U.S. shares turned lower in early trade, succumbing to weakness in the consumer and utilities sectors a day ahead of a closely watched jobs report. The S&P 500 (INDEXSP:.INX) sank 0.9 percent to 2,080.19 at 12:09 p.m. in New York. The 30-company Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEXDJX:.DJI) fell 0.8 percent to 17,403.92, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (INDEXNASDAQ:.IXIC) tumbled 1.8 percent to 5,046.45. Most followed shares included Mondelez, Tesla, SeaWorld Entertainment, Michael Kors, L Brands, Costco, 21st Century Fox, CBS, Keurig Mountain, Chesapeake Energy, Fitbit, and CenturyLink.
In consumer shares, Mondelez International (NASDAQ:MDLZ) was little changed at $46.30, erasing an earlier gain. Pershing Square Capital Management said it has built a stake in the food-and-beverage company valued at about $5.6 billion. The maker of Cadbury chocolate and Oreo cookies issued a statement saying it welcomed Pershing as an investor.
Tesla Motors (NASDAQ:TSLA) fell 10.7 percent to $241.30 after the electric-car maker backed off its full-year vehicle sales prediction.
SeaWorld Entertainment (NYSE:SEAS) rose 3.4 percent to $17.99 even as profit and revenue fell short of estimates.
Michael Kors Holdings (NYSE:KORS) gained 11 percent to $43.83 after the fashion company reported better-than-expected first-quarter earnings.
L Brands (NYSE:LB) fell 4 percent to $81.13. The Victoria's Secret parent reported a 3 percent increase in same-store sales for July, better than the 2.3 percent consensus estimate of analysts surveyed by Capital IQ.
Costco (NASDAQ:COST) skidded 0.2 percent to C$146.67. Costco reported comparable-store sales were flat in July, a better performance than the 0.6 percent drop that analysts were expecting.
21st Century Fox (NASDAQ:FOXA) sank 11.6 percent to $28.22 even as the media and entertainment company reported better-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings and a new $5 billion stock-buyback program following the media company’s recent leadership transition.
CBS (NYSE:CBS) skidded 3.8 percent to $48.49. Second-quarter profit fell 24 percent amid restructuring-related charges and weaker results at its entertainment and local broadcasting divisions.
Keurig Green Mountain (NASDAQ:GMCR) plummeted 29 percent to $53.03 after the maker of single-serve coffee systems cut sales and profit forecasts. Keurig said in a statement that it expected revenue to be flat to up low-single digits and adjusted earnings per share to decline mid-single digits for the year ending in September.
In energy stocks, Transocean (NYSE:RIG) gained 7.1 percent to $13.23 after the world’s largest offshore rig owner posted better-than-estimated earnings amid costs cuts.
Chesapeake Energy (NYSE:CHK) rose 11.4 percent to $7.83 after saying it’s in discussions to sell more assets or stakes in oil fields as the prospect of a prolonged energy-market slump imperils cash flow.
In technology stocks, Fitbit (NYSE:FIT) slid 14.4 percent to $44.20 after the maker of wearable fitness trackers posted narrower margins in its first earnings report following an initial public offering.
In other stocks, CenturyLink (NYSE:CTL) declined 6.7 percent to $26.62 after the communications company’s earnings and revenue fell in the second quarter, undershooting forecasts and sending the share price down about 4 percent in after-hours trading.