U.S. stocks slightly down, as dollar continues downward trend

Investing.com - Investing.com -- Stocks on U.S. equities markets fell slightly amid a weakening dollar, as late losses on Monday afternoon erased previous gains in morning trading.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 11.61 points or 0.06% to 18,116.04, while the NASDAQ Composite index retreated from near record highs at the end of trading last week. The S&P 500 also fell by less than 20 points on Monday, pushed down by lags in the Financials, Health Care and Industrials sectors.
Modest gains in the Consumer Goods, Telecommunications and Basic Materials sectors, offset the losses. At one point on Monday, the S&P Mid Cap index hit an all-time high.
The NASDAQ, meanwhile, fell 15.45 or 0.31% to 5,010.97 amid heavy losses among biotech stocks. On the fifth anniversary of President Barack Obama's signing of the Affordable Care Act, stocks on the NASDAQ Biotechnology Index plunged more than 2% to 85.9. Shares in Celgene Corporation (NASDAQ:CELG), Amgen Inc (NASDAQ:AMGN), Gilead Sciences Inc (NASDAQ:GILD) and Biogen Idec Inc (NASDAQ:BIIB) all fell broadly by at least 1.98%, upon concerns of overvalued stock prices. On Friday, Biogen soared nearly 10% after receiving positive test results for its Alzheimer's drug Aducanumab. The index is still up by roughly 18% on the year.
The performer of the day on the Dow, however, was Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) which rose 0.80 or 2.34% amid a strong outlook on its breast cancer and diabetes drugs that are under review. The worst performer was Home Depot Inc (NYSE:HD), which fell 1.42 points or 1.21% to 116.07. The National Association of Realtors on Monday said existing home sales in February rose 1.2% to an annual rate of 4.88 million. Analysts had expected the figure to increase 1.7% to 4.90 million units.
The biggest gainer on the NASDAQ was Staples Inc (NASDAQ:SPLS), which rose 0.56 or 3.45% after receiving a favorable rating from UBS. The worst performer was Celgene, which fell 5.56 or 4.33% to 122.94.
The top performer on the S&P 500 was Allegheny Technologies Incorporated (NYSE:ATI), which gained 6.64% or 1.96 to 31.50. The worst performer was Kansas City Southern (NYSE:KSU), which fell 9.21 or 7.96% to 106.48.