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By Jason Simpkins
Stocks slid Tuesday amid a bevy of disappointing earnings reports and ongoing fear stemming from the housing slump. Some of the companies taking the brunt of the force included Apple Inc. (NYSE: AAPL), chemical giant DuPont Co. (NYSE: DPT) and Countrywide Financial Corp. (NYSE: CFC), the largest mortgage lender in the country. Homebuilders in the S&P 500 also hit a predictable skid retreating to lows that haven’t been seen since October 2003.
After announcing it had missed its mark for second quarter earnings per share by .3%, DuPont had its sharpest decline in two years dropping 5.2% to $50.48. Meanwhile, Countrywide fell 7.5% to $31.50. It rang in just 81 cents a share for the second quarter compared to the $1.04 per share earnings it posted just a year ago. Apple Inc. also took a dive after AT&T reported that it had only activated 146,000 iPhones in its first day and a half on the market. That number is considerably low, as expectations were for sales to land between 500,000 and 700,000 during its first weekend. Apple Inc. stock slumped 2.3% to $140.34.
Much of the set back can be attributed to renewed concerns about the housing industry which has suffered an extraordinary amount of delinquencies and defaults in subprime loans. It can also be considered a slight market correction. Trouble in the housing sector has rippled through the market fairly frequently in the past several months balancing sudden drop offs with quick recoveries. After rising over 14,000 for the first time last week it seems only natural that the Dow take a tumble. Additionally, that move into previously uncharted territory came before a number of lack luster profit reports had been released in full.
