U.S. Stock Indexes Mostly Lower in Midday Trading; Oil Slides

Energy companies led U.S. stock indexes mostly lower in midday trading Monday as the price of crude oil declined. Phone company and materials stocks were also among the big decliners. Investors were weighing the latest batch of company earnings news.

KEEPING SCORE: The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 14 points, or 0.1 percent, to 20,056 as of 12:08 p.m. Eastern Time. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index slid 5 points, or 0.2 percent, to 2,292. The Nasdaq composite index fell four points, or 0.1 percent, to 5,662. On Friday the Nasdaq closed at a record high and the S&P 500 came within a point of its own all-time high.

THE QUOTE: “We’re not quite breaking out, we’re not really going down. We’re just caught in this range,” said Ryan Detrick, senior market strategist at LPL Financial. “When you look at why, at least today, it’s the realization that earnings season is OK, but it’s not quite as good as we might have hoped.”

ENERGY: Several energy companies were trading lower. NRG Energy slid 59 cents, or 3.5 percent, to $16.49, while Chesapeake Energy dipped 14 cents, or 2.1 percent, to $6.43. Spectra Energy shed 91 cents, or 2.1 percent, to reach $41.98.

MALL WOES: Newell Brands tumbled 5.5 percent after the maker of Rubbermaid, Sharpie, Elmer’s Glue and other products reported disappointing sales and issued a full-year sales forecast that fell far short of analysts’ estimates. The company said the strong dollar and fewer people shopping at malls hurt sales of some key products. The stock fell the most in the S&P 500, sliding $2.57 to $44.32.

MIXED RESULTS: Sysco slid 4.2 percent after the food company reported better earnings, but its revenue was weaker than expected. The stock was down $2.23 to $50.31.

EXECUTIVE SHUFFLE: Tiffany & Co. fell 3 percent a day after the jewelry company’s CEO stepped down amid concerns about the company’s financial performance. Tiffany has begun to search for a successor to Frederic Cumenal, who was named chief executive of the company in April 2015. Michael Kowalski, chairman of the board of directors and previous CEO of Tiffany, was tapped to serve as interim CEO. The stock shed $2.40 to $78.07.

PLAYTIME: Hasbro vaulted 13.8 percent after the toymaker’s fourth-quarter profit and sales beat Wall Street’s estimates. The company reported better sales of toys marketed to girls. The stock led all the gainers in the S&P 500, climbing $11.40 to $94.03. Rival Mattel also got a lift, increasing by 34 cents, or 1.3 percent, to $26.16.

KEEPING SCORE: In Europe, Germany’s DAX was down 1.2 percent, while France’s CAC 40 was 1.1 percent lower. Britain’s FTSE 100 was down 0.2 percent. Earlier in Asia, Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 gained 0.3 percent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 1.0 percent. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 lost earlier gains and inched down 0.1 percent. South Korea’s Kospi gained 0.2 percent. Benchmarks were also higher in Taiwan and Singapore.

OIL PRICES: Benchmark U.S. crude was down 61 cents to $53.21 a barrel in New York. It rose 29 cents to $53.83 a barrel Friday. Brent crude, used to price international oils, was down 63 cents, or 1.1 percent, to $56.18 a barrel in London.

TREASURY YIELDS: Bond prices rose. The 10-year Treasury yield fell to 2.43 percent from 2.47 percent late Friday.

CURRENCIES: The euro fell to $1.0738 from $1.0765 on Friday. The dollar slipped to 112.39 yen from 112.96 yen.