How Did the Stock Market Do Today?

Dow Jones: 17,732.75; -4.41; -0.03%

S&P 500: 2,081.24; -2.34; -0.11%

Nasdaq: 5,073.64; -1.56; -0.03%

The Dow Jones Industrial Average today (Thursday) slipped a little more than four points on a busy day of economic data and stock debuts. This morning, weekly jobless claims hit 271,000, in range of consensus expectations. The report provides little change to the overall employment conditions of November, raising the stakes for the final report of the month next week and the monthly jobs report on the following Friday. Investors continue to parse through employment data and speeches of members of the Fed Board of Governors for clues on whether the central bank will raise interest rates during the December.

The healthcare sector received a massive shock today after UnitedHealth Group Inc. (NYSE: UNH) issued a profit warning and announced it might depart from the Affordable Healthcare Exchange by 2017. The departure would be a massive blow to Obamacare and would force other health insurance companies to pick up the slack and take on more high-risk patients. UNH shares fell 5.7%, pulling its peers down with them. Shares of Anthem Inc. (NYSE: ANTM) fell 6.9%, while Aetna Inc. (NYSE: AET) cratered more than 6.4%.

Top Stock Market News Today

• Stock Market News: Eight of 10 S&P sectors saw gains today, with healthcare and energy stocks the lone decliners. The healthcare sector received a massive shock, putting the Affordable Healthcare Act in deep jeopardy before health insurance companies are even able to begin phasing out government subsidies. Meanwhile, shares of Match Group Inc. (Nasdaq: MTCH) added 23% in its trading debut on the Nasdaq exchange. Here’s a recap of the “Match.com IPO”…
• Oil in Focus: Oil prices slipped again as concerns about oversupply continue to rattle trader sentiment. December WTI prices dipped 0.8% at $40.42 per barrel. Meanwhile, Brent oil crude – priced in London – fell 0.1% to hit $44.11. High-volume stocks Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM) and Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX) fell 0.5% and 1.5% on the day, respectively. Shares of Kinder Morgan Inc. (NYSE: KMI) were off more than 2.5%.
• On Tap Tomorrow: On Friday, St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank President James Bullard will give a speech on the economy and monetary policy just hours before the Kansas City Fed Manufacturing Index. In the afternoon, keep an eye on WTI oil prices as Baker Hughes Inc. (NYSE: BHI) reports its weekly rig count.

Stocks to Watch: SQ, GMCR, BBY, PFE, AGN, YHOO, BABA

• Stocks to Watch No. 1, SQ: Shares of Square Inc. (NYSE: SQ) jumped more than 45% during its first day of trading on the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The mobile payment company opened trading at $9, but quickly shot up as investors continue to pile money into tech startups – even though this one has yet to report any revenue. Here’s why you should be wary of SQ stock…
• Stocks to Watch No. 2, GMCR: Shares of Keurig Green Mountain Inc. (Nasdaq: GMCR) were up more than 18% after the company beat earnings expectations after the bell yesterday. Keurig reported an EPS of $0.85 on revenue of $1.037 billion. These figures beat top and bottom line expectations of $0.70 and $1.03 billion. The company’s revenue was a 13% decline from the same period last year, and sales of brewers/accessories and pods were down 32% and 9%, respectively.
• Stocks to Watch No. 3, BBY: Shares of retail chain Best Buy Co. Inc. (NYSE:BBY) were off more than 2% after the company lowered its forecast for the holiday shopping season and missed quarterly comparable sales expectations. Best Buy beat top line expectations, reporting an EPS of $0.41, while Wall Street anticipated $0.35. However, the company fell slightly short on the revenue side. The company said consumer demand has declined for mobile phones and tablets, hurting its bottom line.
• Stocks to Watch No. 4, PFE: Shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) fell more than 3% on news the company is negotiating a 2% to 3% breakup fee in the event that it walks away from its proposed deal to purchase Allergan Plc. (NYSE:AGN). The deal, which will face intensive regulatory scrutiny, would be valued at around $150 billion. Regulators in Washington are already considering a new rule on tax inversions to deter American companies from buying foreign companies and relocating their headquarters in order to avoid domestic tax burdens.
• Stocks to Watch No. 5, YHOO: Shares of Yahoo! Inc. (Nasdaq: YHOO) were off more than 1% on news activist hedge fund and key shareholder Starboard Value LP is pushing the company to abandon its Alibaba spin-off plans. Starboard is pressuring Yahoo to halt the $20 billion Alibaba spin-off and instead sell its sputtering Internet business. Shares of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. (NYSE: BABA) were up more than 0.2% on the day.