NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — Wall Street finished split on Monday, with the Dow and S&P 500 lower, while the Nasdaq closed at a fresh all-time high.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq was drawn higher in anticipation of earnings from Google-parent Alphabet after the close, which handily beat analyst expectations, but saw its share price fall in after-hours trading.
The Nasdaq rose 0.4 percent to reach a new record finish at 6,410.81, the fourth record in the past five trading sessions, with Friday the only exception.
Shares in Google’s parent rose 0.5 percent by the close, but then fell 2.7 percent in after-hours trading, as the company reported a dip in quarterly profit after taking a hit from last month’s $2.74 billion European anti-trust fine.
Meanwhile, the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average and broader S&P 500 were dragged down in part by Johnson & Johnson. The company suffered on news that competitors Merck and Samsung Bioepis were launching a discounted alternative to its rheumatoid arthritis drug Remicade.
The Dow fell 0.3 percent to end at 21,513.17 and the S&P gave up 0.1 percent to settle at 2,469.91.
“Fundamentally this is very good quarter for beating expectations,” Jack Ablin of BMO Private Bank told AFP about the earnings season.
But that has not always been enough to satisfy investors, after months in which major indices had soared and equities had risen in price, he said.
“The companies are delivering on the earnings but investors and expecting more.”
Other losers on the Dow include Nike, which gave up 1.7 percent, McDonald’s, which lost 1.3 percent, and Goldman Sachs which fell 0.9 percent.
Oilfield services giant Halliburton fell 4.2 percent after reporting that growth in the North American oil rig count may slow as oil stays below $50 per barrel.
Tech giants Facebook and Amazon are due to report quarterly earnings later in the week as are Ford, ExxonMobil and Caterpillar.
Some investors are likewise holding their fire ahead of Wednesday’s announcement on monetary policy from the Federal Reserve.
© Agence France-Presse
