Market Uncertainty Keeps U.S. Stocks Trading Lower
U.S. market indexes were mostly lower Monday. For the day the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 18529.42 for a loss of -23.15 points or -0.12 percent. The S&P 500 was also down, closing at 2182.64 for a loss of -1.23 points or -0.06 percent. The Nasdaq Composite closed higher at 5244.60 for a gain of 6.22 points or 0.12 percent. The VIX Volatility Index was higher at 12.29 for a gain of 0.95 points or 8.38 percent.
Monday’s Market Movers
The economic calendar was light on Monday with only the Chicago Fed National Activity Index. The Index reported a gain from the previous month’s 0.05 at 0.27. Industrial production and positive employment data helped the Index to gain.
For the day stocks traded mostly lower as oil prices retreated from last week’s highs and investors anticipated market reactions from Janet Yellen’s speech on Friday. Yellen’s speech on Friday at the Monetary Policy Symposium in Jackson Hole will likely give an indication of when the Fed will make its next interest rate move.
Stocks trading actively in market trading on Monday included the following:
Bank of America
Chesapeake Energy
Applied Materials
Cisco
Marathon Oil
Pfizer
Apple
Ford
In the Dow Jones Industrial Average, stocks leading losses for the day included the following:
Losses (percent)
Apple Inc -0.78
Johnson & Johnson -0.66
United Technologies Corp -0.59
Disney -0.54
Procter & Gamble -0.53
In the broad market, energy and materials led losses. The technology sector mostly gained on Monday. The Nasdaq Composite closed higher at 5244.60 for a gain of 6.22 points or 0.12 percent. The Nasdaq 100 was also higher at 4808.56 for a gain of 2.42 points or 0.05 percent. Stocks leading gains in the technology sector included the following:
Gains (percent)
Liberty Media Corp 9.53
Biomarin Pharmaceutical Inc 6.72
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc 3.55
Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc 3.33
Liberty Global PLC Class B 1.9
In commodities, gold traded lower as evidenced by the SPDR Gold Trust which reported a loss of -0.19 points or -0.15 percent. The dollar was lower for the day as the U.S. Dollar Index was down -0.05 points or -0.05 percent at 94.54.
Small-Cap Stocks
In small-caps, the Russell 2000 Index was higher at 1239.74 for a gain of 2.97 points or 0.24 percent. The S&P 600 Small-Cap Index was higher at 750.77 for a gain of 1.92 points or 0.26 percent. The Dow Jones Small-Cap Growth TSM Index was higher at 7568.58 for a gain of 11.73 points or 0.16 percent. The Dow Jones Small-Cap Value TSM Index was higher at 8749.15 for a gain of 10.26 points or 0.12 percent.
Other Notable Indexes
Other notable index closes included the S&P 400 Mid-Cap Index at 1563.68 for a gain of 0.88 points or 0.06 percent; the S&P 100 Index at 964.15 for a loss of -0.65 points or -0.07 percent; the Russell 3000 Index at 1290.44 for a loss of -0.15 points or -0.01 percent; the Russell 1000 Index at 1209.11 for a loss of -0.39 points or -0.03 percent; and the Dow Jones U.S. Select Dividend Index at 619.69 for a loss of -1.16 points or -0.19 percent.
