US Equity Markets Mixed Amid Gains in Technology, Consumer Discretionary Stocks

04:13 PM EDT, 10/19/2026 (MT Newswires) -- US equity indexes were mixed Monday, with gains in consumer discretionary and technology stocks, while rising government bond yields weighed on the market. * Eighteen of the top 20 stocks in a category with market capitalization exceeding $200 billion were from the technology sector, according to data compiled by Finviz. * November West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose $2.29 to settle at $103.70 per barrel, while December Brent crude, the global benchmark, was last seen down $0.44 at $109.42. * American Electric Power (AEP) said Monday it has agreed with X-Energy (XE) to explore the development of a proposed 960-megawatt nuclear energy project in Sullivan County, Indiana. The initial project will use 12 Xe-100 small modular reactors of 80 MW each, and Amazon (AMZN) intends to purchase power under a long-term contract, covering the facility's costs and operations, the company said. Amazon shares rose nearly 5%, the biggest gainer on the Dow. * Ameriprise Financial (AMP) shares were down about 4.1%, among the worst performers on the S&P 500, after BofA Securities downgraded the company's stock to underperform from buy and lowered its price target to $445 from $570.