US stocks end mostly lower

NEW YORK: US stocks on Tuesday ended mostly lower as analysts pointed to the need for markets to absorb recent gains after a number of records in the last couple of weeks.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 20.90 points (0.13 percent) to 15,618.22. The broad-based SandP 500 dipped 4.96 points (0.28 percent) to 1,762.97, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index edged up 3.27 points (0.08 percent) to 3,939.86.

Markets opened lower after the European Union cut its 2014 eurozone growth forecast. The indices rallied after that, but the rise was not enough to pull two of the three main indices into positive territory.

Art Hogan, head of product strategy for equity research at Lazard Capital Markets, said the selling could be expected because equities have risen a lot in recent weeks.

"We've got some wind at our back here, but we've also got a market that's worked its way pretty high in a short period of time," Hogan said.

Car rental company Hertz Global Holdings sank 10.5 percent amid concerns over higher fleet costs, which Morgan Stanley said clouded the 2014 profit outlook.

Retail pharmaceutical giant CVS Caremark rose 2.0 percent after earnings of US$1.09 per share bested forecasts by 7 cents. The company also increased its full-year earnings projections due to stronger sales from a range of US$3.90-US$3.96 per share to US$3.98-US$4.01.

Luxury fashion company Michael Kors shot up 5.8 percent after earnings topped expectations by 3 cents at 71 cents per share on surging sales. North American comparable-store sales rose 21 percent.

Canadian energy company Encana rose 2.8 percent after announcing a new corporate strategy that emphasises oil development at the expense of natural gas, cuts 20 percent of its staff, divests some assets and keeps a lower dividend.

Fertiliser company CF Industries fell 3.7 percent after earnings slumped 42 percent to US$234.1 million due to tough industry conditions in the wake of lofty supply. However, the company pointed to a "good demand outlook and favourable pricing dynamics" for the 2014 nitrogen market.