Greetings!
Most weeks, the market gives us a headline. This week, it offers a lesson.
In today’s Wealth Advisory, we look beneath the surface of the S&P 500, where a widening gap between sectors reveals shifting leadership. From energy’s surge amid geopolitical tension to growing questions around AI and tech concentration, the message is clear: balance matters more than ever.
Next, our Wellness Navigator, Christine Despres, offers a pathway to brain health via the MIND diet—a simple, research-backed approach to protecting cognition while supporting overall health. With spring produce coming into season, it’s a timely and practical place to start.
And in Etcetera, we explore the idea of going deeper, not wider—how more meaningful conversations and a fuller understanding can lead to better outcomes. Because behind every plan is a person, and every person carries a story—complete with its own challenges—worth truly knowing, especially if a “happily ever after” is the outcome we seek.
If something here resonates, share it with someone who could benefit. And if you haven’t already, subscribe to receive these notes each week—meant to be read, reflected on, and put to work.
Wealth Advisory: How Oil Prices and AI are Reshaping Stock Market Sector Performance
When thinking about the stock market, many investors naturally gravitate toward broad indices such as the S&P 500 or the Dow Jones Industrial Average. While this is a reasonable starting point, it can be valuable to examine the individual sectors that make up these indices. The S&P 500, for example, consists of 11 distinct sectors, each with its own characteristics and tendencies to respond differently to economic conditions and geopolitical events. Understanding these dynamics plays a meaningful role in portfolio construction, diversification, and long-term financial planning.
In the current environment, the gap between the strongest and weakest performing sectors has grown to more than 40 percentage points so far this year. This notable divergence has been shaped by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, fluctuations in oil prices, and the evolving conversation surrounding AI.
Additionally, the S&P 500 has recently experienced its first pullback of more than 5% from its all-time high, even as 6 of the 11 sectors remain in positive territory for the year. This apparent contradiction is explained by the unequal weighting of sectors within the index — Technology alone accounts for nearly one-third of the S&P 500, while Energy and Utilities represent just 3.5% and 2.5%, respectively. History has shown, though past performance is no guarantee of future results, that market conditions can shift rapidly and recoveries can occur when least anticipated.
While the recent market dynamics are significant, sector-level variation is a recurring feature of financial markets each year. Taking a longer-term perspective, many sectors have delivered strong returns over recent years, frequently in ways that caught investors off guard. This serves as a reminder that maintaining balance across sectors is as important as diversifying across asset classes. Understanding the context behind recent sector rotations and the broader market pullback requires a measured, informed perspective.
Geopolitical uncertainty has fueled a surge in the energy sector
The energy sector has been a standout beneficiary of geopolitical risk in 2026, posting gains of approximately 30% year-to-date. This strong outperformance has been largely driven by a sharp increase in oil prices, with Brent crude trading above $100 per barrel amid escalating tensions in the Middle East. As the situation continues to develop, further market volatility remains possible. Historically, elevated geopolitical tensions have tended to support energy stocks, and recent events are consistent with that pattern.
A useful historical parallel can be found in 2022, when Russia’s invasion of Ukraine propelled the energy sector to a gain of 65.7% for the full year, even as the broader S&P 500 declined 18%. The prior year, energy returned 54.6% as the economy rebounded from the pandemic. While the broader market ultimately recovered from these episodes, they illustrate how energy stocks have historically acted as a counterbalancing force during periods of global instability.
The initial catalyst for rising oil prices this year was the blockage of the Strait of Hormuz, which compelled many Middle Eastern countries to curtail oil and gas output. More recent developments have included direct attacks on energy production infrastructure. Higher oil prices benefit producers directly by improving revenues and incentivizing further investment and exploration activity.
At the same time, elevated oil prices can create headwinds for the broader economy in the near term by increasing costs for consumers, businesses, and other sectors. This is the reason why a shock that lifts energy stocks can simultaneously weigh on transportation, consumer spending, and corporate profit margins in other areas of the economy.
Looking further ahead, there are reasons to avoid excessive pessimism over higher oil prices. From 2011 to 2014, oil prices were sustained near $100 per barrel, and the economy continued to expand while equities maintained their upward trajectory. Economists often characterize these “supply-side shocks” as temporary, as production typically recovers and alternative suppliers move to fill the gap.
