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NEW YORK, Jan 30 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks turned negative in late-session trading on Wednesday after CNBC reporter Charles Gasparino said he believed that ratings agencies may downgrade bond insurers AMBAC Financial Group Inc. (ABK.N: Quote, Profile, Research) and MBIA Inc. (MBI.N: Quote, Profile, Research) as early as today.

Major U.S. indexes wiped out gains of more than 1 percent spurred by a half percentage point interest rate cut by the U.S. Federal Reserve after the Gasparino comments.

The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI was down 8.45 points, or 0.07 percent, at 12,471.85. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index .SPX was down 2.07 points, or 0.15 percent, at 1,360.23. The Nasdaq Composite Index .IXIC was down 0.39 points, or 0.02 percent, at 2,357.67.

Investors are anxious that Moody's Investors Service and Standard & Poor's Ratings Services may remove their triple-A rating on the two companies, which together insure more than $1 trillion in bonds.

"My gut is telling me Moody's and S&P are going to downgrade either one or both," Gasparino said.

Shares of both fell sharply after the comment.

"Once he (Gasparino) started talking, we got the sell-off. As soon as that went across, those shares went down immediately," said Joe Saluzzi, co-manager of trading at Themis Trading in Chatham, New Jersey. (Reporting by Jennifer Coogan; Editing by Leslie Adler)