US close: Markets mixed on busy day for M&A
Wall Street finished on a mixed note on Monday, having been buoyed by gains in retailers and a strong reading on new home sales earlier in the session.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished up 0.1% at 23,580.78, while the S&P 500 fell 0.04% to 2,601.42 and the Nasdaq 100 was off 0.05% at 6,405.97.
Investors were watching for any developments as regards the Republicans' tax plans as a Senate vote on proposed tax changes was expected as early as Tuesday.
Not far from traders' minds, the price of Bitcoin was up by 3.4% at $9,644.11, according to Coindesk.
"US stocks are back to normal today, with the recovery from Thanksgiving overindulgence complete,” said Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at IG.
“Tax reform looks a bit less of a done deal today, and it is strange to see the market so blissfully unconcerned.
“Perhaps it is the thought of a festive rally into year-end that is keeping them stable, or perhaps they’re hoping Mr Trump will pull a rabbit out of the hat.”
Economic data on Monday was limited to monthly home sales figures and the Federal Reserve bank of Dallas's regional manufacturing gauge.
New homes sales jumped by 6.2% on the month in October to reach an annualised pace of 685,000, ahead of consensus expectations for 624,000.
With a focus on the South, the Dallas Fed's factory sector index fell back by 10.0 points from its October level to a reading of 15.1 in November.
In the corporate space, traders were busy reacting to the latest news flow on weekend merger and acquisition deals.
Shares of Time Inc. were up by 9.47%, outpacing gains after Meredith Corp inked a deal to buy the magazine publisher for $2.8bn.
Unusually for a suitor company, which got the financial backing of the Koch brothers for the deal, stock in Meredith was ahead by even more, adding 10.74% by the end of the session.
Shares of Barracuda Networks were also sharply higher by 16.51%, after the company agreed to an all-cash takeover from private equity outfit Thoma Bravo for $1.6bn, for a 22.5% premium.
Teva Pharma was also trading on the front foot, rising 7.5% after unveiling a big reorganisation and multiple changes in its top ranks.
Dow Jones - Risers
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $47.66 1.38%
3M Co. (MMM) $234.00 1.13%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $174.16 1.06%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $36.87 1.04%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $83.87 0.73%
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $88.96 0.58%
Nike Inc. (NKE) $59.63 0.52%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $130.57 0.50%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $54.55 0.37%
Visa Inc. (V) $112.35 0.37%
Dow Jones - Fallers
Dowdupont Inc. (DWDP) $70.13 -1.45%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $115.59 -0.79%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $44.49 -0.58%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $174.09 -0.50%
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $97.93 -0.40%
General Electric Co. (GE) $18.12 -0.38%
Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) $81.12 -0.38%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $235.11 -0.36%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $137.19 -0.15%
Boeing Co. (BA) $265.56 -0.11%
Dow Jones - Risers
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $47.66 1.38%
3M Co. (MMM) $234.00 1.13%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $174.16 1.06%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $36.87 1.04%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $83.87 0.73%
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $88.96 0.58%
Nike Inc. (NKE) $59.63 0.52%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $130.57 0.50%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $54.55 0.37%
Visa Inc. (V) $112.35 0.37%
Dow Jones - Fallers
Dowdupont Inc. (DWDP) $70.13 -1.45%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $115.59 -0.79%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $44.49 -0.58%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $174.09 -0.50%
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $97.93 -0.40%
General Electric Co. (GE) $18.12 -0.38%
Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) $81.12 -0.38%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $235.11 -0.36%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $137.19 -0.15%
Boeing Co. (BA) $265.56 -0.11%
Nasdaq 100 - Risers
Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $223.84 4.18%
Align Technology Inc. (ALGN) $262.42 3.01%
T-Mobile Us, Inc. (TMUS) $62.78 1.78%
Alphabet Inc. Class A (GOOGL) $1,072.01 1.47%
Intuitive Surgical Inc. (ISRG) $403.70 1.39%
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX) $148.55 1.36%
Alphabet Inc. Class C (GOOG) $1,054.21 1.31%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $36.87 1.04%
Symantec Corp. (SYMC) $28.84 0.98%
Viacom Inc. Class B (VIAB) $26.54 0.95%
Nasdaq 100 - Fallers
Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $86.55 -6.71%
Liberty Interactive Corporation - Series A Liberty Ventures (LVNTA) $55.50 -3.75%
Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $48.05 -3.28%
NetEase Inc. Ads (NTES) $333.53 -3.10%
Seagate Technology Plc (STX) $39.08 -3.00%
Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) $210.93 -2.72%
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. (REGN) $374.53 -2.68%
Liberty Global Plc Lilac Class A (LILA) $21.08 -2.63%
Liberty Global plc Series A (LBTYA) $29.92 -2.54%
Mylan Inc. (MYL) $36.46 -2.44%