Notably, the United States has been the world’s largest oil producer for six consecutive years, with output now surpassing 13.7 million barrels per day. The U.S. is frequently described as a “swing producer,” given its capacity to increase output and help offset shortfalls elsewhere. This dynamic can help moderate prices over time and reduce the economy’s exposure to disruptions in foreign supply.
AI developments are prompting fresh scrutiny of technology companies
Over recent years, AI-related stocks drove significant market gains across sectors including Information Technology, Communication Services, and Consumer Discretionary. The extended outperformance of these sectors — including the so-called Magnificent 7 — led to increased market concentration and a heightened sensitivity to the performance of just a small number of companies.
More recently, however, the narrative has evolved. While these companies continue to report strong earnings, a broader range of sectors has performed well over the past year, including Energy, Industrials, Utilities, Materials, and Consumer Staples. Several of these groups are considered more “defensive” in nature and have found favor in this year’s market environment.
Part of the shifting story around technology stocks reflects growing questions about the impact of AI on existing software business models. Some have referred to this as the “SaaS-pocalypse” — the notion that AI tools could disrupt traditional software-as-a-service (SaaS) companies. This debate is ongoing, and whether or not these concerns ultimately prove valid, they have already contributed to a reassessment of valuations across the technology sector.
This rotation does not imply that technology stocks have lost their importance. Rather, it underscores how swiftly market leadership can change. This is why investors should be cautious about becoming overly concentrated in any single sector, regardless of how compelling the growth story may appear at a given moment. Ultimately, the goal of a portfolio is not to pursue the best-performing index, sector, or individual stocks, but to generate sound returns across market cycles in support of long-term financial objectives.
Defensive sectors and broader diversification have helped support portfolios
As uncertainty increased over recent months, markets rotated toward traditionally defensive sectors such as Utilities, Consumer Staples, and, to a lesser degree, Health Care. This shift toward defensive positioning had begun to build even before the most recent escalation of Middle East tensions, suggesting that investors had already started repositioning for a more cautious environment in response to concerns about AI.
Defensive sectors tend to outperform during periods of elevated uncertainty and market volatility — not because these companies are suddenly generating exceptional financial results, but because their cash flows are generally more stable and less tied to the strength of the economic cycle. Utilities continue to collect payments, consumers continue to purchase everyday goods, and healthcare remains essential regardless of geopolitical developments. These sectors also tend to offer higher dividend yields on average. It is this relative predictability that makes them more appealing when markets grow concerned about growth prospects or inflationary pressures.
A related concept that has gained traction to describe stocks that are less susceptible to disruption from AI is “heavy assets, low obsolescence,” or HALO. These companies tend to be defensive in nature and are involved in the production of goods or manufacturing processes that are not easily disrupted by new technological developments.
Just as with asset classes, predicting which sector will lead or lag in any given year is extremely difficult. The top-performing sector in one year frequently falls toward the bottom of the rankings in the next. Technology’s recent challenges, for instance, follow an extended period of market leadership. This inherent unpredictability reinforces the importance of maintaining broad sector exposure across a portfolio.
A well-diversified portfolio that incorporates cyclical sectors such as energy, growth-oriented sectors such as technology, and defensive sectors such as utilities and consumer staples is better equipped to navigate a range of market environments. Rather than attempting to time sector rotations — which is just as counterproductive as trying to time the overall market — investors are better served by maintaining a balanced portfolio capable of participating in gains across different parts of the economy while managing overall risk.
The bottom line? The S&P 500’s performance this year reinforces that maintaining balance across sectors is a foundational principle of long-term investing. Broad exposure to multiple areas of the market remains the most effective way to keep portfolios aligned with long-term financial goals.
Wellness Navigator and Holistic Brain Health Coach, Christine Despres, RN,NBC-HWC,CDP
Spring is either at your doorstep or just around the corner depending on where you are, either way, it’s coming. Although, it’s hard to be patient! If you’re in the South like me, you know exactly what this week looks like. Beautiful flowers everywhere, that first real warmth in the air and yes, the yellow dust coating everything you own. Spring is complicated down here. But I’ll take it.
It’s the last week of National Nutrition Month, and I wanted to close out with something I genuinely believe in: the MIND diet. Not because it’s trendy, but because the research behind it is some of the most compelling we have when it comes to protecting your brain as you age. And spring, as it turns out, is one of the best times of year to start leaning into it.
