U.S. Stocks Turn Course With Only Nasdaq Off

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks on Friday attempted a late-session turnaround, with financials paving the way higher, with only the Nasdaq Composite headed for weekly losses in the wake of software giant Microsoft Corp.'s profit drop.

"The decline [in consumer confidence] sustains the pattern of big confidence drops in all the major April measures, as soaring energy and food costs continue to capture the attention of consumers, alongside recession talk and concerns about the housing and banking sectors," said analysts at Action Economics.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 26.55 points, or 0.2%, to 12,876.15, with 17 of its 30 components posting gains, fronted by American Express Co. , up 5.4% after the credit card giant on Thursday reported a less-than-forecast first-quarter profit drop.

Blue chip losses were led by Microsoft, off 6.4%, in the wake of its earnings report Thursday, which had the company reporting an 11% profit drop on virtually flat revenue. .

The S&P 500 was up 7.74 points, or 0.6%, to 1,396.56, while the technology-laden Nasdaq Composite declined 6.16 points, or 0.3%, to 2,422.76.

Materials led S&P sector gains, rising 2.3%, followed by energy, which gained 1.7%. Information technology and consumer staples led sector declines, both down 0.3%.

Volume on the New York Stock Exchange neared 2.2 billion, with declining stocks edging ahead of those advancing 8 to 7. On the Nasdaq, 1.1 billion shares exchanged hands, and decliners topped advancers 3 to 2.

Bottom's up?

Stock indexes sank after data from the University of Michigan/Reuters showed the U.S. consumer sentiment index fell to 62.6 in April, from 69.5 in March. .

"Consumer confidence is as bad as it's been since 1982 -- I'm losing confidence as well every time I put $90 of gas in my Jeep to get to work," said Art Hogan, chief market economist at Jefferies & Co.

But the confidence data were to be expected, with obvious reasons behind it, said Hogan. "It's just another bell to ring at the bottom," said Hogan.

Friday's more active stocks included shares of Ericsson AB , which rallied, recently up 12.6%, after the world's largest maker of mobile networks posted surprisingly strong first-quarter results. .

Baidu.com Inc. advanced 5.9% after it reported first-quarter net income soared 71%.

By Kate Gibson