United Continental (NYSE:UAL), FedEx (NYSE:FDX), Ford (NYSE:F), Hewlett-Packard (NYSE:HPQ) Bloodied on Down Wednesday

Wednesday isn't a day too many investors want to remember, unless you're in energy, as stocks like United Continental (NYSE:UAL), FedEx (NYSE:FDX), Ford Motor (NYSE:F) and Hewlett-Packard (NYSE:HPQ) took a beating on a number of factors converging at once.

U.S. stocks fell, dragging benchmark indexes to the biggest two-day drop in six months, as oil surged to $100 a barrel amid growing tensions in the Middle East and Hewlett-Packard Co.’s forecasts trailed analysts’ estimates.

Hewlett-Packard, the largest computer maker, tumbled 9.6 percent. Ford Motor Co. sank 2.4 percent after announcing a recall of 144,000 pickup trucks and as a Supreme Court ruling opened the auto industry to new lawsuits over seatbelt design. Lowe’s Cos. (NYSE:LOW) slid 1 percent after forecasting profit that missed analyst estimates. Chevron Corp. rose 1.9 percent as oil climbed to a 28-month high amid escalating violence in Libya.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index fell 0.6 percent to 1,307.40 as of 4 p.m. in New York and is down 2.7 percent over the last two days. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 107.01 points, or 0.9 percent, to 12,105.78 today. The Chicago Board Options Exchange Volatility Index, which measures the cost of using options as insurance against declines in the S&P 500, jumped 5.6 percent to 21.96, the highest since Nov. 30.

The Dow Jones Transportation Average slumped 2.1 percent to 4,986.21, the lowest level since Dec. 1. United Continental Holdings Inc. sank 6.8 percent to $22.78, while FedEx Corp. declined 4.3 percent to $89.25.








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