US stocks skid as Apple pulls tech companies lower

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks took their biggest loss in three weeks on Thursday after a late sell-off. Apple, which is mired in a slump, fell to its lowest price in about two months and dragged the tech sector sharply lower.

Tech stocks, which rose early on thanks to earnings gains from Facebook and PayPal, slumped after billionaire investor Carl Icahn disclosed he’d sold his stake in Apple. Icahn wasn’t a major shareholder in the tech giant, but his moves are closely watched by many investors.

The Dow Jones industrial average lost 210.79 points, or 1.2 percent, to 17,830.76. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index fell 19.34 points, or 0.9 percent, to 2,075.81. The Nasdaq composite closed lower for the sixth day in a row, losing 57.85 points, or 1.2 percent, to 4,805.29. That index has struggled in part because Apple, the most valuable public company in the world, has fallen 15 percent in two weeks.