Stocks Slip as Quarter Ends

"The trend in the survey has certainly softened since the middle of the year," said Ian Shepherdson, chief economist with High Frequency Economics. "But it is certainly not in free fall, and it suggests little change in the national Institute for Supply Management next week."

Construction spending was better than expected, rising 0.2% month over month and exceeding forecasts of a 0.3% drop. Finally, the University of Michigan's consumer sentiment reading slipped to 83.4 from 83.8 previously, and was a bit short of what was predicted.

Despite the sluggishness, the major averages still had a winning three months. The quarter was a wild one, as crude oil touched a record, gold hit its highest point since 1980, the dollar slumped and the subprime mortgage crisis rattled markets around the globe.

The Dow rose 487 points, or 3.67%, for the quarter. The S&P 500 added 1.5%, and the Nasdaq climbed 3.8%.

Among stocks, Jabil Circuit (JBL Quote) swung to a fiscal fourth-quarter profit, topping Wall Street's estimates by a penny. However, first-quarter revenue guidance was a bit below forecasts, and the shares were off $1.66, or 6.8%, to close at $22.84.

Shares of 3Com (COMS Quote) soared 34.2% after private-equity group Bain Capital said it would acquire the company for $2.2 billion, a value of $5.30 per share. 3Com ended up $1.26 to $4.94.