It's turning into a bit of a volatile trading week for the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) this week.
After a big rise on Monday, a drop on Tuesday, and another big rise yesterday, the ASX 200 has kept the pattern going today with a day of mild losses. By the time the closing bell rang, the index had drifted down 0.071%, closing at 7,173.3 points.
This rather dreary day follows a similar session up on the American markets last night (our time).
The Dow Jones Industrial Average Index (DJX: .DJI) gave up an early lead to close down 0.19% by the conclusion of trading.
It was even worse for the Nasdaq Composite Index (NASDAQ: .IXIC), which shed 0.58%.
But enough dwelling on the past. Let's get back to today's session with a checkup of how the various ASX sectors navigated this Thursday's market.
Winners and losers
Leading with the losers, it was consumer discretionary shares that gave investors the biggest headache today. The S&P/ASX 200 Consumer Discretionary Index (ASX: XDJ) shed 0.53% of its value by day's end.
Healthcare stocks also weren't curing any woes. The S&P/ASX 200 Healthcare Index (ASX: XHJ) shed 0.46% of its value by 4.10 pm.
The financials sector was next up. The S&P/ASX 200 Financials Index (ASX: XFJ) also suffered more than most, with a drop of 0.43%.
Moving on, we have consumer staples shares next. The S&P/ASX 200 Consumer Staples Index (ASX: XSJ) closed 0.28% lower today.
Communications stocks followed that, with the S&P/ASX 200 Communication Services Index (ASX: XTJ) getting pulled down by 0.06%.
Real estate investment trusts (REITs) had it pretty good by comparison, with the S&P/ASX 200 A-REIT Index (ASX: XPJ) slipping by just 0.01%.
Turning to the winners, utilities stocks came out on top this Thursday. The S&P/ASX 200 Utilities Index (ASX: XUJ) swelled by a decent 0.84% today.
Mining shares were just behind, illustrated by the S&P/ASX 200 Materials Index (ASX: XMJ)'s 0.56% climb higher.
Energy shares also had a pretty decent showing, with the S&P/ASX 200 Energy Index (ASX: XEJ) banking a gain of 0.25%.
Gold stocks and tech shares round out our list today, although the All Ordinaries Gold Index (ASX: XGD) and the S&P/ASX 200 Information Technology Index (ASX: XIJ)'s rises of 0.18% and 0.08% weren't much to write home about.
Top 10 ASX 200 shares countdown
The winning share from this Thursday was fund manager Perpetual Ltd (ASX: PPT). Perpetual shares rose by a robust 6.69% to $25.35 each.
This followed news that the company had rejected a takeover offer from investing house Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Co Ltd (ASX: SOL) is valued at $27 a share.
Here's how the rest of today's winners stacked up:
| ASX-listed company | Share price | Price change |
| Perpetual Ltd (ASX: PPT) | $25.35 | 6.69% |
| Centuria Capital Group (ASX: CNI) | $1.65 | 6.45% |
| Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS) | $3.58 | 4.99% |
| Magellan Financial Group Ltd (ASX: MFG) | $8.20 | 4.73% |
| Block Inc (ASX: SQ2) | $103.62 | 4.19% |
| Alumina Limited (ASX: AWC) | $0.81 | 3.85% |
| AGL Energy Limited (ASX: AGL) | $9.42 | 3.40% |
| Chalice Mining Ltd (ASX: CHN) | $1.695 | 3.04% |
| Allkem Ltd (ASX: AKE) | $8.78 | 2.69% |
| IGO Ltd (ASX: IGO) |
$8.03 | 2.69% |
Our top 10 shares countdown is a recurring end-of-day summary to let you know which companies were making big moves on the day. Check in at Fool.com.au after the weekday market closes to see which stocks make the countdown.
