Stocks mostly higher on Wall Street after quiet trading day

Stocks closed mostly higher in quiet trading, led by gains in consumer companies.

Media stocks rose on Monday, as did hotel companies, but energy companies lost ground along with the price of oil.

Starwood and Marriott climbed as Chinese insurance company Anbang Insurance Group made another effort to buy Starwood.

Avon Products jumped 8% after reaching a deal with activist investors that appeared to head off a proxy fight.

Markets were quiet. Trading was closed in Europe for the Easter holiday. It was the slowest day for trading in U.S. markets so far this year.

The Dow Jones industrial average edged up 19 points, or 0.1%, to 17,535.

Standard & Poor's 500 index inched up a point to 2,037. The Nasdaq composite slipped six points, or 0.1%, to 4,771.