NEW YORK: US stocks were little changed in a narrow trading range on Thursday, pausing after a record-setting run as investors mulled over a mixed bag of earning reports and upbeat economic data.
Intel shares were down 4.2% at US$34.19 after it reported slowing revenue growth at its key data centre business.
The stock was the biggest drag on the three major indexes.
But fellow chipmaker Qualcomm was the biggest positive influence on the S&P and Nasdaq, rising 7.9% after its quarterly results and forecast topped market estimates.
Biogen was up 5.8% at US$277.80 after strong results. The stock led the health sector 0.4% higher, making it the biggest gainer among the 10 major S&P sectors.
Economic data was upbeat. A report showed US jobless claims unexpectedly fell to a three-month low last week, while home resales unexpectedly rose in June to their fastest pace in more than nine years.
The S&P is up more than 6% for the year, while the Dow’s nine-day winning streak is its best run since March 2013.
But the rally has been driven by defensive sectors such as telecoms and utilities amid concerns about global instability including Britain’s recent vote to leave the European Union.
“The recent rally has been more shallow and has been confined to a few sectors,” said Art Hogan, chief market strategist at Wunderlich Securities in New York.
“Any pullback was to be expected given that the Dow rallied for nine straight days and you have to see today’s action in that context. The broader macro context hasn’t changed.”
At 11:04am ET (1504 GMT) the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 15.51 points, or 0.08%, at 18,579.52.
The S&P 500 was flat at 2,173.12. The index had earlier come within a point of its previous record.
The Nasdaq Composite was up 3.66 points, or 0.07%, at 5,093.59.
Half the 10 major S&P 500 sectors were lower. However, all sectors were moving within a narrow range of losses of 0.3% to gains of 0.4%.
Mining equipment maker Joy Global jumped 17.6% after agreeing to be acquired by Japan’s Komatsu for US$3.7bil. Caterpillar was up nearly 2%.
AT&T, Chipotle, Visa and Starbucks among others are scheduled to report after the bell.
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners on the NYSE by 1,749 to 1,087. On the Nasdaq, 1,415 issues rose and 1,178 fell.
The S&P 500 index showed 20 new 52-week highs and no new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 60 new highs and 11 new lows. - Reuters
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