U.S. stocks slip as banks and technology companies decline

Marley Jay, The Associated Press</span>
Published Friday, May 26, 2017 6:27AM EDT
Last Updated Friday, May 26, 2017 10:48AM EDT

NEW YORK -- 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 per cent, to 21,064. The Nasdaq composite stayed at 6,204. The Russell 2000 index of small-company stocks sank 6 points, or 0.4 per cent, 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 per cent, 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.

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 per cent, to $304.30 after reporting a strong quarter. Competitor Coty picked up 52 cents, or 2.8 per cent, to $19.12. Uggs maker Deckers Outdoor turned in earnings that were stronger than expected, and its stock gained $10.10, or 17.9 per cent, to $66.67. Costco Wholesale rose $4.28, or 2.4 per cent, 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 per cent 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 per cent from 2.25 per cent 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 per cent and Germany's DAX lost 0.2 per cent. In Britain the FTSE 100 rose 0.4 per cent. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 index shed 0.6 per cent but the South Korean Kospi climbed 0.5 per cent. Hong Kong's Hang Seng was nearly unchanged.

AP Markets Writer Marley Jay contributed to this story

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