Dow Jones Industrial Average extended losses in the final hour of trade as U.S. stocks were divided on Tuesday after Goldman Sachs reported its worst earnings miss in a decade. The Dow industrials slumped 344 points, or 1%, to 33,959. The S&P 500 was nearly flat at 3,998, while the Nasdaq Composite slightly gained 0.3%. Goldman said its fourth-quarter profit plunged 66% from a year earlier to $1.33 billion, or $3.32 per share, about 39% below the consensus estimate. Last week, Goldman said it would lay off 3,200 employees, its heaviest staff cuts since the financial crisis of 2008. Meanwhile, its rival Morgan Stanley reported quarterly earnings that exceeded Wall Street expectations. Shares of Goldman slumped 6.1% on Tuesday, while Morgan Stanley stock advanced 6.2%.
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