Stocks Closed Mixed, Dow Lagged

U.S. stocks ended mixed on Wednesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average lagging behind and the other two major benchmarks managing to hold on to modest gains after varied economic reports. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended 7.36 points lower, or 0.06%, at 13,164.78. The S&P 500 was up 1.60 point, or 0.11%, at 1,405.53. The Nasdaq ended 13.95 points higher, or 0.46%, at 3,030.93.

Cisco Systems Inc. said Wednesday afternoon that it has raised its quarterly dividend by 75% to 14 cents per share. The dividend will be payable on Oct. 24 to shareholders of record as of the close of business on Oct. 4.

A U.S. judge asked that the chief executives of Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd speak to each other at least once on the phone before a jury begins deliberating next week in the high-stakes patent trial between the two tech giants.

Standard Chartered is pursuing a collective settlement with other U.S. authorities after backing down and agreeing to pay $340 million to New York’s financial regulator following mounting pressure from shareholders.