Weak April retail sales and slower than expected expansion of the services sector weighed the markets down to a lower close with the Dow falling 61 points to 13,206. Nasdaq tumbled 35 points to 3024.
On the upside
Avon (NYSE: AVP) declared a quarterly dividend of $0.23 per common share payable on June 1, 2012 to shareholders of record May 17, 2012.
Level 3 Communications (NYSE: LVLT) narrowed first quarter losses more than expected as revenue surged.
Rite Aid (NYSE: RAD) reported a 2.9% increase in April same store sales.
On the downside
Shares of Herbalife (NYSE: HLF) fell for the third day after Greenlight Capital fund manager David Einhorn questioned the nutritional supplement retailer's disclosures about its distributors.
ValueClick (Nasdaq: VCLK) reported higher first quarter earnings that topped analyst estimates but revenue fell short and the company forecast current quarter results below expectations.
Prudential Financial (NYSE: PRU) disappointed by falling to a greater than expected loss for the first quarter.
In the broad market, declining issues outpaced advancers by a margin of nearly 5 to 2 on the NYSE and by 3 to 1 on Nasdaq. The Russell 2000 which tracks small cap stocks tumbled 12 points to 806.
