Nasdaq snaps 9-day winning streak as Wall Street pauses before earnings season

U.S. equities closed lower on Monday as investors looked ahead to the start of earnings season.

The Nasdaq composite fell 0.15 percent after hitting a record high earlier in the session. The index also snapped a nine-day winning streak.

The Dow Jones industrial average also posted an all-time high before finishing 13 points lower.

Shares of General Electric were the worst performers on the Dow. They fell 4.4 percent after the company announced CFO Jeff Bornstein will depart at the end of the year, along with marketing chief Beth Comstock and international executive John Rice.

The S&P 500 slipped 0.2 percent and traded about 8 points below its record high.

"It's natural for the market to digest big moves ahead of a major catalyst. In this case, it's earnings season," said Adam Sarhan, CEO of 50 Park Investments.

Some of the major companies scheduled to report quarterly results this week include BlackRock, Citigroup, Bank of America and Wells Fargo.

Their shares all declined Monday, putting pressure on the overall financial sector. The Financial Select Sector SPDR exchange-traded fund (XLF) declined 0.4 percent.

Source: Bloomberg Pro Terminal

Jr Trader Alexander Kumanov

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