Weekly-updated PDF of all SEAF Rainbow Charts:  Click the link below to download a PDF of this new addition to our research services.

Click Here For This Week’s SEAF Model “Rainbow Charts” Update
The Game Of Sector Musical Chairs Continues
Conclusion, Investment Implications, Strategy

The SEAF Model graphic below shows that defensive Utilities is once again one of the top-ranked sectors according to the SEAF Model.  Not shown is that Utilities has actually has been among the four best-ranked sectors for the past seven weeks beginning on Mar 17th.  New this week is that offensive, risk-on sectors Communication Services (XLC) and Technology (XLK) have moved back into top-three Status according to SEAF for the first time since Mar 6th and Feb 20th, respectively. 

The other, more subtle takeaway this week is that all three top sectors have relatively high Ranking scores of between 10 and  13.  This indicates a general lack of conviction in any of these sectors as these assets continue to frantically bounce around the sector space, looking for the next sustainable trend which, thus far, has not emerged.  You can also see this investor indecision in the disparate scores in the three individual time frames in sectors like Technology (1,2,10) and Consumer Discretionary (2,9,9).

Beyond The SEAF Model Video: This Week’s Sector Themes

This weekly video by Jack Kosar goes into more detail on the latest SEAF Model data via a heat map that provides more detail on where sector-related assets are going, and where they are leaving, in the 11 Sector SPDR ETFs.  Jack also displays and discusses our SEAF “Rainbow Charts” highlighting SEAF’s past 12 months of Favored, Neutral, or Avoid rankings. 

From The Video: This Week’s Major Themes
  • Money aggressively moving into Communication Services in All time periods.
  • Money aggressively moving into Technology in the Trading and Tactical time periods.
  • Money aggressively moving out of  Energy in All time periods.
The SEAF Model: Current Signals & Related Performance

Editor’s Note:  These are the latest specific trading signals generated by our SEAF Model, which also includes a rules-based money management component.  The backtested performance data below is based on trading a predetermined amount of assets with an equal allocation of those assets across the top three Rankings.  The model is updated once per week, on the weekend, and any rebalancing takes place on the market opening the following Monday morning.  This is the recommended way to invest via the SEAF Model.  Contact us for any additional clarification.

In the SEAF Model Graphic below, the Ranking column sorts the entire table of 11 sector ETFs according to the sum of rankings in the Trading (weekly), Tactical (monthly), and Strategic (quarterly) categories, from largest inflows to largest outflows.  The premise of the model is to invest in the sectors where the money is going and to avoid the sectors where the money is coming out.  

The lower the Ranking number, the stronger the trend of asset flows going into that sector.  The top two sectors in each category, according to a positive change in inflows, are highlighted in green.  The top two sectors in each category, according to a negative change in outflows, are highlighted in red.

Click the table to make it larger

The latest data indicate a multi-timeframe trend of asset inflows into Utilities and Technology.  This is where the money is currently going in the sector space.

The latest data also indicates a multi-timeframe trend of asset outflows out of Energy.  This is where the money is coming from.

NEW! SEAF Heat Map

SEAF Heat Map: 04-28-2025

The SEAF Heat Map provides additional insight into the flows of the 11 Sector ETFs. Each time frame is independent, meaning the color spectrum for one period does not affect another. For example, the strongest inflow (dark green) for the trading week is separate from the strongest inflow for the tactical month.

The heat map visually represents the spectrum of inflows and outflows, with green indicating inflows and red indicating outflows. The more extreme the flow, the darker the corresponding color—deep green for strong inflows and deep red for strong outflows. Flows closer to yellow indicate minimal percentage change.

This tool serves as an additional layer of information to help investors not only identify where sector flows are moving but also gauge the relative strength of those flows compared to their peers.

SEAF Model Individual Sector Charts (“Rainbow Charts”)

The charts below display the weekly SEAF Model Ranking Scores over the previous 12 months for the strongest and weakest sectors through September 12th.  The line in the upper panel displays these weekly scores within the context of being Favored (3-15, green), Neutral (16-24, yellow), or Avoid (25-33, red) and also displays the trend of asset flows as the money moves in and out of these sectors.  The lower panel plots the corresponding weekly relative performance chart of that particular sector versus the S&P 500 (SPY).

Utilities: XLU

Defensive Utilities is the SEAF Model’s top-ranked sector this week with a Ranking score of 10.  Utilities has been one of the top-four-ranked sectors for the past seven weeks beginning on Mar 17th.  As a result, through the end of last week, XLU has been the best-performing Select Sector SPDR ETF year to date, rising 3.3% outright while outperforming the S&P 500 (SPY) by 9.4%.  The green highlights in the upper panel of Chart 1 below show that Utilities initially moved into Favored territory on Feb 7th (upper panel) and, with the exception of a few quick moves in and out of Neutral status, has remained there since.  The lower panel shows that XLU has coincidentally outperformed the S&P 500 (SPY) by 11%.

Communication Services (XLC)

Economically sensitive Communication Services is the SEAF Model’s second-best-ranked sector this week with a Ranking score of 11.  Communication Services moved back into top-three status according to the SEAF Model on Apr 23rd, for the first time since Mar 6th.  The  more leftmost green highlights show that the last time Communication Services had an extended stay in Favored status, between Jan 23rd and Mar 10th, XLC outperformed the S&P 500 (SPY) by 7%.

Chart 2

Technology: XLK

Economically sensitive Technology (XLK) is the SEAF Model’s third-best-ranked sector this week with a Ranking score of 13.  Technology moved back into top-three status according to the SEAF Model on Apr 24th, for the first time since Feb 20th.  Technology is atypically the first and second strongest sector in the Trading and Tactical time frames this week, and also the second weakest sector in the Strategic time frame.  This simply means that a lot of investor assets came pouring into Technology last week, but have not been there long enough to suggest they may be “sticky” rather than just a quick knee-jerk reaction by investors.

Chart 3