US stocks closed lower on Monday as investors turned cautious ahead of the start of the earnings season.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 81.13 points, or 0.67%, to finish at 12,279.01. The S&P 500 advanced 9.25 points, or 0.71%, to close at 1,319.44. The Nasdaq Composite rose 26.21 points, or 0.96%, to 2,756.89.
The S&P Case-Shiller home price index of 20 major cities showed that January home prices dropped 3.1% on an annual basis, nearing the housing market's 2009 lows. Prices fell 1% on a monthly basis.
The Conference Board said Tuesday that its index of consumer confidence fell to 63.4 this month, from a revised 72.0 in February, first reported as 70.4.
Shares of CreXus Investment Corp. (NYSE: CXS) plunged 75cents, or 6.17%, to close at $11.40 after it rejected a $254 million buyout offer from Starwood Property Trust Inc. and proceeded with a share sale that may preclude a deal.
Qualcomm (NASDAQ: QCOM) rallied $1.73, or 3.32%, to $53.91 after UBS Securities initiated coverage of the stock with a Buy recommendation and a $65 price target.
Shares of Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) rose 31 cents, or 1.81%, to $17.44.
European stocks finished closed mixed. The UK FTSE rose 27.68 points, or 0.47% to 5,932.17. The German DAX slipped 0.06% while French CAC increased 0.27%.
Asian stocks finished lower. The Nikkei 225 fell 19.45 points or 0.21% to 9,459.08. The Hang Seng index of Hong Kong dropped 7.83 points or 0.03% to 23,060.36.
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