US stocks waver as earnings and central banks dominate

NEW YORK (AP) - U.S. stocks are wavering between small gains and losses Thursday afternoon as health care companies including Abbott Laboratories are rising as investors focus on quarterly results. Some weak earnings are putting a dent in industrial and basic materials companies. The European Central bank left its key interest rate unchanged. Major stock indexes closed at record highs a day earlier.

KEEPING SCORE: The Standard & Poor's 500 index added 2 points, or 0.1 percent, to 2,475 at 2:15 p.m. Eastern time. The Dow Jones industrial average dipped 15 points, or 0.1 percent, to 21,625. The Nasdaq composite rose 6 points, or 0.1 percent, to 6,391. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies gained 3 points, or 0.2 percent, to 1,444.

HEALTHY, WEALTHY: Abbott Laboratories, which makes infant formula, drugs and medical devices, gained $1.48, or 3 percent, to $50.91 after reporting results that were better than expected. Health care products giant Johnson & Johnson rose $1.48, or 1.1 percent, to $136.69 and Merck climbed 48 cents to $63.11. Drugmaker AbbVie, which split from Abbott in 2013, added $1.339, or 1.8 percent, to $74.10.

NOT PAINTING THE TOWN RED: Paint and coatings maker PPG Industries fell after it reported weaker-than-expected sales. PPG said higher raw materials costs hurt its results, and so did unfavorable foreign currency exchange rates. Its shares gave up $7.26, or 6.4 percent, to $106.34.

Competitor Sherwin-Williams had a weak second quarter and also said rising costs affected its results. The stock lost $8.13, or 2.3 percent, to $351.59.

Among industrial companies, trucking firm C.H. Robinson reported a smaller profit than analysts expected, and its stock dropped $3.53, or 5.1 percent, to $65.16. However United Rentals said the amount of equipment being rented climbed in the latest quarter and it raised its sales forecast for the year. Its stock gained $4.50, or 3.8 percent, to $123.20.

CENTRAL BANKS: The European Central Bank didn't make any big moves, as ECB President Mario Draghi stressed that the bank has not set a date for considering any changes to its stimulus policies. Last month Draghi discussed gradual reductions in stimulus as Europe's economy gets stronger, and investors reacted by pushing the euro higher and buying long-term bonds.

THE QUOTE: While stocks have been setting record highs for most of this year, the market is having its quietest year in generations. There have been almost no big moves, as the S&P 500 has risen or fallen 1 percent just four times this year. In a typical year that happens more than 50 times.

"There's the belief that the Fed and the ECB are backstopping markets and if something bad were to happen, they would increase accommodation," said Brent Schutte, chief investment strategist at Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management. "If you throw a bunch of money at a problem, typically risk moves lower and people feel more confidence."

RELIEF FOR SEARS: Sears soared after the retailer said it will begin selling Kenmore appliances on Amazon.com, including smart appliances that can be synced with Amazon's voice assistant, Alexa. The owner of the Sears and Kmart chains has closed large numbers of stores in recent years and said in March that it might not be able to stay in business.

Its stock jumped $1.13, or 13 percent, to $9.81 while Amazon picked up 63 cents to $1,027.50.. Even with Thursday's climb, Sears stock is down 31 percent over the last year.

Home Depot plunged $5.98, or 3.9 percent, to $147.32 as analysts wondered if its appliance sales will be affected. That wiped 40 points off the Dow average.

AVISTA IN VIEW: Utility company Avista surged after it accepted an offer from Hydro One, the largest power transmitter and distributor in Ontario. It will buy Avista for $5.3 billion, or $53 a share, and Avista stock climbed $8.93, or 20.6 percent, to $52.26.

OIL: Benchmark U.S. crude lost 30 cents to $46.82 a barrel in New York and Brent crude, the standard for international oil prices, lost 29 cents to $49.41 a barrel in London.

BONDS: Bond prices moved higher. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.26 percent from 2.27 percent. High-dividend stocks like utilities mostly climbed, as reduced bond yields make those stocks more appealing to investors who want income.

METALS: Gold added $3.50 to $1,245.50 an ounce. Silver rose 5 cents to $16.35 an ounce. Copper gained 1 cent to $2.72 a pound.

CURRENCIES: The dollar edged up to 111.87 yen from 111.78 yen. The euro gained to $1.1628 from $1.1517.

OVERSEAS: Britain's FTSE 100 index advanced 0.8 percent while the French CAC 40 lost 0.3 percent. The DAX in Germany was little changed. The Nikkei 225 of Japan advanced 0.6 percent and South Korea's Kospi gained 0.5 percent. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong rose 0.3 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