US close: Markets finish slightly higher as investors take a breather

Wall Street made small gains on Wednesday as investors took a breather after pushing the S&P 500 to a fresh record high during the previous session, amid a tad of renewed speculation in markets regarding the risk of new provocations from Pyongyang following the latest round of sanction from the UN Security Council.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished up 0.18% to 22,158.18, the S&P 500 added 0.08% to 2,498.37 and the Nasdaq 100 was 0.15% firmer at 6,004.38.

Overnight, US Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin indicated at a conference hosted by CNBC and Institutional Investor that he expected tax reforms to be in place before the current year was out and that they might be made retroactive to 1 January.

“It would appear that a running start to the week and fresh record highs in the S&P 500 has proven a little much for some traders, with profit taking seen ahead of Wednesday’s open,” said Oanda analyst Craig Erlam.

"Naturally there is still plenty of underlying geopolitical risk in the markets at the moment, even if acts of provocation have decreased and become less hostile, and this is likely to put a cap on risk rallies for now.

“The longer this period of calm continues, the more relaxed investors will become which will be better for riskier assets, while safe havens will continue to experience unwinding.”

On the economic front, producer price data for August showing a 0.2% rise on the month left economists a little bit divided on the outlook for price pressures.

In corporate news, Apple was 0.75% softer after the unveiling of the tech giant's latest phone, the iPhone X on Tuesday prompted a mixed reaction and the company said it won't be delivered until November.

Elsewhere, Centene rallied 7.99% after the company said late on Tuesday that it has signed an agreement whereby Fidelis Care will become its health plan in the state of New York.

Nordstrom was also in the spotlight, rising 5.99% after a report that it is taking steps to go private, while Seadrill traded 20.24% higher after saying late on Tuesday that it has filed for bankruptcy protection and agreed a restructuring plan with its lenders.

Dow Jones - Risers

Chevron Corp. (CVX) $114.18 1.50%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $47.25 0.98%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $98.82 0.95%
General Electric Co. (GE) $24.11 0.84%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $75.21 0.71%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $36.33 0.67%
Boeing Co. (BA) $241.79 0.56%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $198.33 0.44%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $156.96 0.43%
United Technologies Corp. (UTX) $110.28 0.38%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $119.63 -1.08%
Pfizer Inc. (PFE) $35.04 -0.88%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $121.51 -0.79%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $159.65 -0.75%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $32.18 -0.71%
Visa Inc. (V) $105.83 -0.36%
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $132.45 -0.14%
3M Co. (MMM) $209.49 -0.07%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $65.45 -0.02%
E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Co. (DD) $83.93 -0.00%

S&P 500 - Risers

Centene Corp. (CNC) $98.11 8.01%
Nordstrom Inc. (JWN) $47.74 5.97%
Chesapeake Energy Corp. (CHK) $3.94 5.35%
Cimarex Energy Co (XEC) $106.67 5.29%
Urban Outfitters Inc. (URBN) $23.54 4.81%
Transocean Ltd. (RIG) $9.21 4.78%
Apache Corp. (APA) $42.33 4.49%
O'Reilly Automotive Inc. (ORLY) $208.01 4.39%
Pioneer Natural Resources Co. (PXD) $135.69 4.30%
Devon Energy Corp. (DVN) $33.51 4.17%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Equifax Inc. (EFX) $98.99 -14.63%
Tenet Healthcare Corp. (THC) $16.24 -5.31%
Henry Schein Inc. (HSIC) $168.88 -4.00%
Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $85.74 -3.42%
Patterson Companies Inc. (PDCO) $39.44 -2.98%
Becton, Dickinson & Company (BDX) $196.60 -2.76%
Northern Trust Corp. (NTRS) $88.27 -2.54%
Edwards Lifesciences Corp. (EW) $111.78 -2.54%
Freeport-McMoRan Inc (FCX) $13.94 -2.52%
Dun & Bradstreet Corp. (DNB) $110.66 -2.33%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

JD.com, Inc. (JD) $45.27 4.57%
O'Reilly Automotive Inc. (ORLY) $208.01 4.39%
Xilinx Inc. (XLNX) $66.97 3.03%
Viacom Inc. Class B (VIAB) $27.91 2.95%
Seagate Technology Plc (STX) $32.78 2.79%
Twenty-First Century Fox Inc Class B (FOX) $26.15 2.71%
Twenty-First Century Fox Inc Class A (FOXA) $26.59 2.66%
Mattel Inc. (MAT) $16.10 2.55%
Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST) $162.99 1.84%
Amazon.Com Inc. (AMZN) $999.60 1.73%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Henry Schein Inc. (HSIC) $168.88 -4.00%
Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $85.74 -3.42%
Sirius XM Holdings Inc (SIRI) $5.42 -3.04%
Symantec Corp. (SYMC) $33.08 -1.93%
Verisk Analytics Inc. (VRSK) $81.45 -1.75%
Shire Plc Ads (SHPG) $159.70 -1.72%
Biogen Inc (BIIB) $324.05 -1.71%
Hologic Inc. (HOLX) $37.56 -1.65%
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. (REGN) $437.74 -1.52%
KLA-Tencor Corp. (KLAC) $96.74 -1.24%