U.S. stocks edged lower in early trading on Tuesday as investors pored through some weak company earnings reports. Technology stocks were among the biggest decliners. The market is coming off a three-day winning streak.
KEEPING SCORE: The Dow Jones industrial average fell 34 points, or 0.2 percent, to 17,195 as of 9:58 a.m. Eastern time. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index dipped less than one point to 2,033. The Nasdaq lost three points, or 0.1 percent, to 4,901.
REBOOT: IBM shares tumbled 5.4 percent a day after the company’s latest earnings report showed that weak hardware sales and a strong dollar brought down its revenue down. It was the 14th straight quarter of revenue declines. The stock weighed heavily on the 30-stock Dow, losing $8.03 to $141.21.
BUMPY RIDE: Harley-Davidson sank 11.6 percent after the company reported a drop in third-quarter profit and cut its forecasts for motorcycle shipments. Harley shares slid $6.51 to $49.54.
YUM SPLIT: Yum Brands, which owns KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell, rose 3.4 percent after saying it plans to spin off its China business, which has stumbled recently. The stock added $2.47 to $74.18.