Stocks recede from record levels

The stock market pulled back from record levels Thursday as investors became harder to please.

Even a decline in the number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits failed to give stock prices a boost. Markets drifted lower in early trading, fluctuated between gains and losses in the afternoon, then ended slightly lower.

The Dow fell 22.5 points, or 0.2 percent, to 15,082.62. The S&P 500 index dropped 6.02 points, or 0.4 percent, to 1,626.67.

In other stock trading, the Nasdaq composite index, which is heavily weighted with technology stocks, fell 4.10 points, or 0.1 percent, to 3,409.17. 

Unemployment claims dropped to a five-year low last week, the Labor department reported early Thursday. That signals fewer layoffs and possibly more hiring.

While the report failed to boost stocks, it did give the dollar a lift. The U.S. currency climbed against most major currencies and traded above 100 yen for the first time in more than four years. The Japanese currency has weakened dramatically this year due to the Bank of Japan's massive monetary stimulus.

An improvement in hiring at U.S. employers has been one of the key factors that pushed stocks up to record levels. The Dow Jones industrial average climbed above 15,000 for the first time Tuesday and is on track to notch six straight months of gains. The Standard and Poor's 500 index also closed at a record high Wednesday.

The bar for economic news and corporate earnings has risen as stock prices have marched higher, said JJ Kinahan, chief derivative strategist at TD Ameritrade. "You have to beat by a lot to really move the market higher," Kinahan said.

Rising corporate earnings, another key support for the stock market, were also in focus on Thursday.

Tesla Motors soared $13.61, or 24 percent, to $69.40, after the electric car maker posted its first quarterly net profit since it was founded a decade ago. Green Mountain Coffee Roasters surged $16.56, or 27.8 percent, to $76.04 after the company reported late Wednesday that its net income rose 42 percent. It also raised its earnings forecast for the full year.

Monster Beverage, the maker of energy drinks, fell $2.96, or 5 percent, to $54.01, after it reported net income that fell short of analysts' estimates. The company's profits fell 17 percent, despite stronger sales, because of unfavorable currency rates, legal expenses and costs tied to distribution agreements.

Almost 90 percent of the companies in the S&P 500 index have reported earnings for the first quarter. Earnings are projected to rise 5 percent for the period and continue climbing throughout the year, according to S&P Capital IQ.

So far, markets have defied expectations for a slowdown heading into the summer.

The S&P 500 index has started the second quarter well, gaining 1.8 percent so far in the period. The index has declined in the second quarter in each of the past three years. Stocks slumped last year in the May-through-June period as Europe's debt crisis intensified, and in 2011 they dipped as wrangling in Washington pushed the U.S. to the brink of default.

"The market has had a phenomenal run," said Ron Florance, managing director of investment strategy at Wells Fargo Private Bank. "We'll have to see how the second quarter plays out."

In government bond trading, the yield on the 10-year note continued to rise, climbing to 1.82 percent from 1.77 percent on Wednesday. The yield, which moves inversely to the bond's price, has risen sharply since early Friday, when it traded as low as 1.63 percent, its lowest level of the year.

On Thursday morning the government reported a sharp pickup in hiring over the past three months, which encouraged investors to sell low-risk assets like U.S. government debt, pushing the yield on the bonds higher.

The dollar traded above 100 yen for the first time in more than four years. The Japanese currency has weakened dramatically this year, falling almost 15 percent against the dollar.

The dollar also rose against the euro and the British pound. The dollar index, which measures the strength of the dollar against a group of currencies, rose 0.8 points, or 1 percent, to 82.71.

The U.S. currency is strengthening in part because the Federal Reserve is becoming optimistic about the outlook for the economy, while other central banks around the world are increasing their efforts to stimulate their economies. The Fed is currently buying $85 billion a month to hold down long-term interest rates and encourage borrowing and spending.

"Between the U.S. economy improving and the Federal Reserve thinking about tapering asset purchases, which is a different direction to which other central banks are moving, that's going to keep the dollar in demand," said Kathy Lien, managing director of FX strategy at BK Asset Management.

Barnes & Noble surged $4.31, or 24.3 percent, to $22.08 after the technology news blog TechCrunch reported that Microsoft was considering acquiring the book retailer's digital book venture Nook Media for $1 billion.