Stocks trade mixed after rally

NEW YORK -- Wall Street stumbled through a lopsided session Wednesday, closing mixed as profit warnings and news from blue chip names Alcoa Inc. and Boeing Co. dragged down the Dow Jones industrial average but largely spared technology stocks.

A pullback was to be expected after the Dow and the Standard & Poor's 500 index finished at new highs Tuesday amid enthusiasm over comments from Federal Reserve policymakers about interest rates, but corporate news appeared to hasten Wednesday's slide.

Declines by Dow components Boeing and Alcoa, among others, hurt the 30-stock index. Meanwhile, International Paper Co. and Chevron Corp. moved lower on profit news.

The stock market's uneven but still relatively calm trading Wednesday followed a surge the day before that was sparked by release of the minutes from the Fed's last meeting. Wall Street initially was ebullient that the Fed didn't appear to rule out further rate cuts but, on reflection, some investors seemed to be questioning whether that response was a little too optimistic.

"People are looking backward at what the Fed was discussing to try and discern whether or not we're in a recession," said Kim Caughey, equity research analyst at Fort Pitt Capital Group. "Looking in the rearview mirror isn't going to give us that clarity because it's history, so instead I'm really looking forward to what corporate earnings will show."

The Dow fell 85.84, or 0.61 percent, to 14,078.69 after rising 120 points on Tuesday.

Broader stock indicators were mixed. The S&P 500 fell 2.68, or 0.17 percent, to 1,562.47, and the technology-laden Nasdaq composite index rose 7.70, or 0.27 percent, to 2,811.61.

Bond prices had a late-session uptick but finished little changed. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note was unchanged at 4.65 percent, compared with late Tuesday. The dollar was mixed against other major currencies, while gold prices rose.

Light, sweet crude rose $1.04 to settle at $81.30 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange following word that workers at Chevron facilities in Nigeria had staged a surprise strike and by a report that demand for gasoline is up.

Wednesday's session came as investors tried to determine whether the Fed will make a move when it meets Oct. 30-31. Last month's surprise half-point rate cut helped stoke a recovery in stocks that were pummeled this summer amid concerns about tight access to credit and an economic slowdown.

But corporate, not broad economic concerns, appeared to attract Wall Street's attention Wednesday. Boeing fell $2.77, or 2.7 percent, to $98.68 after announcing it was delaying initial deliveries of its 787 Dreamliner commercial aircraft by six months. The company cited challenges in finishing assembly of the first airplanes.

"I think you're starting to see people looking at individual stocks," said Bill Schultz, chief investment officer at McQueen, Ball & Associates in Pittsburgh. "Clearly, the large caps have been the place to be here as this rally has taken place. And, one of the areas over time that has been left behind is growth stocks."

Alcoa disappointed investors after it reported a smaller-than-expected 3 percent profit, while revenue fell. But excluding a boost to its bottom line from the sale of a stake in a Chinese aluminum company, Alcoa's results fell short of Wall Street's expectations. Alcoa fell 99 cents, or 2.5 percent, to $38.73.

International Paper lowered its projection for how much it expects to take in from sales of land in the third quarter, which sent shares falling 88 cents, or 2.3 percent, to $36.18.

Chevron fell 72 cents to $92.08 after the company warned third-quarter profit will come in well below the $5.4 billion it earned in the second quarter.

However, Wall Street also received some upbeat news when Costco Wholesale Corp. reported better-than-expected results. Shares of the warehouse retailer gave a boost to the Nasdaq, rising $5.82, or 9.2 percent, to $69.13.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers by about 6 to 5 on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to 1.16 billion shares, up from 1.09 billion Tuesday.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 0.53, or 0.06 percent, to 845.19.

Overseas, Japan's Nikkei stock average rose 0.10 percent. Britain's FTSE 100 closed up 0.27 percent, Germany's DAX index rose 0.08 percent, and France's CAC-40 fell 0.40 percent.

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