Stock futures were slightly lower on Monday ahead of the final trading sessions of 2024.

Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 72 points or 0.2%. S&P 500 futures also fell slightly by 0.2%. Nasdaq 100 futures fell 0.2%.

The major averages are approaching the end of the year just below their record levels, with the S&P 500 and Dow up more than 25% and 14%, respectively, on track for their best year since 2021. The Nasdaq has gained more than 31% in 2024.

Benchmarks are also heading for a successful fourth quarter, with the Nasdaq on track for its longest quarterly winning streak since 2021.

Investors are hoping that stock prices will continue to rise through the end of the year and into the new year, triggering a so-called Santa Claus rally. The phenomenon refers to the market rise in the last five trading days of a calendar year and the first two in January. According to LPL Financial, the S&P 500 has returned an average of 1.3% over this period since 1950.

However, there are growing fears that the market could lose momentum and there was some year-end profit-taking after the major averages posted losses on Friday.

“I think it’s long overdue,” Tavis McCourt, institutional equity strategist at Raymond James, told CNBC’s Closing Bell on Friday. I would expect more as we get into January. We had tremendous momentum in a small subset of names in the previous month.”

This week marks a weak period for economic data as the market is closed on Wednesday to mark New Year’s Day. Chicago PMI and pending home sales data will be released on Monday.