Stocks edge up on earnings; Nasdaq falls

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) � U.S. stocks eked out modest gains Wednesday after earnings from Time Warner Inc., Wyndham Worldwide Corp. and others reinforced a theme of steady improvement for consumer companies. The Nasdaq Composite ended lower.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA ended a choppy trading day up 7.22 points, or 0.1%, at 13,986.52. It had fallen as much as 66 points during the session.

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The S&P 500 Index SPX ended up 0.83 point, or 0.1%, at 1,512.12. Sectors attractive to investors for defensive qualities such as dividends � telecoms and utilities � led the index, followed by consumer discretionary stocks.

�It�s still an earnings-driven story,� said Dan Greenhaus, chief global strategist at BTIG. �Based on investor reaction to consumer stocks, the consumer isn�t doing all that bad.�

Shares of Wyndham Worldwide Corp. WYN gained 6.8%, making it the second-best on the S&P 500, after the hotel operator showed a 45% improvement in profit for the fourth quarter. Read more on Wyndham.

Ralph Lauren Corp. RL shares rose nearly 6% after the apparel retailer�s quarterly earnings beat Wall Street expectations. Read more on Ralph Lauren earnings.

Time Warner Inc. TWX shares gained 4.1% after the media giant reported a surge in fourth-quarter earnings. Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. CMG shares rose 5.7% after the company�s earnings late Tuesday.

The benchmark indexes spent part of the session lower, and the Nasdaq Composite Index COMP ended down 3.1 points, or 0.1%, at 3,168.48.

The choppy trading this week likely reflects some indecision among investors after the year�s strong start.

�A lot of people are looking at this market and saying, �We�re up 6% in one month,� and they�ve seen no pause since December,� said Robert Pavlik, chief market strategist at Banyan Partners. �People are a little on edge.�

First Solar gets �buy� boost

On the Dow, 3M Co MMM �shares led gains for 19 out of 30 components. Shares of Walt Disney Co. DIS �rose 0.4% following the media conglomerate�s earnings late Tuesday. Read more on Disney earnings.

Blue-chip Hewlett-Packard Co. HPQ ended up 0.5% after a media report said Tuesday that H-P�s board is studying a breakup of the technology company. Read more of H-P considering board breakup on Quartz.com.

Leading the S&P 500, shares of First Solar Inc. FSLR �rose 7.3% after Citigroup initiated coverage on the company Wednesday with a buy rating.

GameStop Corp. GME �shares slumped 6%, the second-worst performer on the S&P 500.

/quotes/zigman/3870025 SPX 1,512.12, +0.83, +0.05% S&P 500 Index

Earlier in the session, a drop in the euro EURUSD � and European stocks was attributed to polls out of Italy concerning Berlusconi�s popularity weeks before Italian elections. Read more on the euro dropping.�

While some polls noted a Berlusconi comeback, which would cause concern among investors as it would likely jeopardize recent Italian reforms, other polls came out to throw cold water on that notion. Read more on shifting Berlusconi polls.

While that may have pressured the euro, using that excuse for a weight on stocks is �kind of ridiculous,� said Pavlik.

�It�s just looking for an excuse,� Pavlik said. �It�s a lack of commitment [from investors].