* Trading session again marked by late-day swings
* NetApp shares slide nearly 15 pct, warns on Europe
* HP shares up after announcing plans to cut jobs
* Dow up 0.3 pct, SP up 0.1 pct, Nasdaq down 0.4 pct
NEW YORK, May 24 (Reuters) – U.S. stocks ended slightly
higher in a third session marked by late-day swings, but the
Nasdaq fell after NetApp gave a weak revenue forecast, casting
doubt on the outlook for tech spending.
Major indexes were lower for much of the session, as
investors found little reason to buy following three days of
gains. In addition, economic figures suggested slowing demand in
both Europe and the United States.
However, Wall Street reversed course late in the session and
the SP extended its gains to a fourth straight day.
Underscoring the vulnerability of U.S. companies to events
in the euro zone, data storage company NetApp Inc on
Wednesday forecast revenue below expectations, citing
uncertainty in Europe. Its shares tumbled 12 percent to $28.82.
“It’s incredibly difficult to know what’s priced into
markets or what fair value might be for stocks,” said Andrew
Milligan, global head of strategy for Standard Life Investments
in Edinburgh.
“Equities might have a better value relative to other asset
classes, but they’re certainly not as cheap as chips. We’re not
besotted with them.”
Dow component Hewlett-Packard rose 3.3 percent to
$21.77. The company said on Wednesday it would lay off about 8
percent of its workforce in the next couple of years.
Greece’s future in the euro zone remains a primary risk for
stocks. At least half of euro zone governments, as well as banks
and large companies, are making contingency plans in case Greece
decides to leave.
“The risk-off trade is very much the order of the day, so
long as the potential contagion effect remains,” said Milligan.
“We don’t know what policies might be proposed to keep Greece in
the EU, and how Greece might respond to them.”
The Dow Jones industrial average was up 33.60 points,
or 0.27 percent, at 12,529.75. The Standard Poor’s 500 Index
was up 1.82 points, or 0.14 percent, at 1,320.68. The
Nasdaq Composite Index was down 10.74 points, or 0.38
percent, at 2,839.38.
The SP is up 2 percent on the week, though the market has
lately undergone late-day shifts that have erased both losses
and gains, a sign of the markets’ skittishness.
Demand for long-lasting U.S. manufactured goods rose less
than expected in April while weekly jobless claims dipped
modestly for the week ended May 19, government data showed.
The transportation sector edged up despite a rebound in oil
prices. The rise was led by airlines after JPMorgan raised its
price target on several carriers.
U.S. Airways jumped 10.5 percent to $12.16, its
highest since November 2010, and an index of airline stocks
gained 3.3 percent. U.S. Airways shares have more than
doubled in 2012, rising about 140 percent.
After the closing bell on Wednesday, electronic trader
Knight Capital Group said it suffered a pre-tax loss of
$30 million to $35 million on the botched Nasdaq trading debut
of social media giant Facebook and is demanding the
exchange compensate that amount.
Knight Capital Group shares fell 0.5 percent at $12.38 and
Facebook shares rose 2.3 percent to $32.72.
United Technologies Corp ended 0.8 percent lower at
$73.50 after the Dow component launched a $9.8 billion corporate
bond sale.
About 56 percent of companies traded on the New York Stock
Exchange ended higher while slightly more Nasdaq-listed firms
ended higher.
Volume was light, with about 6.55 billion shares traded on
the New York Stock Exchange, the American Stock Exchange and
Nasdaq, below last year’s daily average of 7.84 billion.
Similar news:
RSS
Facebook
Google+
Twitter
