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Led by banks, US stocks inch higher in afternoon trading U.S. stock indexes wobble to a mixed finish
(about 1 hour later)
NEW YORK — U.S. stocks are wavering between small gains and losses Thursday afternoon. Banks are rising as they continue to report their first-quarter results, and airlines are rising after Delta said low fuel costs boosted its results. Consumer stocks are struggling. NEW YORK — U.S. stocks hardly budged Thursday and finished with a mix of small gains and losses. Banks and airlines rose on strong first-quarter reports, while consumer products companies struggled.
KEEPING SCORE: The Dow Jones industrial average added 19 points, or 0.1 percent, to 17,926 as of 3:15 p.m. Eastern time. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 1 point to 2,083. The Nasdaq composite gained 2 points to 4,949. Stocks made big jumps the last two days to reach their highest levels this year. The market wavered throughout the day. Stocks are coming off two big gains in a row and are trading at their highest levels of the year.
BANKS: Banks reported mixed results, as they’ve been hurt by loans to energy companies and trading results from trading. But since Wall Street was braced for even worse news, those stocks made some of the biggest gains on the market. Bank of America picked up 40 cents, or 2.9 percent, to $14.19, as its results met investor expectations. “People are getting a bit more confident of what’s going on in the market,” said J.J. Kinahan, chief strategist for TD Ameritrade.
First Republic Bank jumped $2.38, or 3.5 percent, to $69.88 after the San Francisco bank reported a bigger-than-expected profit. Fifth Third Bank, another regional bank, gained 34 cents or 2 percent, to $17.75. The Dow Jones industrial average added 18.15 points, or 0.1 percent, to 17,926.43. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index ticked up 0.36 points to 2,082.78. The Nasdaq composite lost 1.53 points to 4,945.89.
Wells Fargo’s profit fell as it set aside more money to cover its struggling portfolio of oil and gas loans. The stock lost 1 cent to $49.02. The results from banks haven’t been great so far, but investors expected even worse because of shaky loans to energy companies and low interest rates that have made lending less profitable. Kinahan said banks are benefiting from lower expenses and more people are seeking mortgage loans.
Bank stocks jumped Wednesday after JPMorgan Chase, the largest U.S. bank, reported results that beat expectations. They are still the worst-performing stocks on the S&P 500 this year.
THE QUOTE: JJ Kinahan, chief strategist for TD Ameritrade, said banks have slashed their spending benefited as more people bought homes and consumers and businesses took out more loans.
“If businesses are starting to expand a little bit, if the consumer is out there trying to buy housing, (lending) is a steady source of income for these institutions,” he said. Investors feared “this was going to be an absolutely disastrous earnings season,” he said.“If businesses are starting to expand a little bit, if the consumer is out there trying to buy housing, (lending) is a steady source of income for these institutions,” he said. Investors feared “this was going to be an absolutely disastrous earnings season,” he said.
FLYING HIGH: Delta Air Lines’ first-quarter profit jumped 27 percent, helped by low fuel costs. Delta’s stock gained 61 cents, or 1.3 percent, to $48.65. American Airlines rose $1.12, or 3.3 percent, to $41.25 and United added $1.44, or 2.6 percent, to $57.02. JetBlue and Southwest also climbed. Bank of America picked up 35 cents, or 2.5 percent, to $14.14, as its results met investor expectations. First Republic Bank jumped $2.38, or 3.5 percent, to $69.88 after the San Francisco bank reported a bigger-than-expected profit. Fifth Third Bank, another regional bank, gained 32 cents, or 1.8 percent, to $17.73.
TECH TROUBLES: Data storage company Seagate Technology said its third-quarter profit margins and revenue will be lower than expected. The company said it’s seeing lower demand for some kinds of hard disk drives. Its stock slumped $6.86, or 20.2 percent, to $27.07. Competitor Western Digital fell $3.11, or 6.9 percent, to $41.69 and NetApp lost $1.04, or 3.9 percent, to $25.66. Wells Fargo’s profit fell as it set aside more money to cover its struggling portfolio of oil and gas loans, one of the chief worries investors have about the financial industry. The stock slipped 24 cents to $48.79. Bank stocks jumped Wednesday after JPMorgan Chase, the largest U.S. bank, reported results that beat expectations.
