Weak earnings send stocks lower

Disappointing earnings from several big U.S. companies put investors in a selling mood Tuesday, giving the stock market its first broad decline in four days.

IBM and United Technologies were among the companies whose latest quarterly report cards fell short of Wall Street’s expectations or included dimmer outlooks. Telecommunications stocks were among the biggest decliners.

The Dow Jones industrial average slumped 181.12 points, or 1%, to 17,919.29. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index lost 9.07 points, or 0.4%, to 2,119.21.

The Nasdaq composite slid 10.74 points, or 0.2%, to 5,208.12. The tech-heavy index closed at a record high the previous two days.

The three major stock indexes remain up for the year.

Nine of the 10 sectors in the S&P 500 declined, led by a 1.7% drop in telecommunications stocks. Energy stocks rose slightly.

Stocks headed lower early Tuesday as investors reacted to IBM’s latest quarterly results, released late Monday. The market stayed in the red the rest of the day.

IBM delivered betterthan-expected earnings, but its revenue fell short of financial analysts’ forecasts. The stock slumped $10.15, or 5.9%, to $163.07.

United Technologies reported earnings that didn’t meet forecasts. The aerospace company also cut its outlook for 2015, citing weaker sales of Otis elevators in Europe and China’s slowing economy. The stock lost $7.77, or 7%, to $102.71.

Verizon Communications also declined. Although its earnings topped Wall Street’s expectations, the number of newly added wireless postpaid customers was down from last year. Verizon fell $1.13, or 2.3%, to $46.97.

In energy futures trading, benchmark U.S. crude rose 21 cents to close at $50.36 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, a benchmark for international oils used by many U.S. refineries, climbed 39 cents to close at $57.04 a barrel in London.

U.S. government bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.33% from 2.38% late Monday.