Investing.com – U.S. stocks were mixed after the close on Thursday, as gains in the Telecoms, Oil & Gas and Utilities sectors led shares higher while losses in the Financials, Consumer Goods and Healthcare sectors led shares lower.
At the close in NYSE, the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.08%, while the S&P 500 index declined 0.04%, and the NASDAQ Composite index added 0.10%.
The best performers of the session on the Dow Jones Industrial Average were Caterpillar Inc (NYSE:CAT), which rose 2.19% or 1.61 points to trade at 75.29 at the close. Meanwhile, International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) added 1.75% or 2.55 points to end at 147.95 and Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) was up 1.35% or 1.26 points to 94.85 in late trade.
The worst performers of the session were Nike Inc (NYSE:NKE), which fell 1.27% or 0.79 points to trade at 61.65 at the close. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) declined 0.92% or 1.20 points to end at 128.59 and JPMorgan Chase & Co (NYSE:JPM) was down 0.77% or 0.46 points to 59.48.
The top performers on the S&P 500 were PVH Corp (NYSE:PVH) which rose 7.60% to 94.29, Staples Inc (NASDAQ:SPLS) which was up 7.01% to settle at 10.76 and Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN) which gained 6.26% to close at 114.30.
The worst performers were Williams Companies Inc (NYSE:WMB) which was down 5.60% to 15.35 in late trade, Seagate Technology PLC (NASDAQ:STX) which lost 4.51% to settle at 33.23 and PayPal Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:PYPL) which was down 3.95% to 38.92 at the close.
The top performers on the NASDAQ Composite were Lombard Medical Inc (NASDAQ:EVAR) which rose 35.37% to 1.1100, Alexza Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:ALXA) which was up 31.96% to settle at 0.7390 and Code Rebel Corp (NASDAQ:CDRB) which gained 24.71% to close at 3.28.
The worst performers were DS Healthcare Group Inc (NASDAQ:DSKX) which was down 35.34% to 0.860 in late trade, Great Basin Scientific Inc (NASDAQ:GBSN) which lost 30.00% to settle at 0.1960 and Portola Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:PTLA) which was down 29.28% to 20.24 at the close.
Rising stocks outnumbered declining ones on the New York Stock Exchange by 1665 to 1654 and 35 ended unchanged; on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, 1438 rose and 1114 declined, while 74 ended unchanged.
Shares in Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN) rose to all time highs; rising 6.26% or 6.73 to 114.30. Shares in Portola Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:PTLA) fell to 52-week lows; down 29.28% or 8.38 to 20.24.
The CBOE Volatility Index, which measures the implied volatility of S&P 500 options, was down 1.14% to 14.77.
Gold for April delivery was down 0.55% or 6.70 to $1217.30 a troy ounce. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Crude oil for delivery in May fell 0.63% or 0.25 to hit $39.54 a barrel, while the May Brent oil contract fell 0.05% or 0.02 to trade at $40.45 a barrel.
EUR/USD was down 0.03% to 1.1178, while USD/JPY rose 0.42% to 112.85.
The US Dollar Index was up 0.09% at 96.15.