Stocks Open Little changed after Industrial Data

U.S. stocks wavered between small gains and losses early Monday after an industrial-production  reading beat expectations. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately was down 22.35 points, or  0.14%, to 15,547.93. The S&P 500 was off 0.84 point to 1,758.93. The Nasdaq Composite dipped 2.90 points, or l0.07%, to 3,940.46.

U.S. industrial production recorded its largest increase in seven months in September as utilities  output surged after several months of declines. Industrial output rose 0.6 percent last month after  increasing 0.4 percent in August, the Federal Reserve said on Monday.

Toyota’s global sales for the first nine months of the year reached 7.41 million vehicles, little  changed from the previous year but outpacing General Motors to keep its lead as the world’s top- selling automaker. Toyota’s vehicle sales for the first three quarters inched up 0.1 percent.

Merck & Co.’s (MRK) third-quarter earnings fell 35% as the loss of exclusivity for asthma and allergy drug Singulair contributed to weaker sales. Merck reported a profit of $1.12 billion, or 38  cents a share, down from $1.73 billion, or 56 cents a share, a year earlier. The company narrowed its per-share earnings estimate for the year to $3.48 and $3.52 from its earlier projection of  $3.45 to $3.55 and affirmed its revenue outlook.