The recent rally in stocks came to a halt on Tuesday as mixed economic data failed to lift investors’ sentiments. The blue-chip Dow industrials and the broader Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index dropped for the first time in five days even as the Commerce Department noted retail sales rose at their fastest rate in five months.
After rising for four consecutive sessions, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 18 points, or 0.2%, to close at 10,526.49. The S&P 500 dropped less than a point, or 0.1%, to close at 1,121.10. The tech-heavy Nasdaq bucked the trend and edged up 4 points, or 0.2%, to 2,289.77. On the NYSE, fewer than 1 billion shares exchanged hands, with declining issues ahead of advancers by an eight-to-seven margin. The CBOE Volatility Index, the market’s measure of volatility, rose above 21.
Best Buy Co. (BBY), which reported quarterly income and raised its full-year view, jumped 6% to $36.73. Macy’s Inc. (NYSE:M) climbed nearly 2.9% to $21.65 and J.C. Penney Co. (NYSE:JCP) jumped 7.4% to $23.99 after the Commerce Department’s retail sales report. Supermarket chain Kroger (NYSE:KR) rose 1.1% to $21.26 after the company reported second-quarter earnings of $261.6 million.
Sixteen of the thirty DJIA components closed the session in red, with Boeing (NYSE:BA) and American Express (NYSE:AXP) leading the drop. Boeing (NYSE:BA) fell 2.2% and American Express (NYSE:AXP) closed off 2%. Gain in the S&P500 industry sectors were led by technology (+0.5%), health care (+0.4%), consumer services (+0.3%). Leading on the downside were financials (-0.8%), industrials (-0.3%), oil and gas (-0.3%), utilities (-0.2%), basic materials (-0.1%), consumer goods (-0.1%), and telecommunications (-0.1%).
National Semiconductor (NYSE:NSM) shares rose 1.4% even as Citigroup (NYSE:C) cut its price target on the semiconductor company to $15 from $18. Shares in Texas Instruments (NYSE:TXN) and Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) rose 0.9% and 0.3%, respectively.
Doubts about European finances continued to play in the minds of investors. Shares in BB&T (NYSE:BBT) fell nearly 4% after the firm said it plans to sell more than $1 billion in loans.
Meanwhile, Cisco (NASDAQ:CSCO) CEO John Chambers noted that the company will begin paying dividends from the fiscal year 2011, offering a yield of 1-2%, funded from US and North American operations. Chambers said the amount of dividend will depend on tax consequences of repatriating its $30-$40 billion of cash held overseas.
This morning’s futures suggest a soft open as traders react to news of Japan’s intervention in the yen for the first time in over six years amid promises for more “smoothing operations” if necessary to combat Japan’s deflation and to stimulate its economy.
AMER EXPRESS CO (AXP): Free Stock Analysis Report
BOEING CO (BA): Free Stock Analysis Report
BB&T CORP (BBT): Free Stock Analysis Report
BEST BUY (BBY): Free Stock Analysis Report
CITIGROUP INC (C): Free Stock Analysis Report
CISCO SYSTEMS (CSCO): Free Stock Analysis Report
PENNEY (JC) INC (JCP): Free Stock Analysis Report
KROGER CO (KR): Free Stock Analysis Report
MACYS INC (M): Free Stock Analysis Report
NATL SEMICON (NSM): Free Stock Analysis Report
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