Stocks Wobble a Day After Hitting Record High

U.S. stocks wobbled in midday trading Friday as a weeklong rally fizzled out.

The S&P 500 index is still on pace to notch its third straight weekly gain following four straight weekly losses. The Dow Jones Industrial Average also briefly breached the all-time closing high it reached in October.

Trading remains muted as investors tap the brakes after pushing the S&P 500 to a record closing high a day earlier, eclipsing a record set on April 30.

Banks led the gainers as long-term bond yields rose, a reversal from the day before. Higher yields allow banks to charge higher interest rates on loans. JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo and Citigroup led gains in the financial sector.

Energy stocks added to their recent gains as oil prices continued to climb. Oil prices jumped 5.4% on Thursday and are on track for gains of more than 9% for the week, which would be their biggest weekly gain in more than two years. Exxon and Chevron both rose 1.4%.

Technology stocks were among the losers. Oracle shed 1.4% and Micron slipped 2.7%.

Health-care and real-estate companies led the decliners. Biotechnology company AbbVie fell 2.2%.

Utilities swayed between small gains and losses.

Companies with a consumer focus also fell. Cruise-line operators were particularly weak, with Carnival shedding 5%.

KEEPING SCORE: The S&P 500 index was unchanged as of 12:10 p.m. Eastern time. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 55 points to 26,808. The Nasdaq composite fell 0.1%.

JUNE JUMP: The stock surge on Thursday pushed the broader market closer to its best monthly gains of the year. The S&P 500 is up 7.3% for the month so far, not quite as big as the 7.9% gain it had in January.

The monthly gains have already erased a sharp slide in May, when escalations in the U.S. trade war with China prompted investors to flee to safer holdings. Both nations’ leaders have lately signaled a willingness to resolve the dispute and are meeting next week for talks. The Federal Reserve has also signaled that it is willing to cut interest rates to stabilize the U.S. economy if the trade dispute crimps growth.

DRIVING SALES: Used-car retailer CarMax rose 5.1% after it blew past Wall Street’s fiscal-first-quarter profit and revenue forecasts. The company also beat forecasts for sales at established car lots as more customers purchased used vehicles. That more than offset a decline in prices.

BURSTED BUBBLE: Sealed Air fell 5.6% after the company fired its chief financial officer. The maker of bubble wrap said it terminated William G. Stiehl “for cause” as part of a review related to a Securities and Exchange Commission investigation. The SEC is requesting documents and information related to the company’s audit-firm selection process.

HIRING FREEZE: Staffing company Korn Ferry plunged 17.8% after reporting weak revenue during its fiscal fourth quarter and issuing a profit forecast that mostly fell short of analysts’ expectations.