If you'd read the financial media today you'd think it had been boring, not much happening because the Dow closed almost flat.  Do these reporters ever bother looking at the intraday trading, which tells a very different and very marked tale of the continued nervousness that has been characteristic of Wall Street for quite some time now?  Maybe things ended up close to even, but there were triple digit swings throughout the session.  The day started with the index down a hundred points right out the gate, then rose another 120 by mid-morning only to then begin a descent that ended with a mere 13 point loss.  So lots of nerves there triggered by almost equal amounts of good and bad news.

Among the worst news was giant IBM having a very bad Q3 and hitting a 5-year low.  The healthcare sector also took a hit with continued concerns over drug price gouging.  Among other bad reports were Harley-Davidson, Tesla and Yahoo.  But there were also good Q3 reports including giants United Technologies, Verizon, Travelers, and Intuitive Surgical (which not only did not lose profits but posted an increase.)  The unintended comical comment of the day came from the expert-of-the-day from Greenwich, Connecticut who opined, "investors seem to be buying more stable names such as Apple ..."  Apple?  Stable?  Yes, it's a great company but "stable" is hardly an adjective that applies, especially with its ties to China.  There are more swings in its stock than at a ball game.  So it goes.  Volume again came in at 6 billion, light compared to recent averages, as most investors are still playing the waiting game on (a) the rest of Q3 and (b) the October Fed.

Markets | Tue Oct 20, 2015 5:09pm EDT

Wall Street ends down with healthcare, IBM; United Tech rises

BY CAROLINE VALETKEVITCH

DJ:  17,217.11  -13.43        NAS:  4,880.97  -24.50         S&P:  2,030.77  -2.89

(Reuters)  U.S. stocks ended slightly lower on Tuesday as a decline in healthcare and biotech stocks offset gains in United Technologies and Verizon.

A 5.7 percent drop to $140.64 in IBM (IBM.N) also weighed on the market. The stock hit a five-year intraday low at $140.28 after it reported a bigger-than-expected decline in quarterly revenue and cut its full-year profit forecast.

The S&P healthcare sector .SPXHC fell 1.5 percent, while the Nasdaq Biotech Index .NBI dropped 3.2 percent. Concerns about drug pricing have hit biotech and other healthcare shares.

"You're seeing weakness in momentum names in general. Obviously the healthcare names are under pressure again, especially pharma companies. That further increases the pall over that sector," said Michael O’Rourke, chief market strategist at JonesTrading in Greenwich, Connecticut.

At the same time, O'Rourke said, investors seem to be buying more stable names such as Apple (AAPL.O). Apple rose 1.8 percent to $113.77.

Stocks have mostly gained this month following a selloff in the third quarter, though concern about third-quarter earnings has added to caution.

Among companies beating analysts' expectations, United Technologies (UTX.N) rose 3.9 percent to $95.62, giving the Dow its biggest boost.

Verizon's (VZ.N) shares were up 1.2 percent at $45.24 after the largest U.S. wireless service provider reported better-than-expected revenue and profit.

The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI fell 13.43 points, or 0.08 percent, to 17,217.11, the S&P 500 .SPX lost 2.89 points, or 0.14 percent, to 2,030.77, and the Nasdaq Composite.IXIC dropped 24.50 points, or 0.5 percent, to 4,880.97.

The S&P 500 is up 5.8 percent so far in October.

Earnings for S&P 500 companies are expected to have fallen about 4 percent in the third quarter, while revenue is expected to have declined 3.8 percent, according to Thomson Reuters data.

Of the S&P 500 companies that have reported so far, roughly 40 percent have beaten revenue expectations, below the long-term average, according to Thomson Reuters data.

Travelers (TRV.N) rose 2.5 percent to $108.95. The insurer's quarterly profit topped estimates, helped by higher underwriting gains.

Harley Davidson (HOG.N) skidded 13.9 percent to $48.25 after the motorcycle maker cut its full-year shipment forecast.

Shares of Tesla (TSLA.O) dropped 6.6 percent to $213.03 in heavy volume. Consumer Reports magazine found that advanced fuel-saving technology and digital multimedia systems in vehicles including the Tesla Model S sedan are hurting reliability.

After the bell, shares of Yahoo (YHOO.O) were down 1 percent at $32.50 as it reported a drop in quarterly revenue, while Intuitive Surgical (ISRG.O) was up 7.6 percent at $508.70 percent after it posted a revenue increase.

During the regular session, advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by 1,888 to 1,170, for a 1.61-to-1 ratio on the upside; on the Nasdaq, 1,426 issues fell and 1,345 advanced for a 1.06-to-1 ratio favoring decliners.

The S&P 500 posted 24 new 52-week highs and 3 new lows; the Nasdaq recorded 66 new highs and 49 new lows.

About 6.0 billion shares changed hands on U.S. exchanges, below the 7.3 billion daily average for the past 20 trading days, according to Thomson Reuters data.