November 19, 2014: Markets opened lower on Wednesday following foreign markets that were trading no better than flat. The FOMC minutes were released in the afternoon and caused a brief spike in stock prices, but the rise was short-lived. Shortly before the closing bell the DJIA traded down 0.03% for the day, the S&P 500 traded down 0.19%, and the Nasdaq Composite traded down 0.59%.

The DJIA stock posting the largest daily loss ahead of the close Wednesday was Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) which traded lower by 1.51% at $50.45. The stock’s 52-week range is $45.45 to $53.66. Volume was about 10% below the daily average of around 13.5 million shares. The company had no specific material news today.

UnitedHealth Group Inc. (NYSE: UNH) traded down 1.33% at $96.38. The stock’s 52-week range is $69.57 to $98.61, after setting a new 52-week high on Tuesday. Volume was about 40% below the daily average of around 3.8 million shares. The company had no specific news today.

AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) traded lower by 1.18% at $35.30. The stock’s 52-week range is $31.74 to $37.48. Volume was about 20% below the daily average of around 20 million shares. The telecom company also had no material news today, and the telecom sector was trailed only basic materials as the day’s big loser.

Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) traded down 1.15% at $48.18. The stock’s 52-week range is $34.63 to $50.05. Trading volume was 30% lower than the daily average of around 34 million shares. The company had no specific news today.

Of the Dow 30 stocks 16 are set to close lower today and 14 are on track to close higher.

ALSO READ: The 20 Most Profitable Companies in the World

Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.