quarter. Financials followed with a second straight week of buying after earlier outflows this year.
Healthcare, meanwhile, saw the biggest outflows - in six of the past seven weeks - followed by energy and communication services. Hall noted that tech and healthcare often trade off for investor interest. While BofA recently downgraded healthcare to market weight, she said small-cap names in the sector are starting to look more attractive.
Across ETFs, investors were broadly buying across styles like value, growth, and blend, as well as most market caps. The exception was mid-caps, which saw their first outflows since late January.
By sector, investors bought ETFs in eight of 11 areas, led by tech, which saw its biggest inflows since August 2024. Consumer ETFs, however, saw the largest outflows.
(Terence Gabriel)
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