U.S. stocks were mixed after the close on Wednesday, as gains in the Utilities, Technology and Telecoms sectors led shares higher while losses in the Basic Materials, Oil & Gas and Consumer Goods sectors led shares lower.

At the close in NYSE, the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.38%, while the S&P 500 index lost 0.12%, and the NASDAQ Composite index gained 0.15%.

The best performers of the session on the Dow Jones Industrial Average were NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA), which rose 2.15% or 3.78 points to trade at 179.29 at the close. Meanwhile, Unitedhealth Group (NYSE:UNH) added 1.94% or 5.07 points to end at 266.14 and Caterpillar Inc (NYSE:CAT) was up 0.95% or 4.07 points to 434.12 in late trade.

The worst performers of the session were 3M Company (NYSE:MMM), which fell 3.41% or 5.17 points to trade at 146.62 at the close. Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) declined 2.39% or 3.75 points to end at 152.86 and Chevron Corp (NYSE:CVX) was down 2.17% or 3.41 points to 153.62.

The top performers on the S&P 500 were Generac Holdings Inc (NYSE:GNRC) which rose 19.61% to 181.00, Teradyne Inc (NASDAQ:TER) which was up 18.97% to settle at 107.73 and Humana Inc (NYSE:HUM) which gained 12.40% to close at 261.47.

The worst performers were IDEX Corporation (NYSE:IEX) which was down 11.29% to 164.28 in late trade, Old Dominion Freight Line Inc (NASDAQ:ODFL) which lost 9.66% to settle at 146.46 and Freeport-McMoran Copper & Gold Inc (NYSE:FCX) which was down 9.46% to 39.14 at the close.

The top performers on the NASDAQ Composite were Replimune Group Inc (NASDAQ:REPL) which rose 101.73% to 7.57, XBP Europe Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:XBP) which was up 79.98% to settle at 1.62 and BioNexus Gene Lab Corp (NASDAQ:BGLC) which gained 60.99% to close at 7.18.

The worst performers were Vyne Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:VYNE) which was down 72.29% to 0.40 in late trade, Healthcare Triangle Inc (NASDAQ:HCTI) which lost 40.55% to settle at 0.03 and ScanTech AI Systems Inc (NASDAQ:STAI) which was down 40.03% to 0.71 at the close.

Falling stocks outnumbered advancing ones on the New York Stock Exchange by 1945 to 811 and 81 ended unchanged; on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, 2234 fell and 1077 advanced, while 140 ended unchanged.

Shares in Old Dominion Freight Line Inc (NASDAQ:ODFL) fell to 52-week lows; down 9.66% or 15.66 to 146.46. Shares in NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) rose to all time highs; up 2.15% or 3.78 to 179.29. Shares in Caterpillar Inc (NYSE:CAT) rose to all time highs; up 0.95% or 4.07 to 434.12. Shares in Vyne Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:VYNE) fell to all time lows; falling 72.29% or 1.04 to 0.40. Shares in XBP Europe Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:XBP) rose to 52-week highs; rising 79.98% or 0.72 to 1.62.

The CBOE Volatility Index, which measures the implied volatility of S&P 500 options, was down 3.32% to 15.45.(Cay)

Source: Investing.com