Stocks opened lower on Monday as investors booked profits, ahead of a Federal Reserve Board meeting and earnings from some of the nation's largest retailers later this week.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> dropped 44.66 points, or 0.48 percent, to 9,325.41. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> dropped 4.30 points, or 0.43 percent, to 1,006.18. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> dropped 9.78 points, or 0.49 percent, to 1,990.47.

(Reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak; Editing by Padraic Cassidy)