Over the past year, the utilities sector has notably lagged behind the overall market. The Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSEARCA:XLU) has gained only a modest 6%. This largest utilities ETF underperformed the S&P 500‘s significant 18% increase during the same period.This nonsuccess can be largely attributed to persistently high interest rates. With elevated rates, investors have shifted their focus from utilities to fixed-income securities. An example is government bonds, which tend to offer higher re ...