S&P, edge down with Apple; Dow ends at record high

It only took a 15 point bump, triggered by another gain in oil, to put the Dow at still another record high.  Janet Yellen's second day of testimony before the Congress has investors on the fence again, still trying to get a clear picture on the future of interest rates despite continued assurances that nothing drastic is going to happen any time soon, and nothing at all is going to happen for a while.  The day's good news included a revision to Monday's home sales report, now saying the January drop was less than previously reported, and crude up 3.5% to put it again over the $50 mark.  Hedge funds have been selling off Apple to take profits.  At 6.2 billion shares, volume was consistent with recent averages.

S&P, edge down with Apple; Dow ends at record high

BY CAROLINE VALETKEVITCH

DJ:    18,224.57  +15.38    NAS:   4,967.14  -0.99     S&P:    2,113.86  -1.62

NEW YORK Wed Feb 25, 2015 4:35pm EST

(Reuters) - The S&P 500 closed down and the Nasdaq snapped a 10-session winning streak on Wednesday as investors took profits in Apple shares, while the Dow eked out another record high close.

Boosting the Dow were consumer discretionary shares including McDonald's, up 3.9 percent at 98.66, which also helped to limit losses on the S&P 500.

The S&P 500 consumer discretionary index added 0.8 percent, with shares of TJX up 3.3 percent at $69.38 after results. Target edged up 0.3 percent to $77.15 after a stronger-than-expected jump in same-store sales and profits for the fourth quarter.

Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen's testimony to a House of Representatives committee provided few new clues for investors on the timing of an interest rate hike.

Apple shares dropped 2.6 percent to $128.79, retracing recent gains. The stock is still up 16.6 percent for the year so far.

"It's a big hedge fund stock, and there's always the potential for some profit-taking among some shorter-term players," especially after the stock's big run-up, said Rick Meckler, president of LibertyView Capital Management in Jersey City, New Jersey.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 15.38 points, or 0.08 percent, to 18,224.57, a record close. The S&P 500 lost 1.62 points, or 0.08 percent, to 2,113.86 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.99 points, or 0.02 percent, to 4,967.14.

Energy shares climbed with sharp gains in oil prices. The S&P energy index was up 0.4 percent, while U.S. crude oil prices rose 3.5 percent to $50.99.

Also lending support, data showed single-family home sales in January fell less than expected and supply rose to its highest level since 2010.

Hewlett-Packard shares tumbled 9.9 percent to $34.67 as the worst performer on the S&P 500. The world's No. 2 PC maker reported flat or lower quarterly revenue in all of its operating units and forecast full-year earnings well below analysts' expectations.

About 6.2 billion shares changed hands on U.S. exchanges, below the 6.8 billion average for the month to date, according to BATS Global Markets.

Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by 1,697 to 1,359, for a 1.25-to-1 ratio on the upside; on the Nasdaq, 1,473 issues rose and 1,233 fell, for a 1.19-to-1 ratio favoring advancers.

The S&P 500 posted 59 new 52-week highs and no new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 120 new highs and 23 new lows.