Stocks End on a Mixed Note

Stocks ended on a mixed note in a lackluster trading session as investors remained on the sidelines despite some solid U.S. economic data.

The Dow Jones ended the day 0.08% lower at 13,165.19, the S&P 500 ended the day 0.04% higher at 1,402.80, and the Nasdaq ended the day 0.25% higher at 3,018.64.

Energy and Basic Materials sectors were the best performers in trading today. Both sectors rose on hopes of further monetary easing from China, the world’s second-largest economy. Basic Materials sector ended the day 0.55% higher, while Energy sector ended the day 0.57% higher. Technology sector ended the day 0.54% higher. Industrials ended the day 0.42% higher. Transportation sector was the worst performers in the S&P 500 today, ending the day 0.21% lower. Consumer Cyclical sector ended the day 0.11% lower.

Among the major gainers and losers in trading today were Robbins & Myers Inc. (NYSE: RBN), which ended the day 27.41% higher at $59.63, Universal Display Corporation (NASDAQ: PANL), which ended the day 18.80% higher at $38.99, Select Medical Holdings Corporation (NYSE: SEM), which ended the day 24.40% lower at $10.38, Monster Beverage Corp. (NASDAQ: MNST), which ended the day 9.69% lower at $61.20, Alpha Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE: ANR), which ended the day 15.08% higher at $7.25, Genomic Health Inc. (NASDAQ: GHDX), which ended the day 15.61% higher at $36.22, and Harbinger Group Inc. (NYSE: HRG), which ended the day 11.39% lower at $8.95.

On the economic front, a report released by the Labor Department showed that initial jobless claims fell 6,000 to 361,000 for the week ended August 4. Economists were expecting jobless claims to rise to 370,000. Meanwhile, the Commerce Department reported that the U.S. trade deficit narrowed to $42.9 billion in June, the smallest in one and a half years. A separate report from the Commerce Department showed that wholesale inventories in June fell 0.2%.

European markets ended mostly higher today, with the FTSE 100 Index in London ending 0.10% higher, and the CAC 40 Index in Paris ending 0.54% higher. Asian markets also ended higher overnight.

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Post Written By: Ed Liston Ed Liston is a senior contributing editor at TheStockMarketWatch.com. An active market watcher and investor, Ed guides an independent team of experienced analysts and writes for multiple stock trader publications. He is widely quoted in various financial publications on the Internet. When Ed is not writing about stocks, investing in stocks, talking about stocks, or otherwise doing something stock related, he likes to go sailing and fishing in his yacht.