Stocks Struggled for Direction in Early Trading

U.S. stocks struggled for direction in the early trading on Wednesday, amid another busy day for corporate earnings. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately fell 41.21 points, or 0.15%, to 26,615.18. The S&P 500 was down 4.06 points, or 0.14%, to 2,929.62. The Nasdaq Composite declined 10.54 points, or 0.13%, to 8,110.28.

Oil prices eased Wednesday, as energy-market participants assessed the likelihood of producers quickly ramping up supply in response to tougher U.S. action against Iran’s oil market. West Texas Intermediate crude for June delivery slipped 23 cents, or 0.4%, at $66.07 a barrel. June Brent crude was down 6 cents, or less than 0.1%, at $74.45 a barrel.

Boeing (BA) reported a steep drop in first quarter earnings on Wednesday, undermined by two fatal crashes involving its flagship 737 Max 8 that forced regulators around the world to ground the plane. The company posted a quarterly profit of $3.16 per share on revenues of $22.9 billion.

Caterpillar (CAT) raised its 2019 earnings outlook on Wednesday to between $12.06 to $13.06 in account of a first-quarter tax benefit. The company previously saw earnings of between $11.75 and $12.75 per share for the full fiscal year.

AT&T Inc’s quarterly revenue fell short of Wall Street estimates on Wednesday after it lost more than half a million pay-TV subscribers and its main wireless business reported lower-than-expected sales. Total revenue rose nearly 18 percent to $44.83 billion but fell short of expectations of $45.11 billion.