(By Salman - iStockAnalyst Writer)US stocks finished with losses on Tuesday as investors were rattled by worse-than-expected consumer confidence data.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 82.38 points or 0.97% to finish at 8,447. The S&P 500 lost 7.91 points or 0.85% to end at 919.32. The Nasdaq Composite decreased 9.02 points or 0.49% to 1,835.04.
Still, S&P 500 managed to post its best quarterly performance since the fourth quarter of 1998. The benchmark S&P 500 gained 15.2 percent in the second quarter, while Dow average climbed 11 percent and the Nasdaq advanced 20.1 percent.
The New York-based Conference Board said on Tuesday that its Consumer Confidence Index dropped to 49.3 from its revised May level of 54.8. Economists expected a reading of 55.3.
Standard & Poor's/Case Shiller released its home price index Tuesday showing an 18.1% drop from April 2008. The 20-city home price index is now off almost 33% since its peak in the second quarter of 2006.
According to a survey of corporate purchasing managers released Tuesday, the Chicago purchasing managers index rose to 39.9% in June from 34.9% in May. A reading below 50 connotes a contraction in manufacturing activity in this region.
Shares of equipment maker Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:
CAT) jumped $1.70 or 4.89% to $33.04.
Alcoa Inc. (NYSE:
AA), the largest US aluminum maker, lost 58 cents or 2.42% to $23.24.
Among financials, American Express Co. (NYSE:
AXP) tumbled 58 cents or 2.42% to $23.24. Wells Fargo (NYSE:
WFC) rallied 67 cents or 2.71% to $25.39.
Shares of the Procter & Gamble Co. (NYSE:
PG) dropped $1.13 or 2.16% to $51.10.
Verizon Communications (NYSE:
VZ) slipped 63 cents or 2.01% to 3.03%.
Late on Monday, Apollo Group Inc. (NYSE:
APOL) reported that fiscal third-quarter profit rose to $201.1 million, or $1.26 a share, from $139.1 million, or 85 cents a share, in the prior year period. Revenue increased to $1.05 billion from $835.2 million. Shares of the company soared $5.13 or 7.77% to $71.72.
H&R Block Inc. (NYSE:
HRB) said that its fourth-quarter net income jumped to $706.9 million, or $2.09 a share, from $543.6 million, or $1.66 a share, in the year-ago period. Revenue slipped to $2.47 billion from $2.54 billion a year. Shares surged $1.56 or 9.96% to $17.23.
General Mills (NYSE:
GIS) announced late Monday that it is boosting its quarterly dividend rate by 9% or 4 cents a share to 47 cents per share. Shares finished at $56.02, up 18 cents or 0.32%.
Design software maker Adobe Systems (NASDAQ:
ADBE) has shut its North American operations for the week as part of a cost-cutting effort. Adobe previously shut down for a week in April, and it will close North American operations for another week later in the year. Adobe fell 32 cents or 1.12% to $28.30.
European stocks settled lower. The UK FTSE dropped 44.82 points or 1.04% to 4,249.21. The German DAX and French CAC subtracted 1.56% and 1.67% respectively.
Asian stocks finished mixed. The Nikkei 225 rose 174.97 points or 1.97% to end at 9,958.44. The Hang Seng index of Hong Kong fell 149.78 points or 0.81% to 18,378.73.
NYMEX crude oil for August delivery declined $1.60 or 2.2% to settle at $69.89 a barrel.
Disclosure: Author does not own any of the stocks discussed here.
