Stocks Sputter As Investors Analyze Mixed Earnings

Stocks wobbled between small gains and losses in morning trading Tuesday as traders weigh another big set of company earnings reports.

Photo Insert: The New York Stock Exchange trading floor

Investors also are remaining cautious amid the spread of the more contagious delta variant of COVID-19, Damian J. Troise reported for the Associated Press (AP).

The S&P 500 index was down less than 0.1% as of 11:13 a.m. Eastern. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 59 points, or 0.2%, to 34,895. and the Nasdaq composite index was down 0.4%. Gains from health care and industrial stocks were kept in check by a dip in communications and technology stocks.

Investors are in the midst of earnings season, with more than 100 companies in the S&P 500 index reporting their results this week. So far earnings have been strong, with roughly nine out of every 10 companies beating analysts’ expectations.

Clorox slumped 11.5% after reporting results that fell short of forecast and releasing a disappointing outlook. Solid financial results helped lift several other companies. Ralph Lauren jumped 9.1% after handily beating analysts’ fiscal first-quarter profit forecasts as sales rebounded. Columbia Sportswear rose 3.3% after reporting a surprise second-quarter profit.

Activision Blizzard fell 5.4% after the head of Blizzard Entertainment said he would resign effective immediately. Blizzard, maker of popular video games such as Overwatch and World of Warcraft, has been accused in a lawsuit of having a toxic work environment that has caused walkouts by employees.

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