U.S. stocks finished lower Wednesday, with the S&P 500 booking back-to-back losses as investors continued assessing companies’ quarterly earnings results. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed about flat, while the S&P 500 slipped less than 0.1% and the technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite shed 0.2%, according to preliminary data from FactSet. Among the S&P 500’s 11 sectors, utilities had the worst performance with a 1.4% drop. Guidance companies provide on their outlook is also weighing on market sentiment amid concern over a slowing U.S. economy, with tech-giant Microsoft Corp. warning in a conference call Tuesday that projected revenue could be lower than Wall Street forecast.
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