Big Swings, Little Change

Updated from 4:11 p.m. EDT

Stocks endured sizable swings Friday, surging early amid hopes for a pause in rate hikes, but an afternoon reversal left the major averages slightly lower at the close.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended the day with a loss of 2.24 points, or 0.02%, to 11,240.35, and the S&P 500 slipped 0.91 point, or 0.07%, to 1279.36. The Nasdaq Composite moved in a 50-point range before finishing lower by 7.28 points, or 0.35%, to 2085.05.

For the week, the Dow gained 20 points, or 0.2%, and the S&P 500 tacked on a point, or 0.1%. The Nasdaq gave back 9 points, or 0.4%, over the five sessions.

JPMorgan Chase(JPM - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr) and McDonald's(MCD - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr) were the biggest Dow losers, each declining 1.2%.

Meanwhile, Apple (AAPL - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr) said its internal review of its past options grants has found evidence of additional irregularities, and the computer maker now believes it will probably have to restate some of its past results. Shares of Apple lost $1.29, or 1.9%, to $68.30, pressuring the Nasdaq.

About 1.72 billion shares changed hands on the New York Stock Exchange, with advancers beating decliners by a 9-to-7 margin. Volume on the Nasdaq was 1.88 billion shares, and falling stocks outpaced rising issues 3 to 2.

The day's biggest story came from the Labor Department, which said that the economy added 113,000 jobs in July while the unemployment rate rose to 4.8% from 4.6%. Economists had anticipated a gain of about 144,000 jobs, according to a Bloomberg survey. Average hourly earnings, a key inflation metric, rose a higher-than-expected 0.4%.

As usual, the employment numbers provided crucial insight into the pace of growth in the U.S. economy and, in turn, the future of the [Federal Reserve's] interest rate policy. Before the jobs report, analysts were struggling to reach a consensus opinion as to whether the Fed would raise rates to 5.5% or leave them at 5.25%.

That's changed now. After the report, the futures market was pricing in 18% odds of a rate increase at the Fed meeting, down from around 40% before the data were released.

Ken Tower, chief market strategist with CyberTrader, said the report was bullish for stocks "at least until it occurred to investors that slower-than-expected economic growth will translate into slower-than-expected profit growth. I am highly skeptical of the staying power for any rally."

To view Gregg Greenberg's video take on today's market, click here.