US benchmark equity indexes were mixed on Monday amid rising geopolitical uncertainty as President Donald Trump conducted meetings with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and European leaders in an effort to end the war in Ukraine.

* Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met with Donald Trump at the White House on Monday, joined by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. CNN reported that Trump believes Zelensky must agree to certain Russian demands, such as relinquishing Crimea and pledging not to join NATO, for the war to end. The US is now focused on securing a peace agreement without first aiming for a ceasefire, US envoy Steve Witkoff reportedly told CNN.

* The National Association of Home Builders' housing market index dropped to 32 in August from 33 in July, falling short of expectations for an increase to 34, according to a Bloomberg survey.

* September West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose $0.51 to settle at $63.31 per barrel, while October Brent crude, the global benchmark, was last seen up $0.67 to $66.52.

* Dayforce (DAY) shares were up nearly 27% after Bloomberg reported that private equity firm Thoma Bravo is considering a potential takeover of the company.

* EQT (EQT) shares declined about 4.4% after Roth Capital downgraded the stock to neutral from buy and lowered its price target to $57 from $75.

Price: 66.66, Change: +13.78, Percent Change: +26.05