Exelon and Other Utilities Stocks Making Big Moves on December 3, 2012

The Nasdaq has climbed 0.2%, the S&P 500 is trading down 0.1% and the Dow has fallen 0.2% after the morning's trading. The utilities sector is a category of stocks for utilities such as gas and power. It contains companies such as electric, gas and water firms and integrated providers. Because utilities require significant infrastructure, these firms often carry large amounts of debt. With a high debt load, utilities companies become sensitive to changes in the interest rate. As interest rates rise or drop, the debt payments will increase or decrease. The utilities sector performs best when interest rates are falling or remain low.

The Utilities sector (XLU) is trading up 0.5% overall, and these are the biggest movers in the sector so far:

Company	Market Cap	Percentage Change
Huaneng Power International, Inc (NYSE:HNP)	$11.98 billion	+3.4%
Exelon (NYSE:EXC)	$25.82 billion	-2%
Edison (NYSE:EIX)	$14.82 billion	-1.3%
NorthWestern (NYSE:NWE)	$1.29 billion	-1.3%
DCP Midstream (NYSE:DPM)	$2.56 billion	-1.3%
Laclede Group (NYSE:LG)	$918.2 million	-1.1%
El Paso Electric (NYSE:EE)	$1.28 billion	-1.1%

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Huaneng Power International, Inc (NYSE:HNP) has increased to a share price of $35.25, a 3.4% rise. At 39,717 shares, the company's volume so far today is 0.7 times the current daily average.

Falling 2%, Exelon (NYSE:EXC) is currently at a share price of $29.62. The company's volume for the day so far is 4.8 million shares.

Edison (NYSE:EIX) has fallen 1.3% and is currently trading at $44.89 per share. The company's volume is currently 665,231 shares for the day, 0.3 times its current three-month average.

After a decline of 1.3%, NorthWestern (NYSE:NWE) has hit a share price of $34.24. The company is trading at a volume of 111,736 shares. At this rate, trading activity will likely be down from yesterday when 408,174 shares changed hands.

DCP Midstream (NYSE:DPM) has decreased to $41.35 per share, a 1.3% fall. At 49,720 shares, the company's volume so far today is 0.3 times its current daily average.

At $40.26, Laclede Group (NYSE:LG) has slipped 1.1%. So far today, the company's volume is 39,383 shares.

Falling 1.1%, El Paso Electric (NYSE:EE) is currently at a share price of $31.51. At 11,721 shares, the company's volume so far today is 0.1 times its average over the past three months.

The Bottom Line The nature of the market is such that stocks will have good days and bad days. It is important to weigh current activity against historical performance when making any investment decisions. Keep in mind that all these ratios should be compared against historical numbers and industry information in order to get a more complete picture.