Major Averages Close Modestly Lower On The Day But Higher For The Week

(RTTNews) - After showing a lack of direction throughout much of the two previous sessions, stocks continued to experience choppy trading on Friday. The lackluster performance came as traders weighed upbeat jobs data against lingering concerns about Ukraine.

After trending higher over the past several weeks, utilities stocks saw substantial weakness on the day. The Dow Jones Utilities Average fell by 2.1 percent, pulling back well off the record closing high set in the previous session.

Public Service (PEG) helped to lead the utilities sector lower after RBC Capital Markets downgraded its rating on the company's stock to Sector Perform from Outperform and said the sector is too expensive.

Significant weakness was also visible among biotechnology stocks, as reflected by the 1.5 percent loss posted by the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index. Pharmacyclics (PCYC) posted a steep loss after reporting its quarterly results.

Meanwhile, gold stocks showed a strong move to the upside on the day, driving the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index up by 1.9 percent. The strength among gold stocks came as gold for June delivery jumped $19.50 to $1,302.90 an ounce.

After moving higher in early trading, housing stocks also managed to hold on to notable gains. The Philadelphia Housing Sector Index climbed 1.2 percent to its best closing level in a month.

The major averages bounced back and forth across the unchanged line before closing modestly lower. The Dow dipped 45.98 points or 0.3 percent to 16,512.89, the Nasdaq edged down 3.55 points or 0.1 percent to 4,123.90 and the S&P 500 slipped 2.54 points or 0.1 percent to 1,881.14.

Despite the losses on the day, the major averages all moved higher for the week. The Dow advanced by 0.9 percent, while the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 jumped by 1.2 percent and 1 percent, respectively.