By Anora Mahmudova, MarketWatch
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks traded sideways, drifting
in and out of positive territory on Thursday, but the main indexes
were set to finish a holiday-shortened week with modest gains.
Investors weighed a mixed batch of earnings reports against
largely positive economic data. Thursday has one of the busiest
schedules in the earnings season as 25 companies on the S&P 500
are scheduled to report profits, according to FactSet.
The S&P 500 (SPX) was less than a point higher at 1,862.91
building on three-straight days of gains, which sent the benchmark
index into positive territory for the year.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) was 12 points, or 0.1%,
lower at 16,411.91.
The Nasdaq Composite (RIXF) rose 5 points, or 0.1%, to
4,099.06.
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action.
"We expect today's trading to be quiet, as a lot of investors
are probably consolidating ahead of the long weekend," said Jim
Russell, senior equity strategist at U.S. Bank Wealth
Management.
"It appears the investing community will give somewhat of a free
pass to companies this quarter, as the cold-weather excuse for
lower profits is legitimate. This will not be the case in the next
quarter," he added.
In economic news, two separate reports pointed to more evidence
that softening in the economy was largely weather related.
The number of people who applied for unemployment-insurance
benefits ticked up by less than expected, a slight increase from
the lowest level since 2007, signaling that employers are
maintaining a slow pace of layoffs, according to government data
released Thursday.
A reading of manufacturing sentiment in the Philadelphia region
improved in April, according to data released Thursday,
contradicting a disappointing regional index from the New York Fed
released earlier in the week.
Google, IBM sink after disappointing results, Goldman, Morgan
Stanley rise
Shares of IBM Corp. (IBM) dropped 3.5% after the tech bellwether
late Wednesday reported an eighth-straight quarter of revenue
declines and missed analyst expectations.
Google Inc. (GOOG) (GOOGL) dropped 3.8% after a disappointing
earnings report published late Wednesday.
American Express Co.(AXP) fell 2.1% after it reported quarterly
revenue that missed expectations late Wednesday.
Banking giant Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) gained 1.3% after it
reported first-quarter earnings above expectations.
Peer firm Morgan Stanley (MS) rose 4.4% after its profit topped
estimates.
General Electric Co. (GE) said it made an adjusted 33 cents a
share in the first quarter, slightly beating FactSet estimates of
32 cents a share. Shares gained 1.8%.
UnitedHealth Group Inc.(UNH) slid 3.3% after its earnings beat
expectations, but revenue missed.
Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG) shares rose 4.8% as its
first-quarter profit and revenue surged, largely attributed to a
13.4% jump in same-store sales.
Shares of Sabre (SABR), the travel-tech firm which owns the
Travelocity website, and Weibo (WB), China's microblog equivalent
of Twitter, are expected to attract attention when they debut on
the market Thursday. Sabre said late Wednesday its initial public
offering had priced at $16 a share, while Weibo priced at $17, the
low end of its range, while selling fewer shares than expected.
In other financial markets, European stocks traded mostly lower
amid escalating tensions in Ukraine after three pro-Russia
activists were killed and 13 wounded in fighting. Asia markets
closed mostly higher. Oil prices inched higher, while metals were
little changed.
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