U.S. stocks lower at close of trade; Dow Jones Industrial Average down 0.38%

Investing.com – U.S. stocks were lower after the close on Friday, as losses in the Consumer Services, Utilities and Basic Materials sectors led shares lower.

At the close in NYSE, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.38%, while the S&P 500 index lost 1.04%, and the NASDAQ Composite index fell 1.59%.

The best performers of the session on the Dow Jones Industrial Average were American Express Company (NYSE:AXP), which rose 3.32% or 5.74 points to trade at 178.87 at the close. Meanwhile, Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) added 2.44% or 3.68 points to end at 154.50 and JPMorgan Chase&Co (NYSE:JPM) was up 1.51% or 2.10 points to 141.04 in late trade.

The worst performers of the session were Home Depot Inc (NYSE:HD), which fell 2.45% or 8.31 points to trade at 331.48 at the close. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) declined 2.36% or 6.26 points to end at 258.35 and 3M Company (NYSE:MMM) was down 2.31% or 2.78 points to 117.51.

The top performers on the S&P 500 were Clorox Co (NYSE:CLX) which rose 9.77% to 154.78, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:REGN) which was up 4.25% to settle at 783.13 and Church&Dwight Company Inc (NYSE:CHD) which gained 3.86% to close at 82.89.

The worst performers were Gen Digital Inc (NASDAQ:GEN) which was down 9.63% to 21.30 in late trade, MarketAxess Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:MKTX) which lost 8.96% to settle at 345.90 and Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) which was down 8.43% to 103.39 at the close.

The top performers on the NASDAQ Composite were ReShape Lifesciences Inc (NASDAQ:RSLS) which rose 170.48% to 17.04, Heart Test Laboratories Inc Unit (NASDAQ:HSCS) which was up 139.44% to settle at 3.40 and Genetic Technologies Ltd (NASDAQ:GENE) which gained 80.20% to close at 1.82.

The worst performers were Gaucho Group Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:VINO) which was down 46.11% to 2.91 in late trade, Edible Garden AG Inc (NASDAQ:EDBL) which lost 43.11% to settle at 4.75 and MDxHealth SA ADR (NASDAQ:MDXH) which was down 38.06% to 3.89 at the close.

Falling stocks outnumbered advancing ones on the New York Stock Exchange by 2184 to 849 and 80 ended unchanged; on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, 2238 fell and 1450 advanced, while 158 ended unchanged.

Shares in Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:REGN) rose to all time highs; up 4.25% or 31.93 to 783.13. Shares in Heart Test Laboratories Inc Unit (NASDAQ:HSCS) rose to all time highs; up 139.44% or 1.98 to 3.40. Shares in MDxHealth SA ADR (NASDAQ:MDXH) fell to all time lows; down 38.06% or 2.39 to 3.89.

The CBOE Volatility Index, which measures the implied volatility of S&P 500 options, was down 2.14% to 18.33.

Gold Futures for April delivery was down 2.70% or 52.05 to $1,878.75 a troy ounce. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Crude oil for delivery in March fell 3.43% or 2.60 to hit $73.28 a barrel, while the April Brent oil contract fell 2.88% or 2.37 to trade at $79.80 a barrel.

EUR/USD was down 1.01% to 1.08, while USD/JPY rose 1.97% to 131.18.

The US Dollar Index Futures was up 1.20% at 102.79.