By Kristina Peterson, MarketWatch
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — U.S. stocks opened slightly lower on Monday, as fresh concerns about the European banking system cooled investors’ exuberance after four straight weeks of gains.
Kicking off the final week of the strongest September in 71 years, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA 10,840, -20.52, -0.19%) slipped 13 points, or 0.1%, to 10847, in early trading. On Friday, the Dow index rallied 1.9%, posting its highest close since May 12 and gained 2.4% in the last week. The Dow is currently on pace to post its best September performance since 1939.
The Nasdaq Composite (COMP 2,375, -5.90, -0.25%) shed 0.2% to 2376. The Standard & Poor’s 500-share index (SPX 1,146, -2.65, -0.23%) edged down 0.2% to 1147, weighed by its health-care and consumer discretionary sectors.
Generating fresh concerns about the health of the European banking system, the euro weakened after Moody’s Investor Service downgraded the debt of Anglo Irish Bank by three notches because the bank is expected to require further government support. The euro was trading recently at $1.3480, down from $1.3493 late Friday in New York.
The U.S. Dollar strengthened against both the euro and the yen. Demand for Treasurys increased, with the 10-year note (UST10Y 2.55, -0.05, -2.07%) up, pushing its yield down to 2.56%.
However, the weekend’s round of new deals helped stabilize the market.
Southwest Airlines (LUV 12.79, +0.51, +4.15%) jumped 2.9% after announcing it will acquire AirTran Holdings (AAI 7.25, +2.70, +59.34%) . The deal values AirTran at around $1.4 billion, including the firm’s convertible notes outstanding. Shares of AirTran soared 59%.
Retailing giant Wal-Mart Stores (WMT 53.93, -0.15, -0.28%) edged down 0.2% after making a preliminary, nonbinding proposal to buy Johannesburg-based Massmart Holdings for $4.6 billion. Meanwhile, Unilever (UN 29.63, +0.26, +0.89%) announced an agreement to buy U.S.-based Alberto Culver for $3.7 billion in cash, moving to expand its presence in the hair-conditioning and shampoo market. Shares of Alberto Culver jumped 20%, while Unilever rose 1.6%.
Among stocks in focus, egg producer Cal-Maine Foods (CALM 29.16, -1.14, -3.76%) rose 0.4% after reporting a return to profitability in the fiscal first quarter, buoyed by a business-interruption insurance gain.
Crude-oil prices climbed above $77 a barrel, while gold futures also rose.
