The GovCon Index kicked off the fourth quarter of calendar year 2015 Thursday with a decline of 0.207 points to 69.975 as U.S. stocks also recorded slight losses ahead of Friday’s jobs report.The Index and three major U.S. stock indices opened in positive territory,  sharply turned negative in the late morning portion of the day then recovered in the last hour to close with mixed results.
CNBC reports investors weighed other economic data in Thursday’s trading session, such as the Labor Department‘s estimate that jobless claims rose 10, 000 to 277, 000 and August construction spending reached its highest level since 2008.
September’s ISM manufacturing index declined to its lowest reading since May 2013 at 50.2.
Executive Mosaic’s GovCon Index tracks 30 large, publicly-traded government contracting companies.
Top GovCon Index Gainers
| Company | $ Current Price | $ Change | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Orbital ATK | 73.51 | +1.64 | +2.28% |
| Textron | 38.09 | +0.45 | +1.20% |
| Engility Holdings | 26.08 | +0.30 | +1.16% |
| ICF International | 30.69 | +0.30 | +0.99% |
| McKesson Corp. | 186.07 | +1.04 | +0.56% |
Market Summary
| Advancing Issues | 11 |
| Declining Issues | 19 |
| Unchanged Issues | 0 |
| Index | Value | Net Change | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| GovCon Index | 69.975 | -0.207 | -0.295% |
| S&P 500 | 1, 923.82 | +3.79 | +0.20% |
| Dow Jones Industrial Average | 16, 272.01 | -12.69 | -0.08% |
| NASDAQ | 4, 627.08 | +6.92 | +0.15% |
