NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stock indexes are mostly lower Wednesday morning following weak first-quarter reports from consumer-focused companies including Priceline and Disney. However energy companies are rising with the price of oil.
KEEPING SCORE: The Standard & Poor’s 500 index lost 2 points, or 0.1 percent, to 2,394 as of 10 a.m. Eastern time. The Dow Jones industrial average shed 52 points, or 0.3 percent, to 20,923 as Disney slumped. The Nasdaq composite declined 9 points, or 0.1 percent, to 6,111 after it set a record high Tuesday. The Russell 2000 index of small-company stocks rose 6 points, or 0.5 percent, to 1,398. Two stocks rose for every one that fell on the New York Stock Exchange.
OIL: Benchmark U.S. crude added 66 cents, or 1.4 percent, to $46.54 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, the international standard, gained 68 cents, or 1.4 percent, to $49.41 a barrel in London. That sent energy companies higher, as EOG Resources picked up $2.96, or 3.2 percent, to $94.60 and Chevron added $1.01, or 1 percent, to $106.09. The price of U.S. crude is down more than 5 percent in May and it’s tumbled 17 percent this year. The S&P 500’s energy sector has dropped 10 percent in 2017.
YIPES, YELP: Online review website Yelp plunged after it slashed its revenue forecast for the year. That followed a disappointing first-quarter report, and analysts said the company struggled to retain customers. The stock sank $7.05, or 20.3 percent, to $27.65 to reach its lowest price in almost a year.
WATCH OUT: Watchmaker Fossil tumbled after another weaker-than-expected quarterly report. The company said sales of traditional watches and other jewelry continued to fall. Fossil stock traded above $100 a share as recently as December 2014 is now trading at eight-year lows as it lost $4.24, or 23.4 percent, to $13.91.
MOUSE MISS: Entertainment giant Walt Disney posted lower sales than investors expected and it said profit at its cable networks declined because of programming costs at ESPN remain high. Its stock fell $3.34, or 3 percent, to $108.73. Recently Disney stock suffered a five-day losing streak partly brought on by concerns about cable advertising revenue. The stock is trading at its lowest prices since January but is still up 4 percent this year.
TECH EARNINGS: Video game maker Electronic Arts and chipmaker Nvidia both reported stronger results than analysts had expected. Electronic Arts, which makes games including “The Sims” and “Mass Effects,” rose $11.63, or 12.1 percent, to $107.65 and Nvidia advanced $13.91, or 13.5 percent, to $116.85. Nvidia shares are now slightly higher this year after they tripled in value in 2016.
OUT OF LINE: Revenue for online booking service Priceline was a bit lower than analysts expected and the company’s profit forecast for the current quarter was also disappointing. That sent the stock down $87.94, or 4.6 percent, to $1,822. Priceline has soared 44 percent over the last 12 months.
PRETTY PICTURE: Beauty products maker Coty rallied after its profit and sales topped investor forecasts. The stock had lost about a third of its value over the last year but jumped $2.32, and 13 percent, to $20.15.
BONDS: Bond prices jumped. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.38 percent from 2.41 percent.
CURRENCIES: The dollar fell to 113.87 yen from 114.28 yen. The euro edged down to $1.0866 from $1.0869.
OVERSEAS: Germany’s DAX rose 0.1 percent and France’s CAC-40 climbed 0.5 percent. In Britain, the FTSE 100 was unchanged. The Japanese Nikkei 225 gained 0.3 percent and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index rose 0.5 percent. The Kospi of South Korea fell 1 percent.
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AP Markets Writer Marley Jay can be reached at http://twitter.com/MarleyJayAP
His work can be found at https://apnews.com/search/marley%20jay
