Investing.com -- Stocks on U.S. equities markets fell broadly on Wednesday, amid a weaker dollar and a flurry of merger and acquisition activity.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged nearly 300 points to post its third consecutive loss, while the NASDAQ Composite index and S&P 500 Composite index also closed lower. After starting the session above 18,000, the Dow plummeted 292.60 or 1.62% to close at 17,718.54.
Heavy losses among biotechnology and semiconductors, as well as the industrial and financial sectors, caused the S&P 500 to drop 1.46% or 30.45% to 2,061.05. The NASDAQ, meanwhile, continued to retreat from the 5,000 level, falling 118.21 or 2.37% to 4,876.52.
H.J. Heinz on Wednesday announced plans to purchase Kraft Foods Group Inc (NASDAQ:KRFT) in a $28 billion deal that will create one of the world's largest food and beverage companies. The deal was orchestrated by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc (NYSE:BRKa) and Brazilian investment group 3G Capital. In 2013, Buffet and the Brazilian company paired up to purchase Heinz.
At one point on Wednesday, Kraft surged more than 42% to $86.90 a share, before settling at 83.17 at the close. Kraft still ended the session as the top performer on the NASDAQ and the S&P 500. The worst performer on the NASDAQ was Avago Technologies Limited (NASDAQ:AVGO), which fell 8.69 points or 6.53% to 124.43.
Elsewhere, Kofax Ltd (LONDON:KFX) gained more than 45% to around $11 a share after Lexmark International Inc (NYSE:LXK) announced it would purchase the California-based enterprise software business in a deal worth approximately $1 billion. Lexmark, a top global provider of lasers printers, rose 2.48 or 6.08% to 43.27.
The top two performers on the Dow were Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) and Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM), as crude oil futures surged late in the session. Chevron rose 1.53% or 1.59 to 105.79, while Exxon Mobil increased 0.47% or 0.40 to 84.92.
The worst performer was Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT), which fell 3.26% or 1.40 points to 41.50, after analysts from the Jensen Quality Growth Fund told Forbes that the Seattle-based multinational computer software provider should remain as a hold. Microsoft traded near $50 a share in mid-November, amid strong leadership from new CEO Satya Nadella.
The worst performer on the S&P 500 was Lam Research Corporation (NASDAQ:LRCX), which fell 6.01 or 7.63% to 72.75. The declines in the California-based semiconductor processor company underscored the overall losses in the semiconductor industry on Wednesday.