The MIND diet — Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay — was developed specifically to reduce the risk of cognitive decline and Alzheimer’s disease. It has 14 components: 9 food groups to eat more of, and 5 to limit.
The 9 to focus on:
- Leafy greens — a variety every single day
- Other vegetables — at least once a day
- Berries — five times a week
- Nuts — most days
- Beans and legumes — every other day or so
- Whole grains — three or more servings a day
- Fish — wild, at least once a week, not fried
- Poultry — lean skinless, twice a week or more, not fried
- Extra virgin olive oil — your primary cooking fat
The 5 to eat less of:
- Red meat
- Butter and margarine
- Cheese
- Pastries and sweets
- Fried and fast food
That’s it. No elimination. No overhaul. Just a framework.
And here’s what makes this even more interesting. The MIND diet isn’t just linked to a lower risk of cognitive decline; the research has also connected it to natural, gradual weight loss without tracking or restricting. That’s the win-win.
We’ve spent the last few months talking about inflammation, heart health, and gut health. Are you seeing the connection? The same whole foods that calm inflammation are the ones that protect your heart, feed your gut microbiome and now, as the MIND diet shows us, also shield your brain. This is not a coincidence. It’s the same pattern showing up over and over again. Your brain, your heart, your gut and your weight are all connected, they’re not separate problems with separate solutions. They’re all downstream of the same thing: what you eat on a regular basis.
Now here’s why spring is such a perfect entry point. Strawberries, spinach, asparagus, artichokes, micro greens, herbs and spring onions are just starting to show up fresh and local. The MIND diet’s biggest categories are coming into season right now and they are so tasty after the long winter of sad vegetables in plastic containers.
You don’t have to do all 9 at once. Pick one category this week. Add spinach and micro greens to your eggs. Grab a pint of strawberries. Swap your afternoon snack for a small handful of walnuts. Small, consistent shifts are what actually stick — and your brain notices.
Which brings me to April. Our next Brain Boost session is Wednesday, April 1st, and we’re talking stress management — because stress is one of the biggest drivers of inflammation, cognitive decline, and yes, weight gain. Now we’re going to talk about what to actually do about it. It’s free, it’s virtual, and it’s 30 minutes. Grab your spot at the link below — I’d love to see you there.
You made it through a whole month of nutrition content. I hope something landed. Now go find those fresh greens.
Happy Spring!
Christine
RN | Board-Certified Health & Wellness Coach | Certified Dementia Practitioner | Holistic Brain Health Coach | Nutrition Coach
- If you’re ready to start investing in your greatest asset, I’d love to be your guide.
👉 Book a free Brain Health Strategy Session here: Click Here to Schedule Your 30 minute Strategy Call
https://www.thewellnessnavigator.com/
Going Deeper, Not Wider
In a world that celebrates scale, our quiet aim is the opposite: depth.
Not more clients…better relationships. Not broader reach…truer understanding.
Because the truth is, great advice doesn’t begin with markets or models. It begins with you: your story, your sacrifices, your quiet wins, and the obstacles you’ve had to navigate to get here.
Over the coming weeks, I’ll be scheduling annual reviews. But more than reviews, I’d like these to feel like conversations—interviews, even—designed to better understand where you’ve been, where you are, and what lies ahead for you and your family.
Every good story has a structure: we come to care about the main character, we see what they want, and we watch as they’re tested along the way. In this story, you are that main character. And if there’s a role for me, it’s not as narrator—but as a trusted guide, helping you navigate toward what matters most.
To that end, here are a few questions I’ve been thinking about—questions I suspect many wish their advisor would ask:
• What does “enough” look like for you—financially and otherwise?
• What have you overcome to get where you are today?
• Where do you feel most confident right now? Least?
• What keeps you up at night—financially or personally?
• If the next 5–10 years went exactly right, what would that look like?
• What trade-offs are you currently making that may not be sustainable?
• How does money support—not distract from—your values?
• What decisions are you delaying that deserve attention?
• Where do you feel friction, complexity, or lack of clarity in your financial life?
• What would make our relationship more valuable to you?
If we can answer these well—together—we won’t just build better plans.
We’ll build better outcomes.
And perhaps most importantly, a better story.
That’s all for today.
I look forward to visiting,
