U.S. stock indexes wavered between small gains and losses in morning trading Monday as investors sized up the latest company earnings and deal news. Gains in technology and consumer-focused companies were offsetting losses among energy and financial stocks. Oil headed lower.
KEEPING SCORE: The Standard & Poor’s 500 index was up less than 1 point to 2,477 as of 11:20 a.m. Eastern time. The Dow Jones industrial average slipped 2 points to 22,090. The Nasdaq composite added 20 points, or 0.3 percent, to 6,372. The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks lost 1 point, or 0.1 percent, to 1,410.
THE QUOTE: “So far, it’s pretty quiet,” said Erik Davidson, chief investment officer at Wells Fargo Private Bank. “It’s still summer, with overall things going pretty well, with the market at these all-time highs.”
TECH CLIMBS: Technology companies were leading the market’s gainers. KLA-Tencor rose $2.96, or 3.3 percent, to $91.79.
CHOW DOWN: Tyson Foods gained 5.5 percent after the meat processor’s forecasts pleased investors. The company also turned in fiscal third-quarter results that beat Wall Street’s estimates. The stock added $3.51 to $66.81.
CHIPPER RESULTS: ON Semiconductor rose 4.1 percent on stronger-than-expected second-quarter earnings and revenue. The stock gained 62 cents to $15.72.
DONE DEAL: NxStage Medical vaulted 28.3 percent after the medical device company agreed to be acquired by Germany’s Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. for $30 a share in a cash deal valued at about $2 billion. NxStage shares added $6.56 to $29.70.
MISSTEP: Armstrong Flooring slumped 16.9 percent after the company’s latest quarterly results fell well short of analysts’ forecasts. The stock slid $2.93 to $14.36.
PUMPED OUT: Energy companies were among the biggest decliners as crude oil prices headed lower. Chesapeake Energy fell 17 cents, or 3.9 percent, to $4.36, while Hess shed $1.51, or 3.4 percent, to $42.85.
OIL: Benchmark U.S. crude was down 89 cents, or 1.8 percent, to $48.69 per barrel in New York. It added 55 cents to $49.58 per barrel on Friday. Brent crude, the international standard, was down 84 cents, or 1.6 percent, to $51.58 a barrel in London.
CURRENCIES: The U.S. dollar climbed to 110.81 from 110.67 yen on Friday. It weakened, however, against the euro, which rose to $1.1792 from $1.1769. The euro was below $1.06 as recently as April, before the dollar began weakening steadily.
BONDS: Bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.26 percent from 2.27 percent late Friday.
MARKETS OVERSEAS: In Europe, Germany’s DAX fell 0.4 percent, while France’s CAC 40 was essentially flat. The FTSE 100 in Britain edged 0.2 percent higher. In Asia, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index added 0.5 percent, while South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.1 percent.