PIER PRESSURE: Pier 1 Imports is falling after the home decor company gave a shaky outlook for the first half of its fiscal year. Pier 1 said it expects “pressure” on its profit and sales because of marketing expenses, including a return to TV advertising, as well as price markdowns. The stock gave up 34 cents, or 4.7 percent, to $7. Data storage company Seagate Technology said its third-quarter profit margins and revenue will be lower than expected. The company said it’s seeing lower demand for some kinds of hard disk drives. Its stock plunged $6.82, or 20.1 percent, to $27.11, by far the largest loss in the S&P 500. Competitor Western Digital fell $2.98, or 6.7 percent, to $41.82 and NetApp lost $1.06, or 4 percent, to $25.64.
UNEMPLOYMENT FALLS: Claims for unemployment benefits dropped sharply last week and reached their lowest level since 1973. They’ve been at low levels for a year, which indicates the job market is healthy and employers aren’t letting go of workers. That suggests many companies see the recent slowdown as temporary. Delta Air Lines’ first-quarter profit jumped 27 percent, helped by low fuel costs. Delta’s stock gained 45 cents to $48.49, but its competitors had even bigger gains. American Airlines rose $1.23, or 3.1 percent, to $41.17 and United added $1.15, or 2.1 percent, to $56.73. JetBlue and Southwest also rose.
ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude oil fell 26 cents to $41.50 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, the international standard, gave up 34 cents to $43.84 a barrel in London. Pier 1 Imports fell after the home decor company gave a shaky outlook for the first half of its fiscal year. Pier 1 said it expects pressure on its profit and sales because of marketing expenses, including a return to TV advertising, as well as price markdowns. The stock gave up 43 cents, or 5.9 percent, to $6.91.
METALS: Gold fell $21.80, or 1.7 percent, to $1,226.50 an ounce. Silver fell 15 cents to $16.17 an ounce. Copper was unchanged at $2.17 a pound. Benchmark U.S. crude oil fell 26 cents to $41.50 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, the international standard, gave up 34 cents to $43.84 a barrel in London.
OTHER ENERGY TRADING: Wholesale gasoline fell 2 cents to $1.51 a gallon. Heating oil dipped 1 cent to $1.25 a gallon. Natural gas fell 7 cents, or 3 percent, to $1.97 per 1,000 cubic feet. Gold fell $21.80, or 1.7 percent, to $1,226.50 an ounce. Silver fell 15 cents to $16.17 an ounce. Copper was unchanged at $2.17 a pound.
OVERSEAS: In Europe, Germany’s DAX was up 0.7 percent while the CAC-40 in France rose 0.5 percent. The FTSE 100 index in Britain held steady. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 closed 3.2 percent higher as the yen weakened slightly against the dollar. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.8 percent and South Korea’s KOSPI climbed 1.7 percent. Claims for unemployment benefits dropped sharply last week and reached their lowest level since 1973. They’ve been at low levels for a year, which indicates the job market is healthy and employers aren’t letting go of workers. That suggests many companies see the recent slowdown as temporary.
BONDS, CURRENCIES: Bond prices slipped. The yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury note rose to 1.78 percent from 1.77 percent. The euro fell to $1.1268 from $1.1283 and the dollar edged up to 109.25 yen from 109.24 yen. In other energy trading, wholesale gasoline fell 2 cents to $1.51 a gallon. Heating oil dipped 1 cent to $1.25 a gallon. Natural gas fell 7 cents, or 3 percent, to $1.97 per 1,000 cubic feet.
In Europe, Germany’s DAX was up 0.7 percent while the CAC-40 in France rose 0.5 percent. The FTSE 100 index in Britain held steady. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 closed 3.2 percent higher as the yen weakened slightly against the dollar. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.8 percent and the KOSPI in South Korea climbed 1.7 percent.
Bond prices slipped. The yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury note rose to 1.79 percent from 1.77 percent. The euro fell to $1.1267 from $1.1283 and the dollar edged up to 109.28 yen from 109.24 yen.
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AP Markets Writer Marley Jay can be reached at http://twitter.com/MarleyJayAP His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/journalist/marley-jayAP Markets Writer Marley Jay can be reached at http://twitter.com/MarleyJayAP His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/journalist/marley-jay
Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.