Stocks open mixed on Wall Street; Coca-Cola drops
NEW YORK — Coca-Cola held back the stock market in early trading Tuesday after the world’s largest beverage maker posted second-quarter earnings that disappointed investors.
Coke fell $1.14, or 2.8 percent, to $39.90 after the company said it sold less soda in its home market of North America.
The Dow Jones industrial average was down nine points, less than one percent, to 15,474 as of 10:24 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index down a point at 1,680. The Nasdaq composite was little changed at 3,606.
Coke’s results were partly offset by better results from Johnson & Johnson. The giant health care company rose after its second-quarter profit more than doubled thanks to higher sales of medicines and medical devices. The stock rose 67 cents, or 0.7 percent, to $91.03.
“Earnings are taking the lead at this point in time,” said Brad Sorensen, Charles Schwab’s director of market and sector research. “So far it’s been decent, but nothing to get excited about.”
The stock market is back at record levels following a brief slump in June, when the S&P 500 logged its first monthly decline since October on concern that the Federal Reserve would ease back on its economic stimulus too quickly. The S&P 500 gained for eight straight trading sessions through Monday, its longest winning streak since January.
In government bond trading, the yield on the 10-year Treasury note was unchanged from 2.54 percent Monday.
In commodities trading, the price of crude oil was little changed at $106.24 a barrel and gold rose $9 to $1,292 an ounce.
The dollar fell against the euro and the Japanese yen.
Among other stocks making big moves:
— Cintas Corp., a supplier of uniforms, fell $1.72, or 3.6 percent, to $46.16 after the company said late Monday that its fiscal fourth-quarter net income rose 9 percent, but it gave a tepid outlook for the current year due in part to the health care overhaul law.
— Heidrick & Struggles International dropped $2.91, or 16 percent, to $14.95 after the executive search firm said it is longer pursuing a sale of its business and that its CEO is stepping down.