Consumer shares lead stocks down

Shaky results from consumer companies dragged the U.S. stock market lower Tuesday as shares of wellknown names such as appliance maker Whirlpool and athletic apparel maker Under Armour suffered their worst declines in years.

Third-quarter earnings continued to dominate the market, and some of the biggest companies reported disappointing results or lowered their expectations. Investors wondered whether consumers will spend less money on home improvement, clothing and other goods. But companies including Procter & Gamble and Lockheed Martin soared after their reports. Looking for safer options, some investors bought bonds and utility company shares.

Consumer spending is crucial to the U.S. economy, and poor results for consumer-focused companies could be a sign of trouble. But Doug Roman, managing director of equities for PNC Capital Advisors, said it’s too soon to know whether shoppers are closing their wallets.

Corporate earnings have been falling for more than a year, and despite Tuesday’s results, investors are growing hopeful that the streak is ending.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 53.76 points, or 0.3%, to 18,169.27. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index slid 8.17 points, or 0.4%, to 2,143.16 and the Nasdaq composite sank 26.43 points, or 0.5%, to 5,283.40.

Paint and coatings maker Sherwin-Williams had its worst day in seven years, falling 10.9% to $247.61, after it posted a disappointing profit and cut its annual guidance because of slower sales growth combined with spending on new stores.

Appliance maker Whirlpool had its biggest drop in five years, falling 10.8% to $152.09, after the owner of Maytag and KitchenAid reported results that fell far short of analyst projections.

Under Armour tumbled 13.2% to $32.89, its biggest drop in almost eight years, after reporting its slowest sales growth in six years and saying future sales won’t be as strong as it expected a year ago.

Aerospace and defense company Lockheed Martin jumped 7.4% to $249.26, its biggest leap in seven years, after it surpassed investor forecasts and raised its projections for the year.

Benchmark U.S. crude fell 56 cents, or 1.1%, to $49.96 per barrel in New York.

Bond prices edged higher. The yield on the 10year Treasury note fell to 1.76% from 1.77%.

The price of gold rose $9.90 to $1,273.60 an ounce. Silver jumped 18 cents, or 1%, to $17.78 an ounce.

The dollar slipped to 104.22 yen from 104.24 yen. The euro rose to $1.0892 from $1.0879.