By Yasin Ebrahim
Investing.com -- The Dow closed lower Friday, snapping a four-week win streak on mixed quarterly earnings ahead of results from big tech next week.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.1%, or 22 points higher, the Nasdaq rose 0.1%, and the S&P 500 added 0.1%.
The slew of mixed quarterly results continued to weigh on investor sentiment, with materials the biggest loser on the day, driven by a slump in Freeport-McMoran Copper & Gold.
Freeport-McMoran Copper & Gold (NYSE:FCX) reported quarterly results that topped estimates, but profit more than halved and the mining company warned of a further impact from ongoing labor shortages, sending its shares more than 4% lower.
Regions Financial Corporation (NYSE:RF) reported first-quarter results that missed on the bottom line and a 4% slide in deposit.
In health care, HCA Holdings Inc (NYSE:HCA) jumped more than 4% as it upgraded its annual guidance after delivering quarterly results that topped estimates.
Tech, meanwhile, continued to stutter as investors await the quarterly results from big tech next week.
Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) and Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) kick off earnings for big tech on Tuesday.
Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) jumped more than 3% after as its Whole Foods business is reportedly planning to cut hundreds of jobs as part of a restructuring.
Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA), meanwhile, steadied after a slump a day earlier as the electric vehicle maker said it would hike prices of its Model Y and Model S in the U.S., just a day after slumping more than 10% following disappointing quarterly results.
Energy stocks sidestepped the uptick in oil prices as sentiment was soured by a more than 4% slump in Schlumberger NV (NYSE:SLB) as the oil field services company’s better-than-expected Q1 results were overshadowed by weaker margins and cashflow.
Free cash flow for the quarter fell $265 million, missing Goldman Sachs’ estimates of $772M, driven by “stronger than expected use of cash in working capital,” Goldman Sachs said.
On the economic front, manufacturing activity picked up in April, climbing to a reading of 50.4 from 49.2 previously, signaling a return to expansion. Services activity also inched higher to a reading of 53.7 from 52.6 last month.