Stocks slip on weakness in healthcare, materials
Stocks fell Monday, erasing earlier gains, as shares of healthcare and materials companies weakened.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 148.04 points, or 0.61%, to 24,163.15. The S&P 500 lost 21.81 points, or 0.8%, to 2,648.05. The Nasdaq Composite fell 53.53 points, or 0.75%, to 7,066.27.
The dollar extended its advance on solid earnings and several corporate deals, creating a headwind for equities.
Stocks rose earlier as deals in the supermarket, oil-patch and telecom industries triggered a “Merger Monday.” But Sprint and T-Mobile shares retreated after the mobile carriers announced plans to merge, and the telecom sector was the worst performer in the S&P.
T-Mobile and Sprint reached a $26.5 billion agreement Sunday to combine in an all-stock deal that would reshape the U.S. wireless landscape by reducing it to three major cellphone providers.
Better-than-forecast earnings buoyed companies including McDonald’s. The fast-food chain and Dow Jones Industrial Average component topped analysts’ expectations for earnings and revenue.
The materials and health care sectors posted losses of more than 1% on the day. UnitedHealth Group was down 1.6%.
General Electric finished April with a 4.4% gain, snapping a 13-month losing streak.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TMUS | T-MOBILE US INC. | 233.20 | -3.83 | -1.62% |
| S | SENTINELONE INC | 27.62 | +1.19 | +4.50% |
| TWTR | NO DATA AVAILABLE | - | - | - |
| MCD | MCDONALD'S CORP. | 290.70 | -0.41 | -0.14% |
Economic data published Monday morning included the core personal consumption expenditures price index, known as the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge. It accelerated to 1.9% in March, in line with estimates and just a whisker below the central bank’s 2% target. Fed policy makers will meet Tuesday and Wednesday. Personal income increased 0.3% last month.
In Europe, all eyes were on Sainsbury’s, whose shares shot up 20% after the retailer agreed to a merger with Walmart’s Asda.
Marathon Petroleum planned to buy pipeline and refining company Andeavor, formerly Tesoro, for more than $20 billion, while Marriott said it would purchase ILG in a transaction worth $4.7 billion.
Earnings season continues in force this week, with 136 companies in the S&P 500, or just over one-quarter of the benchmark index, out with quarterly results.