U.S. stocks close lower amid more corporate earnings

NEW YORK, April 24 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks closed lower on Wednesday, as Wall Street scrutinized more corporate earnings reports with mixed results, including Boeing and Caterpillar, both regarded as industrial barometers for the U.S. stock market.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 59.34 points, or 0.22 percent, to 26,597.05. The S&P 500 decreased 6.43 points, or 0.22 percent, to 2,927.25. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 18.81 points, or 0.23 percent, to 8,102.01.

Shares of Boeing rose 0.39 percent, after its quarterly earnings were shown to match market estimates, while its revenue came slightly below forecast.
Shares of U.S. industrial manufacturer Caterpillar fell 3.03 percent, despite its better-than-expected first-quarter earnings.

Eight of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors traded lower around market close, with the energy sector down around 1.85 percent, leading the losers.

Investors are digesting another batch of tech giants' first-quarter earnings released after market close, including Facebook, Microsoft and Tesla.

With more corporate earnings unveiled, investors still remained cautious and somewhat negative on the overall performance of S&P 500 companies in the first quarter.

Profits of S&P 500 companies are expected to drop 1.1 percent for the first quarter, though better than the previously estimated 2.3-percent fall, according to global financial data provider Refinitiv. Enditem