US stock indexes drifted lower Thursday following a mixed set of earnings reports from Morgan Stanley, UnitedHealth Group, and other big companies.
- The Dow dipped 68.42 to 43,153.13.
- The S&P 500 slipped 12.57 points to 5,937.34.
- The Nasdaq composite sank 172.94 to 19,338.29.
The relatively modest moves for stocks came a day after they shot higher on hopes that an encouraging report on inflation may persuade the Federal Reserve to deliver more cuts to interest rates this year, the AP reports. Treasury yields were also more placid in the bond market following mixed economic reports. One report issued Thursday showed that growth for sales at US retailers wasn't as strong last month as economists expected. Another said more US workers filed for unemployment benefits last week, and a third said manufacturing in the mid-Atlantic area unexpectedly roared back to growth. Taken together, the trio of reports suggests the economy is nowhere near a recession but may be showing signs of slowing that could keep pressure off inflation.
Morgan Stanley climbed 4% after reporting stronger earnings for the latest quarter than analysts expected. That followed stronger-than-expected profit reports from a bevy of banks the day before, including Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, and Wells Fargo. Bank of America also delivered a profit report on Thursday that beat expectations, but its stock was more subdued. It fell 1%. US Bancorp fell to one of the worst losses in the S&P 500 after reporting results for the latest quarter that fell short of analysts' expectations. It dropped 5.6%. The only stock to lose more in the index was UnitedHealth Group, which tumbled 6%. The insurer reported a stronger profit than expected, but its revenue for the latest quarter came up shy of forecasts. A rise in medical costs surprised analysts. (More Wall Street stories.)
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