Stocks and ETFs Get Little Direction on Tepid Tuesday

Stocks traded flat and finished slightly down Tuesday session as earnings reports began rolling in and investors paused to regroup.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended down 15 points at 9871. The Nasdaq picked up a point at 2140. The S&P 500 finished down 3 at 1073.

As major market players, including tech firms like Google (GOOG) and financial names such as Goldman Sachs (GS) and JPMorgan Chase (JPM), ready their quarterly results, investors may be taking profits, or simply waiting to see what the substance is behind the numbers.

"The question you have to ask is, 'Is it just the cost-cutting, or is it actually top-line growth?'" said Patrick Galley, portfolio manager of the RiverNorth Core Opportunity fund. "I think we'll see some continued upward movement for the rest of the year, but from a true fundamental standpoint it might not be justified."

For a detailed rundown on Tuesday's trading session see our market story.

Rising gold prices, which neared $1,062 an ounce, pushed up shares of the Market Vectors Gold Miners fund (GDX) by 1.9%. The SPDR S&P Homebuilders fund (XHB) climbed 2.1% as investor sentiment grew more positive on the sector.

A drop in natural gas prices, pushed down as crude oil rose, pushed shares of the United States Natural Gas fund (UNG) down 4.3%. A dip in commodity prices put pressure on the Market Vectors Russia fund (RSX), which lost 1.3%.

Launching Pad
Once it receives clearance from local regulators, iShares said it plans to offer the first exchange-traded fund for Chilean stocks, as well as new funds that track different Brazilian industry sectors. Daniel Gamba, Barclays Global Investors’ executive director for Latin America, told Bloomberg the company plans to have some more fund-launching activity before the end of the year.

Earnings and Conference Calls
Abbott, AptarGroup, ASML Holdings, Commerce Bancshares, Crown Holdings, Datalink, HDFC Bank, Host Hotels & Resorts, JPMorgan Chase, Landstar System, Lufkin Industries, Medtox Scientific, Pure Bioscience, Spartan Stores, Stanley Furniture, Synergetics USA, W.W. Grainger, WD-40 Company, Westamerica Bancorporation, Xilinx, Zep

Economic Data
7:00 a.m. MBA Purchase Applications
8:30 a.m. Retail Sales
8:30 a.m. Import and Export Prices
10:00 a.m. Business Inventories