U.S. stock indexes were headed for a slightly lower close in late-afternoon trading Monday, weighed down by drug companies and consumer-focused stocks. The pullback came as investors took profits off the back of record highs last week. Energy stocks were among the biggest gainers as oil prices rose.
KEEPING SCORE: The Dow Jones industrial average slid 27 points, or 0.2 percent, to 18,515 as of 3:36 p.m. Eastern time. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell three points, or 0.2 percent, to 2,179. The Nasdaq composite index lost 13 points, or 0.3 percent, to 5,207.
THE QUOTE: The dip in the markets likely reflects traders selling in the wake of the record highs set by the S&P 500 index and Nasdaq on Friday, said JJ Kinahan, chief strategist at TD Ameritrade.
"It's a little bit of profit-taking," he said. "We're coming off a good employment number and we know the consumer's been strong."
DEEPER SLIDE: Shares in Bristol-Myers Squibb were hammered again Monday after plunging on Friday following news that the drugmaker's cancer treatment Opdivo failed in a study aimed at extending its usage for lung cancer patients. The stock lost $2.85, or 4.5 percent, to $60.43.
DASHED EXPECTATIONS: Allergan slid 2.6 percent after the Botox-maker's second-quarter revenue fell short of Wall Street's forecasts. The stock lost $6.56 to $247.29.
ONLINE PLAY: Wal-Mart Stores slipped 0.5 percent after the retail giant agreed to buy fast-growing online retail newcomer Jet.com for $3 billion in cash and another $300 million in stock. The deal underscores how serious Wal-Mart is about challenging online leader Amazon. Shares in Wal-Mart shed 39 cents to $73.37.
PUMPED: Several oil and natural gas companies notched gains. Marathon Oil added 42 cents, or 3 percent, to $14.29, while Tesoro rose $2.66, or 3.6 percent, to $77.37. Chesapeake Energy gained 14 cents, or 2.8 percent, to $5.03.
COMFORTABLE POSITION: Mattress Firm vaulted more than twofold after the mattress retailer agreed to be acquired by furniture seller Steinhoff International in a deal valued at $3.8 billion, including debt. The stock gained $34.01 to $63.75.
EUROPEAN MARKETS: Germany's DAX rose 0.6 percent after government figures showed that industrial production posted a better-than-anticipated gain in June. France's CAC 40 gained 0.1 percent, while Britain's FTSE 100 index added 0.2 percent.
ASIA'S DAY: Markets in Asia moved mostly higher despite a report showing China's exports fell again in July, while a decline in imports accelerated. Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 1.6 percent, while the Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.9 percent. Tokyo's Nikkei 225 surged 2.4 percent. Sydney's S&P-ASX 200 added 0.4 percent, while Seoul's Kospi rose 0.9 percent. India's Sensex added 0.2 percent. Benchmarks in Taiwan, New Zealand and Thailand also rose, while Singapore declined.
ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude rose $1.22, or 2.9 percent, to close at $43.02 per barrel in New York. Brent crude, used to price international oils, gained $1.12, or 2.5 percent, to close at $45.39 per barrel in London. In other energy trading, wholesale gasoline slipped a penny to $1.36 a gallon, while heating oil rose 3 cents to $1.34 a gallon. Natural gas fell 2 cents to $2.75 per 1,000 cubic feet.
METALS: The price of gold fell $3.10, or 0.2 percent, to $1,341.80 an ounce. Silver dipped 1 cent, or 0.1 percent, to $19.81 an ounce. Copper added a penny, or 0.5 percent, to $2.17 a pound.
BONDS AND CURRENCIES: Bond prices were little changed. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note held at 1.59 percent. In currency markets, the dollar rose to 102.45 yen from Friday's 101.75 yen. The euro edged down to $1.1086 from $1.1091.
