Investing.com -- U.S. stocks fell slightly on Monday, extending losses from late last week, as domestic crude futures remained under $50 a barrel and Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) weighed on the Dow Jones Industrial Average following its $26 billion acquisition of LinkedIn (NYSE:LNKD).
The Dow fell 132.86 or 0.74% to 17,732.48, suffering its third consecutive losing session since closing above 18,000 last Wednesday. The NASDAQ Composite index lost 46.11 or 0.94% to 4,848.44, while the S&P 500 Composite index dipped 17.01 or 0.81% to 2,079.06, both suffering their fourth straight decline. On the S&P 500 all 10 sectors closed in the red. Stocks in the Basic Materials, Technology and Consumer Goods industries lagged, each falling by more than 1% on the session. Despite the recent losses, stocks on Wall Street still remain near 2016-yearly highs, up more than 10% from February-lows.
Investors also kept a close eye on developments surrounding a potential Brexit, after several polls in the U.K. showed that voters are leaning toward the "Leave" campaign in the controversial June 23 referendum. The CBOE Vix Volatility Index surged to a three-month high at 21.01, before settling at 20.98, up 23.19% for the session.
The top performer on the Dow was Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM), which added 0.61 or 0.68% to after the oil giant received an upgrade on Monday from MS. Citing ExxonMobil's "stronger balance sheet, greater downstream exposure and integration, and higher, more secure yield," analysts from Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) lifted their price target considerably from $75 to $95.
The worst performer was Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT), which tumbled 1.35 or 2.62% to 50.13 after announcing a deal to acquire LinkedIn (NYSE:LNKD) at $196 per share. LinkedIn shares soared more than 47% to an intraday-high of 194.38, before closing at 192.21, up 46.64% on the day. By comparison, LinkedIn shares traded around $290 at this time a year ago. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and LinkedIN CEO Jeff Weiner reportedly discussed a potential deal for months after LinkedIn tested the $100 level in February. Nadella is also intrigued about implications the deal could have for developments in artificial intelligence.
"Jeff and I talked about what's that next phase beyond commercial integration, can we truly take what is today a fragmented work environment for professionals and complete the scenarios more tastefully and with better relevance?" Nadella told CNBC. "Even the news feed on LinkedIn if it was informed with what projects you are working on or what your calendar is going to look like the next two weeks. Think about if you can bring AI to improve the relevance of those feeds, that's what excited us."
The biggest gainer on the NASDAQ was Symantec Corporation (NASDAQ:SYMC), which added 0.92 or 5.32% to 18.22 after the security company announced that it will acquire internet security provider Blue Coast for $4.65 billion in a cash deal. The transaction is expected to expand Symantec (NASDAQ:SYMC)'s portfolio of security technologies during their transition to the cloud. The worst performer was American Airlines Group (NASDAQ:AAL), which fell 1.35 or 4.07% to 31.79. Over the weekend, the airlines giant announced major changes to its frequent flier program, which will make it more challenging for economy passengers to qualify for free flights.
On the New York Stock Exchange declining issues outnumbered advancing ones by a 2,296-736 margin.