Industrial vs Utilities
Which is stronger right now? The dated snapshot below answers it with quality, valuation ceiling, risk, and timing — side by side, then the full decision brief.
Two tickers, one decision framework. Instead of vibes, put both names through the same quality → valuation → thesis-breaks → timing process and let the weaker story drop.
Key facts — quick answer
- XLI = Industrial (US) · XLU = Utilities (US).
- Snapshot 2026-08-29: XLI $180.34 · signal LONG · ret +25.4% ‖ XLU $43.51 · signal LONG · ret +3.9%.
- The one with the wider gap between price and its valuation ceiling — at equal quality — usually wins the slot.
Snapshot comparison (2026-08-29)
| XLI | XLU | |
|---|---|---|
| Company | Industrial | Utilities |
| Market | 🇺🇸 US | 🇺🇸 US |
| Sector | ETF | ETF |
| Price | $180.34 | $43.51 |
| Signal | LONG · +25.4% | LONG · +3.9% |
| Total return | +25.4% | +3.9% |
Decide it with the calculator
Run both names through the free intrinsic value calculator — the one with the wider gap between price and ceiling on equal quality usually wins the slot.
See the full decision brief
Deeper comparison — Industrial (XLI) vs Utilities (XLU)
Beyond the snapshot above, the real comparison comes from running the same workflow on both companies: score quality, set the valuation ceiling, and write the break conditions for each. The framework stays identical; only the data changes.
| Dimension | XLI | XLU |
|---|---|---|
| Market | 🇺🇸 US | 🇺🇸 US |
| Sector | ETF | ETF |
| STM signal | LONG | LONG |
| uPnL | +25.4% | +3.9% |
| Total return | +25.4% | +3.9% |
Use this table as a starting point, not an answer. The decision comes from running the full workflow on both companies — XLI brief · XLU brief — and comparing the outputs side by side.
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Cite this page
Balance Labs Research Desk. "Industrial vs Utilities" https://balancelabs.app/stocks/compare/xli-vs-xlu. Data snapshot: . CC BY 4.0 with attribution.
← All guides · Home · Data snapshot 2026-08-29 · Not investment advice.