Mixed results in US stocks

US stocks painted a mixed picture at midday yesterday as the broader market appeared to absorb the shock of a weak manufacturing report, while the Nasdaq floundered despite upbeat news from Dell and Sun Microsystems.

Market watchers said a combination of hope and anxiety on the part of investors was pulling the market in opposite directions on the first day of the fourth quarter.

About 11:30am, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 40.09 points at 7,632.99. The Nasdaq composite dipped 5.92 to 1,166.12, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index was up 1.62 to 816.98.

“The Dow is showing some resolve. I think it has to do with a key report on employment that indicates the jobs picture may be firming up,” Charles Payne, CEO and chief market strategist with Wall Street Strategies, said.

Market breadth was negative. On the New York Stock Exchange, decliners beat advancers two-to-one as 523 million shares traded. It was the same on the Nasdaq, where 580 million shares traded.