U.S. stocks closed lower on Thursday as investors digested latest earnings reports and economic data.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 101.42 points, or 0.43 percent, to 23,461.94. The S&P 500 dipped 9.76 points, or 0.38 percent, to 2,584.62. The Nasdaq Composite Index decreased 39.06 point, or 0.58 percent, to 6,750.05.
Major retailers have reported mixed third-quarter earnings reports.
Kohl's on Thursday posted a lower-than-expected quarterly profit, hampered by higher costs and several devastating hurricanes. The company's earnings per share was 0.70 dollar, lower than Wall Street expectation of 0.72 dollar.
Shares of Kohl's dropped 6.57 percent to trade at 38.11 dollars apiece in early trading.
Macy's posted sharp sales declines on Thursday, but tighter inventory controls helped boost profit margins, allowing the retailer to outpace analysts' earnings expectations.
Its earnings per share, excluding items, stood at 23 cents, higher than market expectation of 19 cents. Its total sales, however, dropped 6.1 percent, to 5.28 billion dollars.
Shares of Macy's jumped 10.98 percent to close at 19.50 dollar apiece on Thursday.
On the economic front, U.S. jobless claims rose more than expected.
In the week ending Nov. 4, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 239,000, an increase of 10,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 229,000, the Labor Department said on Thursday.
According to the department, the four-week moving average was 231,250, a decrease of 1,250 from the previous week's unrevised average of 232,500. This is the lowest level for this average since March 31, 1973 when it was 227,750.
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