u.s. stocks fall from four-year high on holiday sa U.S. Stocks...

u.s. stocks fall from four-year high on holiday sa

U.S. Stocks Fall From Four-Year High on Holiday Sales Concern

Nov. 28 (Bloomberg) -- Initial euphoria over the holiday shopping season evaporated, knocking the stock market from a four-year high.

Shares of retailers including Federated Department Stores Inc. dropped as reports showed that sales gains over the Thanksgiving weekend were driven by discounting, a trend that may weigh on the group's earnings.

``Stocks are looking for more,'' said Ken Schapiro, president of Condor Capital Management, which has $500 million in assets in Martinsville, New Jersey. ``Retailers had a good weekend, but it's still too early to tell how the whole holiday season will fare.''

The Standard & Poor's 500 Index lost 5.26, or 0.4 percent, to 1262.99 as of 11:10 a.m. in New York after closing at the highest since June 2001 on Nov. 25. Energy shares aided the index's decline, dropping with the price of oil. The Nasdaq Composite Index lost 15.50, or 0.7 percent, to 2247.51.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 13.05, or 0.1 percent, to 10,918.57 after closing within nine points of a four- year high.

Stocks have rallied this month amid growing consumer confidence that has lifted expectations for corporate profits. Both the S&P 500, which has risen 4.8 percent, and the Dow average, which has gained 4.7 percent, are heading for their best months since September 2003.

Home Sales

An economic report that showed a bigger-than-expected drop in sales of previously owned homes weighed on stock indexes. Sales fell 2.7 percent in October to a 7.09 million annual rate, the lowest level since March. Economists expected a rate of 7.20 million. The inventory of unsold homes is at the highest since April 1986, according to the National Association of Realtors.

U.S. retail sales, including online shopping, climbed to $27.8 billion over the Thanksgiving weekend, as shoppers bought electronics, clothing and books, the National Retail Federation said yesterday. The report failed to lift a measure of retail stocks, which was the second-biggest drag on the S&P 500 among 24 industries.

Federated Department Stores, the owner of Macy's and Bloomingdale's, slid $1.19 to $65.88. Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world's largest retailer, declined 83 cents to $50.07.

Apple Computer

Apple Computer Inc., the maker of the iPod music player, climbed 82 cents to $70.16. Piper Jaffray & Co. analysts including Gene Munster raised their share-price target for Apple by 16 percent to $79, citing expectations for a more ``robust'' product year in 2006. ``In addition to new and updated iPods, 2006 will be a significant year for the Mac line,'' the analysts said in a note.

Crude oil for January delivery declined 1.1 percent to $58.07 a barrel in New York on forecasts that consumption in the U.S. Northeast will drop as temperatures rise. Heating demand in the region will be about 15 percent lower than normal this week, forecaster Meteorlogix LLC said. Gasoline dropped to a six-month low and heating oil touched the lowest in four months.

An index of energy companies fell 1 percent for the worst performance in the S&P 500 among 10 industry groups. Exxon Mobil Corp., the world's largest publicly traded oil company, lost 91 cents to $59.56 and was the biggest drag on the S&P 500. XTO Energy Inc., a U.S. natural-gas producer, declined 49 cents to $42.15. Valero Energy Corp., the largest U.S. refiner, slid $2.13 to $99.15.

Homebuilders

A measure of home-building shares declined 2.2 percent after the report on home resales. Toll Brothers Inc., the largest U.S. builder of luxury homes, lost 75 cents to $35.80. KB Home, the sixth-largest U.S. homebuilder by stock market value, lost $1.53 to $70.37.

Nine stocks dropped for every four that rose on the New York Stock Exchange. About 195 million shares changed hands on the Big Board, 4.9 percent less than the same time a week ago.

General Motors Corp., the world's largest automaker, gained 32 cents to $23.18. Delphi Corp., the biggest U.S. auto-parts maker, said it will delay the deadline for canceling union contracts and accelerate its restructuring talks with GM, its former parent. GM has also agreed to forgo 2006 price reductions on Delphi parts, Delphi said. Delphi rose 1 cent to 39 cents.

American Pharmaceutical Partners Inc., a maker of generic injectable medicines, lost $7.22 to $40.39. The company agreed to acquire its largest shareholder, closely held American BioScience Inc., in a transaction valued at $4.09 billion in stock. The deal will be completed in the first half of next year, creating a company called Abraxis Bioscience.

CBOT Holdings Inc. slumped $7.25 to $96.75. Shares of the parent of the Chicago Board of Trade, which closed at $104 on Nov. 25, would be trading ``way too high'' at $92 each, columnist Alan Abelson wrote in Barron's.

Last Updated: November 28, 2005 11:13 EST