U.S. stocks mixed at close of trade; Dow Jones Industrial Average down 0.22%

Investing.com – U.S. stocks were mixed after the close on Wednesday, as gains in the Oil&Gas, Telecoms and Technology sectors led shares higher while losses in the Utilities, Basic Materials and Healthcare sectors led shares lower.

At the close in NYSE, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.22%, while the S&P 500 index lost 0.04%, and the NASDAQ Composite index climbed 0.27%.

The best performers of the session on the Dow Jones Industrial Average were Salesforce Inc (NYSE:CRM), which rose 1.61% or 3.37 points to trade at 212.19 at the close. Meanwhile, Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc (NASDAQ:WBA) added 1.54% or 0.44 points to end at 29.08 and American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) was up 0.95% or 1.60 points to 169.79 in late trade.

The worst performers of the session were The Travelers Companies Inc (NYSE:TRV), which fell 2.46% or 4.25 points to trade at 168.34 at the close. Home Depot Inc (NYSE:HD) declined 2.27% or 7.11 points to end at 306.63 and UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) was down 1.59% or 7.66 points to 474.90.

The top performers on the S&P 500 were Carnival Corporation (NYSE:CCL) which rose 8.84% to 17.30, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd (NYSE:NCLH) which was up 7.61% to settle at 21.08 and Weyerhaeuser Company (NYSE:WY) which gained 4.30% to close at 33.21.

The worst performers were General Mills Inc (NYSE:GIS) which was down 5.15% to 76.73 in late trade, Albemarle Corp (NYSE:ALB) which lost 4.50% to settle at 216.86 and Hershey Co (NYSE:HSY) which was down 3.96% to 249.62 at the close.

The top performers on the NASDAQ Composite were Minerva Neurosciences Inc (NASDAQ:NERV) which rose 69.27% to 10.19, Knightscope Inc (NASDAQ:KSCP) which was up 52.15% to settle at 0.70 and Centogene B V (NASDAQ:CNTG) which gained 33.90% to close at 1.58.

The worst performers were American Rebel Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:AREB) which was down 35.45% to 3.55 in late trade, Powerbridge Technologies Co Ltd (NASDAQ:PBTS) which lost 33.77% to settle at 1.00 and Trxade Group Inc (NASDAQ:MEDS) which was down 27.56% to 10.75 at the close.

Rising stocks outnumbered declining ones on the New York Stock Exchange by 1588 to 1348 and 90 ended unchanged; on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, 1826 rose and 1700 declined, while 140 ended unchanged.

Shares in Carnival Corporation (NYSE:CCL) rose to 52-week highs; up 8.84% or 1.40 to 17.30. Shares in Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd (NYSE:NCLH) rose to 52-week highs; up 7.61% or 1.49 to 21.08. Shares in Powerbridge Technologies Co Ltd (NASDAQ:PBTS) fell to all time lows; losing 33.77% or 0.51 to 1.00.

The CBOE Volatility Index, which measures the implied volatility of S&P 500 options, was down 2.26% to 13.43.

Gold Futures for August delivery was down 0.28% or 5.35 to $1,918.45 a troy ounce. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Crude oil for delivery in August rose 2.13% or 1.44 to hit $69.14 a barrel, while the September Brent oil contract rose 1.77% or 1.28 to trade at $73.79 a barrel.

EUR/USD was unchanged 0.41% to 1.09, while USD/JPY rose 0.28% to 144.47.

The US Dollar Index Futures was up 0.50% at 102.64.