Likely Sector ETF & Stock Winners From March Jobs Report

U.S. non-farm payrolls increased a seasonally adjusted 178,000 in March, marking a sharp reversal from the 133,000 drop in February and better than the Dow Jones consensus estimate for 59,000, as quoted on CNBC. The U.S. unemployment rate slipped to 4.3% in March 2026 from 4.4% in February, falling below market expectations of 4.4%.

Wages rose less than expected, with average hourly earnings up just 0.2% for the month and 3.5% from a year ago. The annual increase was the lowest since May 2021, per CNBC.

Winning Sector ETFs in Focus

Health Care

Health care employment has been an area of strength. Health care added 76,000 jobs in March. Employment in ambulatory health care services increased by 54,000, marking an increase of 35,000 in offices of physicians as workers returned from a strike. Employment also increased in hospitals (+15,000).

Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF XLV can be played to tap the moderate momentum. The fund has 37% exposure to the pharma industry, followed by 18.8% exposure to the health care equipment & supplies, about 18.4% focus on biotechnology, 16.65% exposure to the healthcare providers & services industry, and 8.8% focus on the life sciences tools & services.

HCA Healthcare HCA, which has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), deserves a mention. It is the largest non-governmental operator of acute care hospitals in the United States. The company has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 13.58%, on average.

Transportation and Warehousing

Employment in Transportation and Warehousing added 21,000 jobs in March. There was a gain in couriers and messengers (+20,000). However, job growth in transportation and warehousing is down by 139,000 since reaching a peak in February 2025.

iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETFITA can thus be considered for a play. FedEx FDX, a Zacks Rank #3 stock, is the leader in global express delivery services.

Construction

There was a gain of 26,000 jobs in the construction sector. However, job growth has hardly shown any change over the past year.

This puts focus on the Invesco Building & Construction ETFPKB. The underlying Dynamic Building & Construction Intellidex Index comprises stocks of U.S. building and construction companies. The index is designed to provide capital appreciation by thoroughly evaluating companies based on a variety of investment merit criteria, including fundamental growth, stock valuation, investment timeliness and risk factors.

Zacks Rank #2 stock Johnson Controls International JCI is a diversified technology company and a multi-industrial leader, with customers spanning over 150 countries. The company’s operations include the creation of intelligent buildings, providing efficient energy solutions, and integrated infrastructure. Johnson Controls provides building systems, including HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) controls and security and safety products.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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