S&P 500 edges to record on Allergan, Baker Hughes deals

Specialist Michael O’Mara looks at the board at his post on the trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange Monday, Nov. 17, 2014. Allergan has reached a friendly deal to be acquired by Actavis PLC in a deal valued at $66 billion, while Halliburton is buying rival oilfield services company Baker Hughes in a cash-and-stock deal worth $34.6 billion. AP PHOTO/RICHARD DREW

NEW YORK–Huge takeovers in the oil and pharmaceutical sectors helped lift the S&P 500 to a record Monday, while the Dow fell shy of a new mark.

At the closing bell, the S&P 500 stood at 2,041.19, up 1.37 points (0.07 percent).

The Dow gained 12.94 (0.07 percent) to 17,647.68, narrowly missing a record, while the Nasdaq fell 17.54 (0.37 percent) to 4,671.00.

Oil-services giant Halliburton announced $34.6 billion takeover of rival Baker Hughes, while Actavis unveiled a $66 billion acquisition of Botox-maker Allergan.

Those deals helped offset the drag from Japan’s fall back into recession with a 0.4 percent contraction in the third quarter.