Investing.com -- U.S. stocks fell broadly on Monday during a choppy day of trading, as concerns in Greece and China, along with a massive sell-off in crude futures weighed on the major indices.
Although the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined by approximately 0.25% to remain in negative territory for the year, it staged a rally just before the close to pare significant losses in the morning session when it declined by more than 120 points. The NASDAQ Composite index and the S&P 500 Composite index, meanwhile, each fell by more than 0.3% on a bearish day for stocks.
Energy stocks weighed on both the Dow and the NASDAQ, as WTI crude for August delivery plunged more than 5% on the session to its lowest level since early-April. As a result, shares in major oil companies plummeted. Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX), for instance, plummeted at one point more than 1.5% below $95, falling to its lowest level since November, 2011.
The Dow lost 46.53 or 0.26% to close at 17,683.58, while the NASDAQ dipped 17.27 or 0.34% to fall to 4,991.94 at Monday's close. The S&P 500, meanwhile, lost 8.02 or 0.39% to 2,068.76, as nine of 10 sectors closed in the red. Stocks in the Energy and Basic Materials sectors lagged, each falling at least 1% on the session.
Also on Monday, investors digested a $37 billion merger between health insurers Aetna Inc (NYSE:AET) and Humana Inc (NYSE:HUM) on the first day of trading since last Friday's announcement. Shares in Aetna tumbled 7.96 or 6.34% to 117.55, while Humana shares gained 1.46 or 0.78% to 117.55. The deal could limit other top managed health care companies such as UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH), Anthem Inc (NYSE:ANTM) and Cigna Corporation (NYSE:CI) from completing similar deals amid increased scrutiny from antitrust regulators.
The top performer on the Dow was Wal-Mart Stores Inc (NYSE:WMT), which gained 0.69 or 0.96% to 72.55. The worst performer was General Electric Company (NYSE:GE), which fell 0.49 or 1.81% to 26.30. Last week, the U.S. Department of Justice filed an antitrust lawsuit to block Swedish-based Electrolux's potential $3.3 billion acquisition of GE's appliance division.
The biggest gainer on the NASDAQ was American Airlines Group (NASDAQ:AAL), which gained 0.70 or 1.79% to 39.73. The worst performer on the NASDAQ was Baidu Inc (NASDAQ:BIDU), which dipped 8.00 or 4.06% to 189.03.
The top performer on the S&P 500 was Johnson Controls Inc (NYSE:JCI), which gained 1.06 or 2.14% to 50.50. Aetna finished as the worst performer on the S&P 500, just below National Oilwell Varco Inc (NYSE:NOV), which lost 7.96 or 6.34% to 117.55.
On the New York Stock Exchange, decliners outnumbered advancers by a 1,992 to 1,172 margin.