Stocks close mixed on earnings, trade concerns
U.S. stocks closed mixed Tuesday after struggling for direction during the day amid a slew of earnings reports, some of which were unexpectedly strong and others unexpectedly weak.
Shares of several industrial corporations rose, helping the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average eke out a small gain, while the broader S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite closed lower as shares of some big tech companies weighed on the two indexes.
Lockheed Martin reported weaker-than-expected quarterly earnings but offered improved guidance, lifting its shares. Whirlpool shares jumped nearly 10 percent.
Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices closed down.
Verizon reported revenue slightly below Wall Street expectations and that weighed on its shares.
Xerox shares jumped after beating profit estimates, while shares of Harley-Davidson fell after the American motorcycle maker reported weak U.S. sales.
Pfizer edged higher despite the drugmaker forecasting full-year revenue below analysts' estimate.
PG&E shares soared after the nation's largest utility filed for voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I:DJI | DOW JONES AVERAGES | 44782 | -128.65 | -0.29% |
| SP500 | S&P 500 | 6047.15 | +14.77 | +0.24% |
| I:COMP | NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX | 19403.947849 | +185.78 | +0.97% |
In a potential setback to the progress in U.S-China trade talks, the U.S. Justice Department brought charges against China's telecom giant Huawei shortly before a high-level meeting between the two countries in Washington, aimed at easing the tariff war.
Stock pared gains after a measure of U.S. consumer confidence fell for the third month in a row in January.
The Federal Reserve began a two-day meeting on interest rates Tuesday.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| XRX | XEROX HOLDINGS CORP. | 9.14 | +0.08 | +0.88% |
| PFE | PFIZER INC. | 26.21 | +0.38 | +1.47% |
| PCG | PG&E CORP. | 20.50 | -1.14 | -5.27% |
| VZ | VERIZON COMMUNICATIONS INC. | 44.34 | -0.04 | -0.09% |
| HOG | HARLEY-DAVIDSON INC. | 33.63 | -0.11 | -0.33% |
In Asian markets on Tuesday, China’s Shanghai Composite ended the session roughly flat.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index settled 0.2 percent lower.
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Japan’s Nikkei average ended the day up less than 0.1 percent.
European markets finished the day higher. London’s FTSE jumped 1.3 percent, Germany’s DAX added 0.1 percent and France’s CAC gained 0.8 percent.
FOX Business' Ken Martin contributed to this report.