Stock Market Update

[BRIEFING.COM] The major indices trend lower thus far. The S&P 500 sports a 0.4% decline and the Nasdaq Composite is 0.2% lower. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (-0.9%) has underperformed its peers, clipped by UnitedHealth (UNH 457.48, -44.93, -8.9%) following a Wall Street Journal report that the DOJ has launched a civil fraud investigation into UNH's Medicare Advantage billing practices.

The overall downside vibe is driven by ongoing consolidation efforts, but selling hasn't been too extreme. The equal-weighted S&P 500 trades 0.5% lower.

The preliminary February S&P Global US Manufacturing PMI rose to 51.6 from 51.2 and the preliminary February S&P Global US Services PMI dropped below 50 (line between expansion and contraction) for the first time in 25 months, coming in at 49.7.

Existing home sales totaled 4.08 million in January (Briefing.com consensus 4.06 million). Also, the University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment survey dropped to 64.7 in the final February reading (Briefing.com consensus 67.8).