Stocks Edge Lower on Corporate Earnings News

On the upside

AT&T (NYSE: T) posted lower revenues and profits, but added a record 3.2 million iPhones subscribers.  The popular handheld devices are made by Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL).

The New York Times Company (NYSE: NYT) reported another slide in revenues and a loss due to one-time charges, but analysts noted a profit on a cashflow basis.

Clothing retailer J. Crew Group (NYSE: JCG) raised its profit outlook due to improved margins and higher same-store sales. 

On the downside

Online retailer eBay (Nasdaq: EBAY) posted solid 3rd quarter revenue growth and lower earnings.  The stock sold off on the company's 4th quarter guidance.

Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) promoted Douglas Oberhelman to become its next CEO.

Shares of TriQuint Semiconductor (Nasdaq: TQNT) fell after the chip maker posted lower 3rd quarter revenues and profits and downgraded its 4th quarter targets.

In the broad market, declining issues outpaced advancers by a margin of nearly 2 to 1 on the NYSE and by more than 2 to 1 on Nasdaq. The Russell 2000 which tracks small cap stocks dropped 8 points to 605.