Stocks closed mixed on Tuesday, after investors digested in-line earnings results from Wells Fargo & Co. and a weak forecast from Symantec Corp., while energy shares weighed amid a continued slide in crude oil prices. Investors returned from a three-day break as U.S. markets were closed on Monday for the Martin Luther King holiday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 26.51 points at 12582.59. The S&P 500 index closed up 1.17 point at 1431.90, while the tech-heavy NASDAQ Composite fell 5.04 points to 2497.78. Trading volume was more than 1.5 billion on the New York Stock Exchange and over 2.1 billion on the NASDAQ. Declining issues and advancers were in roughly equal balance on the NYSE while losing shares outnumbered winners by 8 to 7 in the NASDAQ market.

Stocks ended lower Wednesday, after the Dow Jones Industrial Average backed off an all-time high and technology sector weakness linked to Intel Corp. offset strong results from financial giant J.P. Morgan Chase. The Dow industrials closed down 5.44 points at 12577.15. Earlier the index reached an all-time high of 10614.00 in intraday trading. The S&P 500 index ended down 1.28 point at 1430.62, while the technology-rich NASDAQ Composite slipped 18.36 points to 2479.42.

Advancing issues topped decliners by 17 to 15 on the New York Stock Exchange, while falling stocks outnumbered winners by 17 to 12 on the NASDAQ stock market. Trading volume was 1.524 billion on the NYSE and over 2.314 billion on the NASDAQ.

Stocks closed lower Thursday after an earnings forecast from technology icon Apple Inc. disappointed investors, weighing heavily on shares throughout the tech sector. The tech-heavy NASDAQ Composite index closed down 36.21 points, or almost 1.5%, at 2443.21, while Apple's stock slumped 6.3%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished down 9.22 points at 12567.93 and the S&P 500 index closed off 4.25 points at 1426.37. Trading volume was more than 1.61 billion on the New York Stock Exchange and over 2.4 billion on the NASDAQ stock market. Declining issues topped advancers by 5 to 3 on the NYSE and by 3 to 1 on the NASDAQ.

Stocks finished mixed on Friday and for the week, with the broad market little changed but technology shares posting steep weekly losses, after IBM's earnings forecast failed to live up to investor expectations, further souring sentiment towards the tech sector. While the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 finished nearly flat on the week, the NASDAQ Composite fell 2.1%. In more detail, the Dow Jones Industrial Average finished down 2 points at 12565, after dipping in and out of positive territory throughout the session. The Dow finished the week with a slight gain of 5 points. The NASDAQ Composite managed to rebound from early weakness to gain 8 points to 2451. But for the week, it fell 2%. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 index gained 4.1 points to 1430, as signs of stabilization in crude oil prices -- which have dropped more than 15% since the start of the year -- helped boost energy shares. For the week, the broad index was flat. Trading volume was 1.6 billion on the New York Stock Exchange and 2.1 billion on the NASDAQ stock exchange. Rising issues outpaced decliners by 23 to 19 on the NYSE and by 18 to 11 on the NASDAQ.

Graham is the Principal of Anacott Investments, the advisory service he began early in 2003.

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