Stocks Opened Lower after GDP Offset Jobs Data

U.S. stocks opened slightly lower on Wednesday after data showed the economy grew at a sharply lower-than-expected pace in the first quarter, but gains in private payrolls kept losses in check.  The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately gained 7.10 points, or 0.04%, to 16,542.47. The S&P 500 was down 2.11 points, or 0.11%, to 1,876.22. The Nasdaq Composite shed 17.72 points, or 0.43%, to 4,085.82.

The American economy slowed drastically in the first quarter of 2014, as wintry weather depressed corporate spending and housing sector activity, while weak exports and smaller additions to inventories by businesses also held back growth. Gross domestic product expanded at a 0.1 percent annual rate, the slowest since the fourth quarter of 2012, when output also barely grew.

U.S. private employers, however, beat expectations by adding 220,000 workers in April, the highest amount since November, and gains in the prior month were revised up to 209,000 from 191,000.

Health-benefits company WellPoint Inc. (WLP) said first-quarter net earnings were $701 million, or $2.40 a share, compared with $885.2 million, or $2.89 a share, in the same quarter last year. Operating revenue rose 1.2% to $17.64 billion from $17.44 billion a year ago.

Johnson & Johnson, the largest maker of devices used in a popular uterine surgery, said Tuesday it has suspended sales of the tools amid concerns about their potential to spread a rare but deadly cancer.