By Ryan Vlastelica
NEW YORK, Oct 29 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks stayed close to the breakeven point on Friday as investors awaited the prospect of more monetary stimulus from the Federal Reserve and midterm elections that could change the balance of power in Washington.
The market's action in the last several weeks has been dictated by prospects that the U.S. central bank will announce another round of asset buying on Wednesday, though the presumed size of the action was recently scaled down. Midterm elections on Tuesday have also preoccupied investors, with polls indicating a Republican takeover of the U.S. House of Representatives. For details, see
'There's no getting around how big of a week next week is, and it could be an inflection point either up or down,' said Max Bublitz, chief investment strategist at SCM Advisors in San Francisco.
Friday's lack of movement 'smacks of position squaring because no one knows what the outcome or impact of the Fed and election will be,' Bublitz added.
While earnings have largely taken a back seat to macroeconomic data, Dow component Microsoft Corp helped lift the Nasdaq. Microsoft's stock rose 2.6 percent to $26.95 a day after it reported a profit that beat estimates on higher sales of its flagship software.
On the downside, Chevron Corp and Merck & Co , both Dow components, fell after posting quarterly results. Chevron fell 2 percent to $82.77 on a weaker-than-expected profit, while Merck lost nearly 2 percent to $36.24 after its sales disappointed investors.
The Dow Jones industrial average added 8.06 points, or 0.07 percent, to 11,122.01. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index inched up just 0.79 of a point, or 0.07 percent, at 1,184.57. The Nasdaq Composite Index rose 7.96 points, or 0.32 percent, to 2,515.33.
While the S&P 500 is flat so far this week, the index is up almost 3.8 percent for the month, and investors could take the opportunity to lock in profits during the session. The Dow is up 3 percent in October, while the Nasdaq has surged 6.2 percent so far this month.
Analysts said the government's gross domestic product report was positive, showing an an annualized growth rate of 2 percent in the third quarter as forecast, but the data took a back seat to speculation about the Fed's stimulus.
In another snapshot of the economy, the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan's survey showed that consumer sentiment was much worse than expected in October, hitting its weakest level since November.
Aerospace manufacturers Rockwell Collins Inc and ITT Corp posted higher profits on strength in commercial airline orders, but an uncertain outlook for the defense business weighed on their shares.
Rockwell slid 0.8 percent to $60.53 while ITT slumped 2.6 percent to $46.97.
With 335 S&P 500 companies having reported so far, some 77 percent have beaten earnings estimates. That is just shy of the record beat rate of 79 percent in the third quarter of 2009, according to Thomson Reuters data.
(Reporting by Ryan Vlastelica; Editing by Jan Paschal) (ryan.vlastelica@thomsonreuters.com; Tel: +1 646-223-6014; Reuters Messaging: ryan.vlastelica@reuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2010. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
NEW YORK, Oct 29 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks stayed close to the breakeven point on Friday as investors awaited the prospect of more monetary stimulus from the Federal Reserve and midterm elections that could change the balance of power in Washington.
The market's action in the last several weeks has been dictated by prospects that the U.S. central bank will announce another round of asset buying on Wednesday, though the presumed size of the action was recently scaled down. Midterm elections on Tuesday have also preoccupied investors, with polls indicating a Republican takeover of the U.S. House of Representatives. For details, see
'There's no getting around how big of a week next week is, and it could be an inflection point either up or down,' said Max Bublitz, chief investment strategist at SCM Advisors in San Francisco.
Friday's lack of movement 'smacks of position squaring because no one knows what the outcome or impact of the Fed and election will be,' Bublitz added.
While earnings have largely taken a back seat to macroeconomic data, Dow component Microsoft Corp helped lift the Nasdaq. Microsoft's stock rose 2.6 percent to $26.95 a day after it reported a profit that beat estimates on higher sales of its flagship software.
On the downside, Chevron Corp and Merck & Co , both Dow components, fell after posting quarterly results. Chevron fell 2 percent to $82.77 on a weaker-than-expected profit, while Merck lost nearly 2 percent to $36.24 after its sales disappointed investors.
The Dow Jones industrial average added 8.06 points, or 0.07 percent, to 11,122.01. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index inched up just 0.79 of a point, or 0.07 percent, at 1,184.57. The Nasdaq Composite Index rose 7.96 points, or 0.32 percent, to 2,515.33.
While the S&P 500 is flat so far this week, the index is up almost 3.8 percent for the month, and investors could take the opportunity to lock in profits during the session. The Dow is up 3 percent in October, while the Nasdaq has surged 6.2 percent so far this month.
Analysts said the government's gross domestic product report was positive, showing an an annualized growth rate of 2 percent in the third quarter as forecast, but the data took a back seat to speculation about the Fed's stimulus.
In another snapshot of the economy, the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan's survey showed that consumer sentiment was much worse than expected in October, hitting its weakest level since November.
Aerospace manufacturers Rockwell Collins Inc and ITT Corp posted higher profits on strength in commercial airline orders, but an uncertain outlook for the defense business weighed on their shares.
Rockwell slid 0.8 percent to $60.53 while ITT slumped 2.6 percent to $46.97.
With 335 S&P 500 companies having reported so far, some 77 percent have beaten earnings estimates. That is just shy of the record beat rate of 79 percent in the third quarter of 2009, according to Thomson Reuters data.
(Reporting by Ryan Vlastelica; Editing by Jan Paschal) (ryan.vlastelica@thomsonreuters.com; Tel: +1 646-223-6014; Reuters Messaging: ryan.vlastelica@reuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2010. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
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