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February 27, 2017: Markets opened lower Monday but picked up steam shortly after the bell and rose fairly steadily throughout the day. Energy and real estate were the leading gainers while telecom and consumer staples were the laggards. WTI crude oil for April delivery settled at $54.05 a barrel, up 6 cents on the day. April gold added 50 cents on the day to settle at $1,258.80. Equities were headed for a higher close shortly before the bell as the DJIA traded up 0.06% for the day, the S&P 500 traded up 0.10%, and the Nasdaq Composite traded up 0.20%.

The DJIA stock posting the largest daily percentage gains ahead of the close Monday was Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) which traded up 1.93% at $97.32. The stock’s 52-week range is $66.49 to $99.46. Volume was about 10% below the daily average of around 4.5 million shares. The company had no specific news.

Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX) traded up 1.59% at $111.87. The stock’s 52-week range is $83.07 to $119.00. Volume was about 25% below the daily average of around 6.5 million shares. The company had no specific news.

UnitedHealth Group Inc. (NYSE: UNH) traded up 1.32% at $165.21. The stock’s 52-week range is $118.97 to $165.33, also a new high set today. Volume was about 15% below the daily average of around 3.8 million shares. The company had no specific news Monday.

The Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) traded up 1.17% at $179.52. The stock’s 52-week range is $117.50 to $179.88, a new high set this afternoon. Volume was about 30% below the daily average of around 3.4 million shares. The company had got a boost from a reported increase to the Trump administration’s proposed defense budget.

Of the Dow 30 stocks, 11 are on track to close higher Monday and 19 are set to close lower.