Investing.com -- U.S. stocks closed broadly lower on Wednesday on a light day trading due to the Veterans Day holiday.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the NASDAQ Composite index fell mildly amid a dip in pharmaceutical and tech stocks, while the S&P 500 Composite index also closed down on the session. Following sharp losses on Monday, the major indices have suffered one of their worst 3-day declines over the last month. U.S. equity markets remained open on Veterans Day, while banks and government offices were closed for the holiday. A small contingent of Armed Forces members and 30 alumni from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point rang the closing bells at the New York Stock Exchange and the NASDAQ to honor the veterans.
The Dow lost 55.99 or 0.32% to close at 17,702.22, while the NASDAQ fell 16.22 or 0.32% to end Wednesday's session at 5,067.02. The S&P 500, meanwhile, dropped 6.72 or 0.32% to 2,075.00, as seven of 10 sectors closed in the red. Stocks in the Energy and Health Care industries lagged, each falling more than 1%. Stocks in the Utility, Telecommunications and Industrial sectors led.
The top performer on the Dow was General Electric Company (N:GE), which rose 0.55 or 1.83% to 30.67, extending gains from the previous session when it closed above $30 a share for the first time in seven years. Earlier this week, GE announced that it won a Letter of Award for a $2.6 billion deal to provide Indian Railways with a thousand diesel locomotives over an 11-year period. As part of the agreement, GE will build a diesel locomotive manufacturing plant in Bihar and maintenance sheds in Punjab and Gujarat.
The worst performer was Nike Inc (N:NKE), which lost 2.58 or 1.98% to 127.42. Nike (N:NKE) finished just below Wal-Mart Stores Inc (N:WMT), which fell 1.11 or 1.89% to 57.57 after a group of company employees intensified demands for expanded in-store discounts on food, according to Bloomberg. Although Wal-Mart (N:WMT) already offers workers a 10% discount on fruit, vegetables and a limited number of snack foods, the workers are lobbying for the company to offer the discounts for the majority of the food items in the store. It is estimated that a more comprehensive discount package could cost Wal-Mart up to $420 million annually.
The biggest gainer on the NASDAQ was Discovery Communications (O:DISCA) which added 0.71 or 2.49% to 29.26 after the Maryland-based television network announced it will invest $195 million to acquire a 3.4% stake in international cable Liberty Global Plc (O:LBTYA). The worst performer was Keurig Green Mountain Inc (O:GMCR), which fell 3.82 or 7.63% to close at 46.22. Shares in Keurig are now down by approximately 65% over the last 12 months.
The top performer was Xerox Corporation (N:XRX), which jumped 0.63 or 6.55% to 10.25 after analysts at Morningstar accentuated the document services company's growth potential due to its back-office outsourcing contracts with the federal and local governments, as well as state health care and transportation agencies. The worst performer was Macy`s Inc (N:M), which plunged 6.61 or 14.06% to 40.41 after the major department store slashed its full-year outlook, following worse than expected quarterly earnings. Macy's also announced that it has decided not to spin-off its real estate assets, months after Starboard Value valued them at approximately $21 billion over the summer.
"Our board concluded there was not enough value to be created from the establishment of a REIT at this time," Macy's CEO Terry Lundgren said on a conference call.
On the New York Stock Exchange, declining issues outnumbered advancing ones by a 1,764-1,307 margin.