US Stocks Slip in Friday Trade
NEW YORK (AP) -- U.S. stocks are slightly lower Friday as technology companies, which have led the market's recent rally, take some losses. Video game companies are slipping as Wall Street was disappointed by forecasts from GameStop. Banks are down and consumer-focused companies are rising. Stocks are still near record highs following a six-day winning streak.
KEEPING SCORE: The Standard & Poor's 500 index held steady at 2,414 as of 10:10 a.m. Eastern time. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 18 points, or 0.1 percent, to 21,064. The Nasdaq composite stayed at 6,204. The Russell 2000 index of small-company stocks sank 6 points, or 0.4 percent, to 1,377.
GAME OVER: GameStop's first-quarter results were stronger than analysts expected, but sales of wireless devices were weaker than investors expected. The stock gave up $1.80, or 7.6 percent, to $21.82. Video game publishers also fell. Electronic Arts lost $1.08 to $112.75 and Activision Blizzard slumped 46 cents to $58.76.
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EARNINGS: Without much major news to move stock prices, investors continued to trade on company reports. Beauty products retailer Ulta Beauty gained $11.26, or 3.8 percent, to $304.30 after reporting a strong quarter. Competitor Coty picked up 52 cents, or 2.8 percent, to $19.12. Uggs maker Deckers Outdoor turned in earnings that were stronger than expected, and its stock gained $10.10, or 17.9 percent, to $66.67. Costco Wholesale rose $4.28, or 2.4 percent, to $179.01 after the warehouse club had a strong quarter as sales and member payments both increased.
ECONOMY: The Commerce Department said the U.S. economy grew 1.2 percent in the first quarter, which was still weak but better than it originally estimated. Orders for long-lasting goods fell in April, and a category that tracks business investment fell for the second month in a row.
OIL: Crude oil prices inched higher after a sharp drop the day before. Benchmark U.S. crude lost rose 28 cents to $49.18 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, the international standard, rose 23 cents to $51.69 a barrel in London. On Thursday a group of 24 nations including the OPEC countries agreed to a nine-month extension of a cut in oil production.
BONDS: Bond prices edged higher. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.24 percent from 2.25 percent and banks took small losses.
CURRENCIES: The dollar sank to 111.20 yen from 111.80 yen. The euro fell to $1.1172 from $1.1205.
OVERSEAS: The French CAC 40 fell 0.1 percent and Germany's DAX lost 0.2 percent. In Britain the FTSE 100 rose 0.4 percent. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 index shed 0.6 percent but the South Korean Kospi climbed 0.5 percent. Hong Kong's Hang Seng was nearly unchanged.
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