NEW YORK — After two big days, it was time for the stock market to take a break.
Investors waiting for corporate earnings reports to start rolling in made only modest moves Wednesday after stocks posted their best two-day gain since mid-July. The Dow Jones industrial average slipped 6 points, while broader indexes edged higher.
With little economic news to direct trading, investors were waiting for earnings reports from the July-September quarter for signals about the economy.
Aluminum maker Alcoa Inc. was the first of the 30 companies that make up the Dow Jones industrials to release its numbers, but the report didn’t arrive until after the closing bell. Still, investors were happy with the news that the company was profitable again after three losing quarters and that revenue and earnings topped expectations.
Alcoa stock rose in extended-hours trading.
Investors spent Wednesday not wanting to place big bets amid concerns that revenue and earnings won’t justify the enormous gains in stocks in the past seven months. The Standard & Poor’s index, the basis for many mutual funds, is up 56.3 percent since hitting a 12-year low in March.
“Investors are holding tight here,” said Eric Ross, director of research at Canaccord Adams. “There are people on both sides of the fence. A lot of people think this market is going to keep running and running, and then others . . . are very nervous.”
The Dow fell 5.67, or 0.1 percent, to 9,725.58. The S&P 500 index rose 2.86, or 0.3 percent, to 1,057.58, while the Nasdaq composite index rose 6.76, or 0.3 percent, to 2,110.33.
A falling dollar and rising commodity prices helped push stocks higher Tuesday, adding to the previous day’s gains.
