Investors wary after Dow record

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Stocks struggled to rise early Thursday afternoon, one session after the Dow industrials crossed 13,000 for the first time ever, amid a rash of upbeat earnings reports.

The Dow Jones industrial average (up 14.31 to 13,104.20, Charts) added a few points 2-1/2 hours into the session. The blue-chip indicator briefly touched a new intraday record of 13,122.40 before retreating. The broader S&P 500 (down 1.06 to 1,494.36, Charts) index inched lower. The Nasdaq (up 5.40 to 2,553.29, Charts) composite added a few points.

Treasury prices slipped, raising the corresponding yields. The dollar rose versus the yen and euro. Gold prices slumped in response to the jump in the dollar.

All three major gauges had been on both sides of breakeven throughout the morning, as investors struggled to position themselves after the previous day's record-breaking session.

On Wednesday, the Dow industrials jumped above 13,000 for the first time, as solid earnings and economic news reassured investors. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq composite also gained, hitting more than 6-year highs.

That left investors a bit reluctant Thursday, despite some strong earnings.

"Once you hit what people consider to be a milestone, sometimes the market needs to rest a little," said Ron Kiddoo, chief investment officer at Cozad Asset Management.

Kiddoo said that it was pretty positive that stocks weren't selling off more, considering the recent run. "We're up five percent on the month already, and that's good for any month," he said, referring to the S&P 500's gain.

Upbeat earnings were continuing to fuel the relative strength. With roughly 50 percent of the S&P 500 having reported results, earnings are currently on track to have risen about 6.2 percent in the first quarter from a year ago, according to Thomson Financial estimates.

That's a slowdown after 14 quarters of double-digit percentage growth, but an improvement from the start of the quarter, when analysts were forecasting growth of just 3.3 percent.

After the close Wednesday, Apple (up $4.45 to $99.80, Charts, Fortune 500) reported higher quarterly earnings and sales that beat forecasts, sending shares more than 5 percent higher Thursday morning.

Also late Wednesday, Qualcomm (up $0.45 to $45.79, Charts, Fortune 500) reported higher earnings and revenue that beat estimates. The wireless chipmaker also forecast that current-quarter and full-year earnings will top forecasts. Qualcomm shares gained 1.5 percent.

Thursday morning, Dow component 3M (up $3.13 to $80.10, Charts, Fortune 500) reported quarterly sales and earnings that rose from a year earlier and topped analysts' forecasts, sending the stock 3.5 percent higher.

Fellow Dow component Exxon Mobil (up $0.21 to $80.13, Charts, Fortune 500) reported higher quarterly earnings that beat estimates Thursday morning as stronger profits from its refineries overshadowed the impact of lower crude prices. The company also reported lower revenue. Shares were little changed.

Ford Motor (up $0.35 to $8.23, Charts, Fortune 500) posted a narrower-than-expected quarterly loss, due to cost cutting and strength in its European and luxury divisions, which outweighed the impact of restructuring costs.

A variety of gold stocks slumped, including Goldcorp (down $0.87 to $24.50, Charts), Freeport-McMoRan (down $0.92 to $69.08, Charts, Fortune 500) and Newmont Mining (down $1.64 to $42.59, Charts, Fortune 500). The Amex Gold Bugs (down $9.46 to $341.86, Charts) index fell 2.5 percent.

Market breadth was negative. On the New York Stock Exchange, losers beat winners 9 to 7 on volume of 740 million shares. On the Nasdaq, decliners topped advancers by a slim margin on volume of 1.11 billion shares.

In the day's economic news, the number of Americans filing new weekly claims for unemployment fell a greater-than-expected 20,000 last week to 321,000.

U.S. light crude oil for June delivery dropped 15 cents to $65.69 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Treasury prices slipped, raising the yield on the 10-year note to 4.67 percent from 4.64 percent late Wednesday. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.

In currency trading, the dollar gained against the euro and yen, rebounding after several down sessions.

The greenback's strength dragged on dollar-denominated assets like gold and silver.

COMEX gold for June delivery fell $10.90 to $676.50 an ounce.