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U.S. stocks extend losses as Apple results weigh

Xinhua, July 23, 2015 Adjust font size:

U.S. stocks traded lower in the morning session on Wednesday, as Apple shares' sharp decline following a disappointing quarterly earnings report weighed on market sentiment.

By midday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average decreased 75.90 points, or 0.42 percent, to 17,843.39. The S&P 500 fell 5.24 points, or 0.25 percent, to 2,113.97. The Nasdaq Composite Index lost 38.29 points, or 0.74 percent, to 5,169.83.

Apple shares slumped 5.27 percent around midday Wednesday though the company reported slightly better-than-expected financial results for the third quarter of its fiscal year 2015.

However, its revenue forecast for the fourth quarter fell below expectations and its iPhone sales missed market estimates.

The tech giant posted quarterly revenue of 49.6 billion U.S. dollars and quarterly net profit of 10.7 billion dollars, or 1.85 dollars per diluted share.

Shares of Microsoft also dipped 3.13 percent around midday after reporting lackluster quarterly results.

The company announced that revenues for the quarter ended June 30 were 22.2 billion dollars. Gross margin, operating loss, and loss per share for the quarter were 14.7 billion dollars, 2.1 billion dollars, and 0.40 dollar per share, respectively.

On the economic front, U.S. existing-home sales increased in June to their highest pace in over eight years, according to the National Association of Realtors Wednesday. Total existing-home sales increased 3.2 percent from a downwardly revised 5.32 million in May to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.49 million in June, beating market consensus.

"With tightening on the horizon, concerns that mortgage rates could rise further could be leading potential homeowners to buy now instead of waiting, especially given that supply is tight and prices are rising," said Sophia Kearney-Lederman, an economic analyst at FTN Financial, in a note.

U.S. stocks ended lower amid lackluster quarterly results Tuesday, as investors were looking for excuses to lock in gains after the Nasdaq's three-session record run. Endite