US blue chip stocks ended slightly lower on Friday after posting their best week since November, as investors took profits and a drop in Exxon Mobil Corp weighed on the Dow average after a court ruling. The tech-heavy Nasdaq, however, eked out its sixth daily gain in a row, its best winning streak in six months. Exxon Mobil Corp fell 1.5 percent to $54.01 after a federal judge ordered Exxon to pay damages to more than 10,000 gas station owners for overcharging on gasoline for more than a decade. A plaintiffs' attorney said the ruling could cost the company $1.3 billion. 3M Co slid 1 percent to $77.06, also dragging on the Dow, after Smith Barney suggested investors shift their positions out of that company and into General Electric Co because GE offers more attractive earnings growth. GE was up 8 cents at $37.
The Dow Jones industrial average ended Friday's session down 21.28 points, or 0.20 percent, at 10,471.91. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index finished down 1.80 points, or 0.15 percent, at 1,189.28.
With a tame reading on the core consumer price index on Wednesday showing no increase in inflation and a drop this week in oil prices, the broad market flourished as investors poured money back into stocks. Through Thursday's close, the Dow and the S&P 500 had posted four straight days of gains.
The technology-laced Nasdaq Composite Index ended Friday's session up 3.84 points, or 0.19 percent, at 2,046.42.
For the week, the Dow climbed 3.27 percent and the S&P 500 rose 3.05 percent, their best percentage gains since the week of the US presidential election in early November. Nasdaq was up 3.5 percent for the week, its best gain since mid-August 2004.
Helping the Nasdaq was Symantec Corp, up almost 2 percent, or 41 cents, at $22.11 after UBS upgraded its rating on the world's largest security software maker to "buy" from "neutral."
"One of the key things this week was the rotation out of commodity-sensitive names and into areas that had been thrown out, including technology and select financials and consumer discretionaries," said Michael Sheldon, chief market strategist at New York brokerage Spencer Clarke.
Homebuilding stocks fell after Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said the US housing sector shows signs of some "froth."
Greenspan told the Economic Club of New York that while the central bank does not see a national housing bubble, "it's hard not to see that there are a lot of local bubbles."
The Dow Jones home construction index fell 6.67 points, or 0.76 percent, to 872.66.
"Greenspan talking a little hawkishly on the housing market was a little damper, but it's only having an impact on the home builders as opposed to the broad market," said Peter Boockvar, equity strategist at Miller Tabak & Co. "The problem is, if Greenspan is right and there is a bubble that will come down, it will impact the entire economy."
Among gainers, Delphi Corp rose 14 percent, or 61 cents, to $4.96 after Calyon Securities raised its rating on the auto parts maker to "neutral" from "sell."
Delphi held on to gains despite Fitch Ratings cutting its debt ratings deeper into junk status, citing the auto parts supplier's high costs and efforts to borrow more.
Maytag Corp, a top American maker of washing machines and other home appliances, soared 24.6 percent, or $2.84, to $14.40 a day after it agreed to be acquired for $1.125 billion by investors led by private equity firm Ripplewood Holdings LLC.
"It's been a great week - and today is just a little profit taking on a slow Friday, and nothing too bad, either" said Robert Drust, managing director of listed trading at investment bank Wedbush Morgan in Los Angeles.
Trading was moderate, with 1.29 billion shares changing hands on the New York Stock Exchange, below the 1.46 billion daily average for last year. About 1.53 billion shares were traded on Nasdaq, below the 1.81 billion daily average last year.
Declining stocks outnumbered advancers on the NYSE by about 18 to 15 and on Nasdaq, by roughly 16 to 15.
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