Stock Market Today: Dow Dives 411 Points as UnitedHealth Slumps
The main indexes pulled back Wednesday with health insurer UnitedHealth creating the biggest drag on the blue chip Dow.
![closeup of ticker board with all stocks listed trading in negative territory](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/rQD5rgTj6dumcyyvEd2unW-415-80.jpg)
Stocks closed lower Wednesday as market participants took profits following a red-hot run higher. Indeed, the three main indexes are hovering near record highs and are poised to close out May with solid gains.
At the close, the Nasdaq Composite was down 0.6% at 16,920 and the S&P 500 was off 0.7% at 5,266. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.1% to 38,441 as UnitedHealth Group (UNH) slumped 3.8% after the health insurer forecast "some disturbance" in its Medicaid business. At roughly $484, UNH stock has the greatest weighting of all 30 stocks in the price-weighted Dow.
ConocoPhillips to buy Marathon Oil
In other single-stock news, Marathon Oil (MRO) jumped 8.4% after ConocoPhillips (COP, -3.1%) agreed to buy the Texas-based exploration and production company in an all-stock deal valued at $22.1 billion, including debt. The transaction is expected to boost COP's shale assets and could close later this year if all goes as planned.
![https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/hwgJ7osrMtUWhk5koeVme7-200-80.png](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/hwgJ7osrMtUWhk5koeVme7-320-80.png)
Sign up for Kiplinger’s Free E-Newsletters
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and more - straight to your e-mail.
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice - straight to your e-mail.
This is just the latest in a string of merger-and-acquisition (M&A) news coming from the energy sector. Most recently, Hess (HES, -2.1%) shareholders on Tuesday approved a $53 billion merger with Chevron (CVX, -1.4%) – though the deal has a few more hurdles to clear before it closes.
"Consolidation, especially among oil and gas producers, has been a key dealmaking trigger in the last several months due to reduced oil prices, economic pressures and increased support for achieving net zero plans," says Mark Williams, chief revenue officer for the Americas at dealmaking platform Datasite.
The deals are being driven by large producers looking to strengthen their market positions amid maturing business models, Williams adds, "especially to secure lower-cost reserves." He anticipates this trend will continue into the second half of this year.
Chewy has its best day ever after earnings
Outside of the oil patch, Chewy (CHWY) surged 27.1% – its biggest one-day gain on record – after earnings. For its fiscal Q1, the online pet supplies retailer disclosed higher-than-expected earnings of 31 cents per share, up 55% year-over-year. Revenue increased 3.1% to $2.9 billion.
Chewy also unveiled a $500 million stock buyback plan, representing more than 5% of its market cap.
American Airlines dives after cutting Q2 forecast
American Airlines (AAL) was another notable mover, diving 13.5% after the air carrier cut its second-quarter guidance and said its chief commercial officer, Vasu Raja, is leaving the company in June.
"Guidance held out as long as it could, but it's clear AAL's long-term strategy will take some time to execute," said Jefferies analyst Sheila Kahyaoglu, who downgraded the stock to Hold from Buy and lowered her price target to $12 from $17.
Related content
Get Kiplinger Today newsletter — free
Profit and prosper with the best of Kiplinger's advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and much more. Delivered daily. Enter your email in the box and click Sign Me Up.
With over a decade of experience writing about the stock market, Karee Venema is the senior investing editor at Kiplinger.com. She joined the publication in April 2021 after 10 years of working as an investing writer and columnist at Schaeffer's Investment Research. In her previous role, Karee focused primarily on options trading, as well as technical, fundamental and sentiment analysis.
-
Visa Is the Worst Dow Stock Wednesday. Here's Why
Visa stock is down sharply Wednesday after the credit card company came up short of revenue expectations for its fiscal Q3.
By Joey Solitro Published
-
Another Analyst Moves to the Sidelines on Tesla Stock After Earnings
Tesla stock is spiraling Wednesday after the EV maker's big earnings miss and Wall Street has been quick to weigh in. Here's what you need to know.
By Joey Solitro Published
-
Visa Is the Worst Dow Stock Wednesday. Here's Why
Visa stock is down sharply Wednesday after the credit card company came up short of revenue expectations for its fiscal Q3.
By Joey Solitro Published
-
Tesla Stock: Another Analyst Moves to the Sidelines After Earnings
Tesla stock is spiraling Wednesday after the EV maker's big earnings miss and Wall Street has been quick to weigh in. Here's what you need to know.
By Joey Solitro Published
-
Alphabet Stock Falls as Q2 Ad Revenue Growth Slows
Alphabet stock is trading lower Wednesday as slowing ad sales growth offsets a Q2 earnings beat. Here's what you need to know.
By Joey Solitro Published
-
Stock Market Today: Stocks Slip Ahead of Mega-Cap Earnings
GE Aerospace shares soared after earnings while United Parcel Service stock slumped.
By Karee Venema Published
-
Is GE Stock Still a Buy After Big Earnings Beat?
GE stock is higher Tuesday after the industrial giant's beat-and-raise quarter, but what do analysts think? We take a closer look here.
By Joey Solitro Published
-
UPS Stock Heads Toward Worst Day Ever After Earnings
UPS stock is down big after coming up short of analysts’ expectations for its second quarter and cutting its outlook. Here’s what you need to know.
By Joey Solitro Published
-
Spotify Stock Surges After Q2 Earnings Beat: What to Know
Spotify stock is flying higher Tuesday after the streaming giant reported its second-quarter earnings results. Here's what you need to know.
By Joey Solitro Published
-
Stock Market Today: Mega-Cap Tech Rallies to Drag Markets Higher
Markets focused on upcoming earnings from Magnificent 7 stocks rather than chaos in D.C.
By Dan Burrows Published