US stocks ended mixed on Monday, while the S&P 500 extended its winning streak for 2018, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped into red zone.
The healthcare sector was the S&P’s worst performer, and investors were cautious about pouring money into bank stocks before the companies kick off the fourth-quarter earnings season later this week.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 12.87 points, or 0.05 per cent, to 25,283, the S&P 500 gained 4.56 points, or 0.17 per cent, to 2,747.71, and the Nasdaq Composite added 20.83 points, or 0.29 per cent, to 7,157.39, reports Reuters.
The S&P 500’s healthcare sector ended 0.4 per cent lower. Last week it rose 3.2 per cent.
The Nasdaq biotech index fell 1.4 per cent, on track for its biggest one-day percentage decline since mid-December, led by a 3.7 per cent drop in Biogen Inc and a 3.3 per cent decline in Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc.
A 0.4 per cent decline in the bank subsector pressured the broader financials index, which fell 0.1 per cent.
Investors were waiting for more details about the impact of recent US corporate tax cuts in fourth-quarter earnings calls when the reporting season begins later in the week.
Wells Fargo and Citigroup fell more than 1.0 per cent while Goldman Sachs declined 1.5 per cent. Most big US lenders have estimated one-off charges to their fourth-quarter earnings on account of US tax cuts.
Utilities were the S&P’s biggest percentage gainers, regaining some ground lost in the previous week along with real estate.
Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a 1.40-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.03-to-1 ratio favoured advancers.
The S&P 500 posted 98 new 52-week highs and no new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 124 new highs and 26 new lows.
Volume so far on US exchanges was 6.36 billion shares, compared to the 6.28 billion average for the full session over the last 20 trading days.