Market Close Wrap-Up: October 28th, 2010

The major U.S. equity indices closed mixed Thursday despite a report from the Labor Department that found a decline of 21,000 in applications for jobless benefits to a seasonally adjusted 434,000 in the week that ended October 23rd. The figure is the second-lowest for first-time claims during 2010. In corporate news, Motorola, Inc. (NYSE:MOT) reported a Q3 net income of $109 million, or $0.05 per share, a significant jump from $12 million, or $0.01 per share in the year-ago period. Revenue for the quarter rose 6% year-over-year to $5.8 billion. Analysts forecast earnings of $0.12 per share on revenue of $5.66 billion. Colgate-Palmolive Co. (NYSE:CL) reported a Q3 net income boost to $619 million, or $1.21 per share, up from $590 million, or $1.12 per share in the year-ago period. Q3 sales fell 1.5% to $3.94 billion. FactSet Research analysts were looking for EPS of $1.19 with sales totaling $4 billion. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) closed 0.15% lower at 11,109.71, the S&P500 (INX) closed 0.10% higher at 1,183.67, and the Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) closed 0.16% higher at 2,507.37.