NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Stocks turned lower Friday as a strong earnings report from Google failed to overcome more dreary results from Caterpillar, Merck and other blue chips.

The 30-share Dow (down 34.09 to 11,977.64, Charts) slipped 0.4 percent about a half hour into the session after initially opening higher.

Thursday the Dow closed above 12,000 for the first time, hitting a record high for the ninth time in the last 12 sessions.

The broader S&P 500 (down 2.51 to 1,364.45, Charts) lost 0.2 percent while the tech-laden Nasdaq (down 11.13 to 2,329.81, Charts) slipped 0.4 percent.

Google (Charts) soundly beat analyst estimates late Thursday as profits nearly doubled and stock stock surged 7 percent early Friday. Several brokerages raised their price targets above $500 Friday morning.

Other earnings reports were mixed.

Conglomerate 3M (Charts) posted improved results that beat forecasts, heavy equipment maker Caterpillar (Charts) fell short of estimates despite reporting higher earnings. The company, often viewed as a barometer for the broader economy, also warned of slower economic growth ahead.

And profits fell at Merck & Co. (Charts) as it announced it was setting aside an additional $598 million to fight lawsuits over its withdrawn painkiller Vioxx.

Oil turned lower after OPEC announced a 1.2 million barrel a day cut in production late Thursday.

U.S. light crude fell 15 cents to $58.35 a barrel in electronic trading.

Stocks in Asia closed mostly higher, while stocks in Europe rose.

Treasury prices were little changed, leaving the the yield on the 10-year note near 4.78 percent.

The dollar gained against the euro and the yen.

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