By Anora Mahmudova, MarketWatch
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks closed generally lower on
Friday as disappointing results from Intel Corp. and General
Electric Co. weighed on sentiment. But a run in tech stocks, and a
Friday lift in financials, helped two benchmarks to weekly
gains.
The S&P 500 (SPX) closed 7.19 points, or 0.4% lower at
1,838.70 and lost 0.2% over the week, with those losses limited by
a 1.4% weekly rally in tech stocks. The Nasdaq Composite(RIXF)
closed down 21.11 points, or 0.5%, to 4,197.58 but rose 0.5% higher
over the week. The technology-heavy index is the only one of the
three with year-to-date gains.
Read a recap of the stock market live blog.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average(DJI) bucked the trend and
closed higher Friday, thanks primarily to gains in American Express
Co. and Visa Inc. The blue-chip index added 41.55 points, or 0.3%,
to 16,458.56 and eked out a 0.1% gain over the week, its first
weekly gain this year.
Chris Bouffard, chief investment officer at the Mutual Fund
Store, said that it is not surprising to see a little
consolidation.
"Markets rallied late last year in anticipation of economic
growth, but now are taking a step back and digesting some of the
mixed economic news. For example, last week's jobs numbers were
puzzling, while the rest of the picture is mostly in line with
forecasts. We do expect a pullback or a moderate correction at some
point this year, but do not think it will be a drastic one,"
Bouffard said.
Consumer sentiment as measured by the University of Michigan and
Thomson Reuters declined in January, falling to a reading of 80.4
from 82.5 in December, according to news reports. That's also below
the 84 expected in a MarketWatch-compiled economist poll. Earlier,
government data showed that construction on new U.S. homes as well
as building permits fell in December, pulling back after a surge in
November, while industrial production ticked up a notch. But the
number of new job openings reached 4 million, the highest level in
five years, according to the Labor Department.
United Parcel Service Inc.(UPS) shares fell sharply after the
firm cut its guidance for 2013, citing an "unprecedented" rise of
online shopping, including "a surge in last-minute orders" during
the shortened holiday shopping season. However, by the close,
shares trimmed losses and were 0.5% down.
An earnings miss as well as disappointing revenue outlook from
Intel Corp. (INTC) late Thursday sent its shares down 2.6%.
General Electric Co. (GE) reported fourth-quarter results before
the bell which met forecasts from analysts polled by FactSet. But
the shares fell 2.3% on concerns over the lower level of GE Capital
dividend payouts.
American Express Co. (AXP) shares gained 3.6% after the credit
card company said its fourth-quarter earnings more than doubled.
Shares in rival Visa Inc. (V) rose 4.7%
Morgan Stanley (MS) shares were up 4.4% after the investment
bank reported its fourth-quarter earnings, which showed strong
performance in wealth management, though it was offset by weaker
fixed-income trading results.
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) shares surged 12% after CRT Capital
initiated coverage of the company with a buy rating, according to
Analyst Ratings Network.
In other markets, European stocks made strong weekly gains,
while the week ended on a mixed note for Asian markets. Gold prices
climbed and oil futures closed at a two-week high, while the dollar
gained against most rivals on economic data.
More on MarketWatch:
UPS blaming strong demand isn't as far-fetched as it sounds
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