NEW YORK: US stocks began the fourth quarter on a down note Monday, declining despite gains for Netflix and Twitter on takeover speculation.
Analysts said US investors were taking profit after Friday’s strong session concluded the third quarter.
Netflix jumped 4.1 percent on speculation it could be acquired by Disney.
Disney has also been mentioned as a potential buyer of Twitter, which also ended up 4.1 percent. Other companies that have been mentioned as potential Twitter acquires include Sales force and Google.
At the closing bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average stood at 18,253.85, down 0.3 percent.
The broad-based S&P 500 shed 0.3 percent to 2,161.20, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index fell 0.2 percent to 5,300.87.
