A broad sell-off in technology companies pulled stocks sharply lower Monday, knocking off more than 450 points from the Dow Jones Industrial Average. Apple, Amazon, and other big names fell. Banks and consumer-focused companies and media and communications stocks also took heavy losses.

By midday, the S&P 500 index had dropped 43 points, or 1.6 percent, while the Nasdaq composite had slid 178 points, or 2.4 percent, to 7,228.

The stock market was coming off a two-week winning streak for the benchmark S&P 500.

"Tech is definitely weighing (on the market)," said Lindsey Bell, investment strategist at CFRA. "The question really is growth. We continue to like tech going into next year, but we think it could be a little bit of a rocky period for the group as we continue through the last two months of the year."

Apple tumbled 4.2 percent to $195.97 after Wells Fargo analysts said the iPhone maker is the unnamed customer that optical communications company Lumentum Holdings said was significantly reducing orders. Shares in Lumentum plunged 30.6 percent to $38.84.

Banks and other financial companies also took heavy losses. Goldman Sachs slid 7 percent to $207.11.

"Expectations are really that the deregulation process that has benefited banks up to this point is going to be slowed down with the Democrats in charge," Bell said.