Stocks Mostly Lower in Afternoon Trade

(AP) -- Disappointing company earnings and outlooks weighed on U.S. stocks in afternoon trading Thursday, nudging the major indexes mostly lower. Telecom stocks were down the most, while health care companies were on course for the biggest gain. Oil was headed lower.

KEEPING SCORE: The Dow Jones industrial average added 5 points to 18,207 as of 1:42 p.m. Eastern time. The Standard & Poor's 500 index slipped less than 1 point to 2,143. The Nasdaq composite index fell 1 point to 5,244. The market is coming off two days of gains.

BAD DEAL: EBay slumped 11.4 percent after the e-commerce giant reported disappointing fourth-quarter results. The stock slid $3.70 to $28.83.

HANG UP: Verizon fell 2.7 percent after the company posted weak quarterly revenue as it added far fewer wireless and internet service subscribers than a year ago. Shares in the company, which is in the process of a potential acquisition of Yahoo's digital operations, shed $1.36 to $49.02. Rival AT&T also fell, shedding 58 cents, or 1.5 percent, to $38.81.

RAILROADED: Union Pacific was down 6.7 percent after it said weak demand for consumer goods had dampened its freight and coal shipments volume. The railroad operator slid $6.48 to $90.65.

DOUGH NOT: Dunkin' Brands Group fell 3.7 percent after the chain's latest quarterly revenue snapshot fell short of Wall Street's expectations. The company also cut its forecast for sales growth. The stock lost $1.88 to $49.12.

TURBULENT QUARTER: Shares in American Airlines fell after the company said its latest quarterly earnings fell due to higher labor costs and declining revenue. The stock slipped 20 cents to $40.44.

CHARGED UP: American Express surged 10.3 percent, the biggest gainer in the S&P 500. The credit card issuer reported better-than-anticipated quarterly results late Wednesday. It also raised its annual outlook. Thestock added $6.33 to $67.58.

NOT PLAYING: Toy maker Mattel climbed 6.1 percent after reporting strong earnings late Wednesday. Thestock added $1.86 to $32.48.

SURPRISING RESULTS: Snap-on vaulted 8 percent after the tool and diagnostic equipment maker posted a larger profit than analysts had forecast. Its shares rose $11.93 to $161.04.

ON THE ECONOMY: The Labor Department said weekly applications for unemployment benefits rose last week to the highest level in five weeks, though it remained close to a recent 43-year low. Separately, the National Association of Realtors said that sales of previously owned homes rose 3.2 percent from August to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.47 million, the strongest pace since June.

OVERSEAS MARKETS: Germany's DAX gained 0.5 percent, while France's CAC-40 rose 0.4 percent. London's FTSE 100 added 0.1 percent. Earlier in Asia, Tokyo's Nikkei 225 rose 1.4 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 0.3 percent.

ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude was down $1.09, or 2.1 percent, to $50.51 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, used to price international oils, was down $1.29, or 2.4 percent, to $51.38.

BONDS AND CURRENCIES: Bond prices were little changed. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note held steady at 1.75 percent. In currency markets, the dollar increased to 103.97 yen from 103.39 on Wednesday, while the euro weakened to $1.0939 from $1.2275.

(KA)