Technology Shares Lead Stock Market Retreat

Stocks dipped for a second day Wednesday as technology shares led a retreat from the record-breaking gains of the past two weeks.

The Dow fell 42.07 to 7,718.71. Declining issues narrowly outnumbered advancers on the New York Stock Exchange.

Analysts said the decline, following a drop in Tuesday’s Dow that ended a streak of six straight records, was not surprising.

“The market, given the hellatious run that it has had, is susceptible to a little bit of the break,” said Charles White, portfolio manager at Avatar Associates in New York. “Even God rested on the seventh day.”

NYSE volume totaled 491.68 million shares, vs. 542.97 million in the previous session.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 list fell 5.72 to close at 888.71, snapping an eight-session streak of record highs. The NYSE composite index was down 1.68 to 463.41. The Nasdaq composite index fell 10.60 to 1,432.51, ending three consecutive sessions of record-breaking closes.

Bucking the trend, the American Stock Exchange composite index edged up 0.11 to 625.97.

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

NYSE

Seagate Technology, down 5-1/4 at 36-1/4.

The Scotts Valley, Calif.-based disk drive maker said after the close of trading Tuesday that earnings for its fourth-quarter will likely fall below analysts’ expectations.

American Express, up 1-1/2 at 77-7/8.

Morgan Stanley raised its earnings estimate for the New York financial giant, the Dow Jones News Service reported.

American Stores, up 2-3/8 at 49-5/8.

Goldman Sachs resumed coverage of the Salt Lake City, Utah-based retail food and drug store holding company. The securities firm gave American Stores a ‘buy’ rating.

NASDAQ

Riscorp., down 2-1/16 at 1-5/8.

A Zenith National Insurance subsidiary agreed to buy the assets of the insurer for at least $35 million and $15 million in debt, the Dow Jones News Service reported.

Jabil Circuits, up 13-3/8 at 82-1/4.

The technology company announced betterthan-expected earnings and a planned 2-for-1 stock split. Jabil said it expects the growth rate for its operating income to continue through the fourth quarter.

AMEX

Genovese Drug Stores, up 1-1/2 at 23-1/8.

Investors continued interest in the company following a Tuesday report in the Dow Jones News Service that said Genovese could be a takeover target. Among the drug chains mentioned as interested in acquiring Genovese were Rite Aid, Walgreen Co. and CVS Corp.