Investing.com – U.S. stocks were lower after the close on Wednesday, as losses in the Oil & Gas, Basic Materials and Technology sectors led shares lower.
At the close in NYSE, the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.45%, while the S&P 500 index lost 0.64%, and the NASDAQ Composite index lost 1.10%.
The best performers of the session on the Dow Jones Industrial Average were UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH), which rose 1.38% or 1.77 points to trade at 129.79 at the close. Meanwhile, Visa Inc (NYSE:V) added 1.30% or 0.95 points to end at 73.91 and Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) was up 1.04% or 1.12 points to 108.50 in late trade.
The worst performers of the session were Nike Inc (NYSE:NKE), which fell 3.79% or 2.46 points to trade at 62.44 at the close. Caterpillar Inc (NYSE:CAT) declined 2.48% or 1.87 points to end at 73.68 and Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) was down 2.00% or 1.91 points to 93.59.
The top performers on the S&P 500 were PEPCO Holdings Inc (NYSE:POM) which rose 26.79% to 26.93, AutoZone Inc (NYSE:AZO) which was up 2.45% to settle at 805.29 and Yum! Brands Inc (NYSE:YUM) which gained 1.99% to close at 80.55.
The worst performers were Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NYSE:CHK) which was down 14.32% to 4.13 in late trade, Freeport-McMoran Copper & Gold Inc (NYSE:FCX) which lost 11.28% to settle at 9.75 and Marathon Oil Corporation (NYSE:MRO) which was down 9.96% to 10.19 at the close.
The top performers on the NASDAQ Composite were Great Basin Scientific Inc (NASDAQ:GBSN) which rose 92.18% to 0.2800, China Natural Resources Inc (NASDAQ:CHNR) which was up 26.47% to settle at 2.5800 and Code Rebel Corp (NASDAQ:CDRB) which gained 26.44% to close at 2.63.
The worst performers were Quantum Fuel Systems Inc (NASDAQ:QTWW) which was down 56.74% to 0.1670 in late trade, Glori Energy Technology Inc (NASDAQ:GLRI) which lost 25.37% to settle at 0.2030 and Superconductor Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:SCON) which was down 22.24% to 0.2101 at the close.
Falling stocks outnumbered advancing ones on the New York Stock Exchange by 2468 to 875 and 30 ended unchanged; on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, 2041 fell and 551 advanced, while 44 ended unchanged.
Shares in AutoZone Inc (NYSE:AZO) rose to all time highs; rising 2.45% or 19.22 to 805.29. Shares in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) rose to all time highs; up 1.38% or 1.77 to 129.79. Shares in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) rose to 52-week highs; up 1.04% or 1.12 to 108.50. Shares in Quantum Fuel Systems Inc (NASDAQ:QTWW) fell to all time lows; falling 56.74% or 0.2190 to 0.1670.
The CBOE Volatility Index, which measures the implied volatility of S&P 500 options, was up 4.59% to 14.82.
Gold for April delivery was down 2.18% or 27.20 to $1221.40 a troy ounce. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Crude oil for delivery in May fell 4.03% or 1.67 to hit $39.78 a barrel, while the May Brent oil contract fell 3.06% or 1.28 to trade at $40.51 a barrel.
EUR/USD was down 0.32% to 1.1181, while USD/JPY unchanged 0.00% to 112.38.
The US Dollar Index was up 0.41% at 96.06.