WALL STREET

U.S. STOCKS FALL; DOW BELOW 11000 AFTER FOUR STRAIGHT LOSSES Stocks turned tail and once again disappointed investors yesterday. Target and L-3 Communications managed to advance while DuPont and RadioShack dropped.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 71.24 points, or 0.65%, to 10930.90 after being up as much as 75 points. But the Dow ended the session with its fourth straight loss and closed below 11000 for the first time since March 9. The Nasdaq Composite Index declined 10.98, or 0.51%, to 2151.80, down for the fourth straight session. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index declined 7.70, or 0.61%, to 1256.15.

Target, which came into the session at a 52-week low, rose 1.30, or 2.7%, to 48.90. The nation’s no. 2 discount retailer by sales, behind Wal-Mart Stores, raised its forecast for a key measure of profitability, weeks after issuing disappointing firstquarter results that pushed its stock price lower. Wal-Mart added 1 cent to 47.04.

– Dow Jones Newswires

EARNINGS

H&R BLOCK POSTS LOWER 4Q, ANNUAL EARNINGS KANSAS CITY, Mo. – H&R Block Incorporated said yesterday that fourth-quarter earnings fell 4.5% as the company began restructuring its mortgage business and settled class-action litigation surrounding its use of refund-anticipation loans.

For the three quarters ending April 30, the nation’s largest tax preparer reported earnings of $587.5 million, or $1.77 a share, compared with $614.9 million, or $1.83 a share, during the same period a year ago.The results included an after-tax charge of $6.4 million, or 2 cents per share, to cover restructuring the mortgage business.

– Associated Press