Investors were hoping to end the year off strong with a "Santa Claus" rally, which spans the five final trading days of a calendar year and the first two trading days of January. The S & P 500 has gained, on average, 1.3% during this stretch of time, while finishing higher nearly 80% of the time, according to Dow Jones Market Data going back to 1950. The S & P 500 has instead finished lower during each of the past three trading days, putting the index in the red over the five-day period. .SPX YTD mountain S & P 500 performance this year. So without the Santa Claus rally, things might not be looking too great for the year ahead.

---

Persons: Claus, Jeffrey Hirsch, Santa Claus, Stocks, Hirsch, — Organizations: Investors, Dow Jones Market, Hirsch Holdings, NASDAQ, Russell, Santa Claus, Santa Locations: Santa