The Federal Reserve’s long-awaited interest-rate hike on Dec. 16 was supposed to erode the appeal of utilities and other dividend stocks. Yet in the past six weeks, the electric power and diversified utilities industries have jumped nearly 50 places, climbing into the top 20 out of the 197 industry groups tracked by IBD. The gas distribution and water utility industries have climbed into the top 10 from Nos. 20 and 33, respectively.