US Stock Indexes Veer Mostly Lower; Oil Down

NEW YORK (AP) – U.S. stocks indexes moved mostly lower in midday trading Friday as investors sifted through the latest batch of corporate earnings news. Losses in technology companies outweighed gains in health care stocks and other sectors. Crude oil prices declined.

KEEPING SCORE: The S&P 500 index lost a fraction of a point to 2,722 as of 12:42 p.m. Eastern Time. The Dow Jones industrial average climbed 28 points, or 0.1 percent, to 24,767. The Nasdaq fell 21 points, or 0.3 percent, to 7,383. The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks declined less than 1 point to 1,603.

UNDER SCRUTINY: Symantec slumped 34.2 percent to $19.19 after the security software company revealed an internal investigation that could delay its annual report. The company also said the matter has been referred to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Symantec also gave weak profit forecasts.

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REVIEW THIS: Yelp fell 6 percent to $44.90 after the online review portal gave an outlook for its current quarter fell short of analysts' expectations.

BAD LOOK: TiVo slid 7.2 percent to $13.04 after the digital video recording company took a bigger-than-expected loss and reported weak revenue.

ON THE HOOK: Vertex Pharmaceuticals rose 1.8 percent to $153.79 and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals added 3.2 percent to $298.10 as investors waited for President Donald Trump to announce plans intended to control drug prices.

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GOOD QUARTER: Trade Desk vaulted 40 percent to $73.81 after the digital advertising platform company raised its annual forecasts after a strong first quarter.

ENERGY: Oil futures were trading near their highest level since 2014 as President Donald Trump's decision this week to re-impose sanctions Iran, the world's fifth-biggest oil producer, reverberated. Benchmark U.S. crude oil fell 38 cents to $70.98 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, used to price international oils, shed 15 cents to $77.32.

BOND YIELDS: Bond prices were little changed. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose held steady at 2.96 percent.

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CURRENCIES: The dollar rose to 109.24 yen from 109.37 yen on Thursday. The euro strengthened to $1.1956 from $1.1927.

MARKETS OVERSEAS: European stock indexes were mostly lower after a strong rally saw many indexes strike multi-week highs. Germany's DAX fell 0.2 percent and France's CAC 40 slid 0.1 percent. Britain's FTSE 100 gained 0.3 percent. Earlier in Asia, Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 1.2 percent and South Korea's Kospi added 0.6 percent. Hong Kong's Hang Seng jumped 1.0 percent.

-by AP reporter Alex Veiga

 

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