U.S. Stocks Fall on Earnings Concern; Whole Foods Shares Plunge

May 10 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks dropped after profit trailed analysts' estimates at Whole Foods Market Inc. and EchoStar Communications Corp. and the biggest rise in import prices in almost a year reduced prospects the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates.

Whole Foods plunged to the lowest since October 2004 after costs to open new stores and increased competition sent profit lower at the nation's largest natural-foods grocer. EchoStar fell as the operator of the Dish satellite-television service said increased spending on new services caused net income to miss analysts' projections.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average has climbed to six records in the past eight days, helped by better-than-expected earnings and takeover speculation. Profit growth for S&P 500 companies averaged 12.1 percent in the first three months of the year after 87 percent of the index's members reported results. Analysts expect earnings growth to slow to 3.8 percent this quarter.

``The market may be getting a little bit ahead of itself,'' said Kevin Divney, who manages $8 billion as chief investment officer at Putnam Investments in Boston. ``One concern now is whether the consumer is leveraged more than we understand with too much of their wealth tied to real estate.''

The Dow average lost 57.37, or 0.4 percent, to 13,305.50 as of 10:05 a.m. in New York. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index fell 6.36, or 0.4 percent, to 1506.22. The Nasdaq Composite Index decreased 11.36, or 0.4 percent, to 2564.98.

Economy Watch

The Fed, which yesterday kept its main interest rate unchanged at 5.25 percent, reiterated its assessment that persistent inflation remains a concern. Policy makers also said the economy slowed in the first part of the year and the housing market has yet to stabilize.

In economic reports today, prices of goods imported rose for a third month in April. The 1.3 percent increase in the import price index followed a 1.5 percent gain in March. Prices excluding fuel rose 0.2 percent.

Separately, the nation's trade deficit widened more than forecast in March as higher crude oil shipments drove the biggest increase in imports in more than four years. The gap widened 10.4 percent to $63.9 billion from $57.9 billion in February, the Commerce Department said.

Also, initial jobless claims unexpectedly dropped to 297,000 last week. Economists expected an increase to 315,000.

Retailers

Whole Foods plunged $5.11, or 11 percent, to $40.69 for the steepest decline in the S&P 500. The grocer said second-quarter net income fell 11 percent to $46 million, or 32 cents a share, 4 cents short of estimates.

EchoStar said net income rose to 35 cents a share from 33 cents a year earlier. Profit missed the 44-cent average of analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg. The shares lost $1.04 to $47.13.

Hershey Co. cut its full-year profit forecast on higher costs for dairy ingredients. The largest U.S. candy maker said diluted earnings per share from operations will rise between 4 percent and 6 percent. That's less than its April 19 forecast for a gain on that basis of at least 7 percent. The shares dropped $1.90 to $53.09.

Alcoa Inc. was the biggest drag on the Dow industrials, dropping 73 cents to $38. Chief Executive Officer Alain Belda said the company is willing to sell assets to win regulatory approval for its $26.9 billion Alcan Inc. bid, which would create the world's largest aluminum producer. Alcan shares gained 14 cents to $78.45.