Stock indexes eke out gains as HP shares slide 13 percent

U.S. blue-chip stocks closed higher Wednesday, with modest gains following upbeat data on U.S. private-sector job growth and activity in the services sector.

But blue-chips struggled during the session as Hewlett-Packard Co.’s stock plunged to multi-year lows after the company’s disappointing forecast underscored concerns about corporate profitability ahead of the start of earnings season.

“There’s an overall concern that this earnings season is going to be weak,” said Michael Yoshikami, chief executive and founder of Destination Wealth Management in Walnut Creek, Calif.

“You’ve already seen announcements from FedEx Corp., which tends to be a bellwether for economic growth. HP adds to that concern,” said Yoshikami, noting that HP’s soft guidance is also a “dramatic example because they have some specific business issues they are dealing with.”

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 12.25 points, or 0.1 percent, to 13,494.61, with shares of Home Depot Inc. topping advancers. The Dow had been up by as many as 54 points after a better-than-expected readings on the labor market and the services sector from Automatic Data Processing and the Institute for Supply Management, respectively.

Blue-chips had lost as many as 43 points intraday, with decliners paced by shares of HP, which slid 13 percent. HP issued a weak adjusted-earnings forecast for fiscal year 2013 and said the year will be a “fix and rebuild” one for the company.

The Nasdaq composite pared its gain to 15.19 points, or 0.5 percent, to 3,135.23, but marked a second consecutive win.

The S&P 500 also finished off session highs but it logged a third straight day of gains. The index rose 5.24 points, or 0.4 percent, to 1,450.99.

T-Mobile, MetroPCS agree to merge cellphone business

T-Mobile and MetroPCS have agreed to combine their struggling cellphone businesses in a deal aimed at letting them compete better with their three larger rivals.

The combined company will use the T-Mobile brand and have about 42.5 million subscribers. Although T-Mobile will stay No. 4 among U.S. wireless companies, it will get access to more space on the airwaves, a critical factor as cellphone carriers try to expand their capacity for wireless broadband.

That could ultimately mean more choices and better services for customers. MetroPCS customers likely will have to buy new phones at some point in the next three years as they are moved to T-Mobile’s network.

Hershey commits to using only certified cocoa by 2020

Hershey is vowing to use only certified cocoa for all of its chocolate products by 2020 and speed up programs to help eliminate child labor in the cocoa regions of West Africa.

The central Pennsylvania company said certified cocoa will be verified through independent auditors to assure that the highest labor, environmental and farming practices are used.

The company also vowed to keep supporting village school construction and literacy and health programs.

– From news service reports