Dow Snaps 6-Day Winning Streak

Stocks settled for a mixed showing Tuesday, as marginally weaker blue chips snapped a sixday winning streak while broader market gauges gained enough to provide Wall Street with several more records.

Sliding interest rates, amid widening confidence that the economy is slowing but not lapsing into recession, supported stocks. Another exuberant day in the bond market tempered the inclination of equity investors to sell and collect profits.

The Dow Jones industrial average bobbed around neutral throughout the session. At the finish, it was lower by a modest 2.42 points to 4,435.05, marking the first session since May 5 that the popular indicator hasn’t established a new high.

Gainers beat losers by better than a 3-to-2 margin on the Big Board where volume swelled to 366.10 million shares as of 4 p.m. Eastern time. On Monday, 313.91 million shares changed hands on the NYSE.

Market analysts said enthusiastic buying in the bond market, which intensified in the afternoon, tempered the tendency to take profits by investors who have amassed handsome winnings during Wall Street’s extended rally.

Some of the stocks that moved substantially or traded heavily Tuesday:

NYSE

Home Depot, down 2 1/4 to 41 1/4.

The do-it-yourself retailer’s quarterly results disappointed investors. Home Depot earned $157.8 million, or 34 cents a share, in the first quarter, up from $139.7 million, or 31 cents a share, a year earlier.

Hewlett-Packard, down 1 1/8 to 69 1/2.

The computer company’s second-quarter results failed to meet Wall Street’s expectations. HP earned $1.10 a share, up from 78 cents a year earlier.

AT&T, up 3/8 to 51 1/4.

The stock attracted attention after a report in The Wall Street Journal said AT&T and Time Warner’s cable television unit are in discussions about an alliance that would offer local and long-distance telephone service.

NASDAQ

America Online, down 3 1/8 to 38 5/8.

The stock slumped in response to news of Microsoft’s online computer network. General Electric’s NBC television network announced it was phasing out its presence on America Online and Prodigy. Microsoft jumped 3 9/16 to 84 7/8.

AMEX

Organogenesis, down 1 1/8 to 13 1/8.

The biotechnology company reported a loss of 31 cents a share for its first quarter compared to a loss of 26 cents a share a year earlier.