2017.10.1921:10:00UTC+00Wall Street Closed Flat as Tech Drops

U.S. equities were flat on Thursday, taking a breather following a recent run of record peaks, as technology shares fell. Wall Street placed wagers on further gains from corporate earnings results.

The Dow Jones industrial average added 0.02 percent to 23,163.04, as Travelers climbed 2.4 percent and was the largest contributor to the gains on the Dow.

The S&P 500 also pared losses to climb 0.02 percent to 2,562.10, as a 12.2 percent advance in Adobe shares counterbalanced losses from United Continental.

The Nasdaq composite dropped 0.3 percent to 6,605.07. Facebook, Google-parent Alphabet, Netflix and Amazon all declined.

The Dow and the S&P 500 increased marginally into the finish after Politico reported that President Donald Trump was leaning toward Federal Reserve Governor Jerome Powell to be the next head of the U.S. central bank. Appointing Powell as the Fed chair would represent a continuation of the central bank's current regime.

Travelers posted earnings per share that easily surpassed expectations.

Shares of Apple, the world's largest company by market capitalization, declined 2.5 percent and headed for their worst day in over two months, as doubts regarding its double 2017 iPhone release strategy added pressure on investors.

United Airlines plunged 11.6 percent, weighing on other airlines stocks and the Dow Jones Transport index, after the third biggest U.S. carrier's profit dropped as a result of flight cancellations during the hurricane season.

Shares of eBay fell 2.5 percent a day after it posted results.