Stocks End Mixed, Netflix’s 3Q Earnings Quadruple

U.S. stocks finished mixed on Monday, with the S&P 500 pausing from its record climb and the Nasdaq Composite extending gains into a fourth session. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 7.45 points, or 0.05%, to 15,392.20. The S&P 500 index rose 0.16 point, or 0.01%, to 1,744.66. The Nasdaq Composite added 5.77 points, or 0.15%, to 3,920.05.

Netflix’s earnings quadrupled as its line-up of original programming helped the Internet video subscription service attract 1.3 million more U.S. subscribers during its latest quarter. Netflix earned $32 million, or 52 cents per share, in the quarter. That compared with income of $7.7 million, or 13 cents per share, at the same time last year. Revenue rose 22 percent from last year to $1.1 billion.

Yahoo Inc. (YHOO) on Monday said it has hired technology journalist David Pogue to “spearhead” the Web portal’s bid to expand its coverage of consumer tech. Pogue, who had been a columnist for the New York Times, will write columns and blog posts and produce video stories for Yahoo starting later this year.

Existing home sales slipped in September as higher prices hurt affordability, the National Association of Realtors reported. Home sales dropped 1.9% in September to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.29 million from 5.39 million in August. They were still 10.7% above year ago levels, the association said Monday.