Wall Street was lower at midday on Friday as quarterly reports from various sectors disappointed.

The Dow Jones Industrial average was down 1.27 percent to 13,713.05, while the Nasdaq Composite had fallen 1.14 percent to 2,767.32 and the S&P 500 was down 1.12 percent to 1,522.82.

The exception to the generally poor quarterly reports was Google (NAS: GOOG; LSE: GGEA), which added $11.72 to $651.34 after it said profits were up by 46 percent in the third quarter.

Elsewhere, manufacturer 3M (NYSE: MMM) dropped $6.25 to $88.48 even though profits were up 7 percent in the quarter and it raised its full-year forecast after sales did not live up to expectations.

Construction equipment manufacturer Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) was down $2.85 to $74.81 after it lowered its full-year outlook even though profits were up 21 percent in the quarter.

In the banking sector, Wachovia (NYSE: WB) reported that profits were down 10 percent in the third quarter, sending shares 83 cents lower to $47.31 at mid-session.

ExxonMobil (NYSE: XOM) was down 1.1 percent to $93.99.

Wall Street was lower in early afternoon trade on Thursday after Bank of America (NYSE: BAC; TYO: 8648) reported that profits were down by 32 percent in the third quarter.

While other banks have also produced disappointing third-quarter reports, Bank of America is seen as a predictor of the health of the US banking industry because it does business in widespread regions of the country.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.22 percent lower to 13,861.81, while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.35 percent to 2,782.82 and the S&P 500 was down 0.38 percent to 1,535.35.

Bank of America was $1.69 lower to $48.33 after its report.

Elsewhere in the sector, Citigroup (NYSE: C) fell 66 cents to $44. JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JPM; TYO: 8634), which issued a better than anticipated report on Wednesday, was still down 66 cents to $45.71.

Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) dropped 80 cents to $33.49, while Wachovia (NYSE: WB) was 81 cents lower to $47.72.

Savings and loan Washington Mutual (NYSE: WM) was $2.83 lower to $30.24 after it issued a quarterly report showing profits down by 72 percent.

Sagging profits were not just a problem in the banking sector, however.

Candy maker Hershey Co. (NYSE: HSY) dropped $1.51 to $42.78 after it reported that profits were down 66 percent in the quarter on poor sales and higher promotional costs.

In the pharmaceuticals sector, meanwhile, Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) added 8 cents to $24.63 even though it reported that profits were down in its third quarter on lower sales and a charge to end investment in an inhaled form of insulin.

By early afternoon Monday the New York equities markets were up even though many banks were lower again.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.59 percent higher to 13,167.93, while the Nasdaq Composite had added 0.67 percent to 2,538.25 and the S&P 500 had gained 0.49 percent to 1,454.17.

Banks were lower after Citigroup (NYSE: C), Bank of America (NYSE: BAC), JP Morgan Chase (NYSE: JPM; TYO: 8634) and Wachovia (NYSE: WB) each said they had borrowed $500 million from the Federal Reserve.

Bank of America was 24 cents lower to $51.06, while Wachovia fell 31 cents to $48.93, Citigroup dropped 53 cents to $47.53 and JP Morgan Chase was down $1.06 to $45.14.

Elsewhere in the sector, Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) was 41 cents lower to $175.07, Merrill Lynch (NYSE: MER; TYO: 8675) fell 99 cents to $75.12 and Lehman Brothers (NYSE: LEH) had dropped $1.23 to $56.31.

Futures exchange operator Nymex Holdings (NYSE: NMX) added $7.10 to $125.88 on reports that it has had early discussions toward some sort of deal, while MGM Mirage (NYSE: MGM) gained $6.23 to $80.55 on speculation that it is a bids target from Dubai World.

In the house building sector, Toll Brothers (NYSE: TOL) added 80 cents to $21.89 even though it said its profits in the fiscal third quarter were down on more cancellations than expected and on large writedowns but still came out better than analysts had anticipated.

The gains didn’t help the rest of the sector much, however.

At just past 1 p.m. New York time, Hovnanian Enterprises (NYSE: HOV) was up just 1 cent to $11.96, while Pulte Homes (NYSE: PHM) had dropped 3 cents to $17.26 and DR Horton (NYSE: DHI) was down 29 cents to $16.05.

Wall Street saw gains at midday on Tuesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.35 percent to 12,520.91, the Nasdaq Composite 0.41 percent higher to 2,441.12, and the S&P 500 adding 0.34 percent to 1,427.75. The Russell 2000 index of small-caps was up even more, gaining 1.01 percent to 785.82. Volume at mid-session was at 712.8 million shares.

The banking sector was mixed. Bank of America was 40 cents lower to $53.25 even though it said its loan business was up and that its purchase of credit-card company MNBA helped profit in the fourth quarter. Wachovia was up , but only by 4 cents to $56.3 even though issued a better than anticipated report.

In the oil sector, higher prices due to forecasts of colder weather sent Chevron up 97 cents to $72.21, while ExxonMobil gained $1.12 to $74.03 and ConocoPhillips added $1.41 to $64.78.

Telecommunications equipment makers saw declines. Tellabs was 4 cents lower to $10.06, while Alcatel-Lucent fell $1.17 to $13.03. Alcatel-Lucent blamed its inability to make a profit in its first quarter after consolidation on integration costs and weak sales.

In the semiconductors sector, Texas Instruments added $1.17 to $29.76 on a positive quarterly report and several broker upgrades.

Even though it reached analysts’ expectations, chemicals company DuPont dropped $1.23 to $48.87 on concerns about the higher cost of raw materials.

Higher oil prices and bond yields sent the New York equities markets lower on Monday after a long holiday weekend. At midday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average had dropped 0.5 percent to 11,085.54. The Nasdaq Composite was down 0.35 percent to 2,317.93, while the S&P 500 had declined by 0.26 percent to 1,286.49. The declines came despite good quarterly reports from the financial services sector .

Citigroup said that its profits in the fourth quarter were up 4 percent to $5.64 billion, sending its shares 0.5 percent higher by mid-session to $48.29. Wachovia reported profits that were 7.4 percent higher in its first quarter but this did not stop its share price from declining by 24 cents to $55.61. Much higher quarterly earnings, to the tune of a 68 percent jump, also did not prevent shares in Charles Schwab from losing 31 cents to $17.28.

Also among those companies issuing quarterly reports, industrial goods maker Eaton added 2.2 percent to $76.25 on a strong showing.

Stock exchanges were mixed, with the NYSE Group, owner of the New York Stock Exchange, dropped 2 percent to $73.55 after last week’s disclosure that it is in talks with companies it is interested in acquiring. Nasdaq, however, added 3 percent to $43.52 after its purchase of nearly 15 percent of the London Stock Exchange last week.

Digital video recorder manufacturer TiVo was up 16 percent to $9.14.