US STOCKS-S&P, Dow slide after Boeing results; Nasdaq fall cushioned by Microsoft

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* Boeing falls on record annual loss, to delay 777X jet
* Microsoft rises after upbeat quarterly results
* Big-tech earnings in focus later in the day
* Walgreens up as outgoing Starbucks executive named CEO
* Indexes down: Dow 1.39%, S&P 1.31%, Nasdaq 1.04%

(Updates prices to open)
By Devik Jain and Shreyashi Sanyal
Jan 27 (Reuters) - The S&P 500 and the Dow fell sharply on
Wednesday after planemaker Boeing reported a record annual loss,
while declines on the Nasdaq were offset by upbeat results from
Microsoft.
Boeing Co BA.N fell 3% and was among the top drags on the
S&P 500 .SPX and the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI after
the planemaker took a hefty $6.5 billion charge on its all-new
777X jetliner due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the aftermath of
a two-year safety crisis over its 737 MAX. Declines were across the board in early trading, with 10 of
the 11 major S&P 500 sectors in negative territory. Defensive
sectors, including consumer staples .SPLRCS , were trading
higher, while real estate .SLPRCR and utilities .SPLRCU
posted the smallest declines.
The CBOE Market Volatility index .VIX , often used as a
gauge for investor anxiety, rose 5.63 points, hitting its
highest since Jan 4.
In a week packed with quarterly earnings from mega-cap
companies, Microsoft Corp MSFT.O gained 3% after its results
as the software maker continues to benefit from remote working
and learning trends globally. Microsoft's results set a positive precedent for other
technology-related companies including Apple Inc AAPL.O , Tesla
Inc TSLA.O and Facebook Inc FB.O , which are set to report
quarterly numbers later in the day.
These heavyweight majors have recently come back into favor
after blowout results from streaming giant Netflix Inc NFLX.O ,
and as investors dumped economy-linked banks, energy and
small-cap stocks.
However, concerns about heightened stock market valuations,
raging coronavirus cases and any potential disruption to vaccine
rollouts have spooked investors about a pullback and increase in
volatility in the near-term.
"The market is kind of in a wait-and-see mode. Investors
just want to gather more information from the earnings season,
they want more confidence from the Fed, and we should get a big
insight into that today," said Craig Erlam, senior market
analyst at OANDA.
The Federal Reserve is expected to keep monetary policy
locked in crisis-fighting mode at its meeting ending on
Wednesday, with investors also looking forward to relief from
ongoing vaccinations and new government spending plans.
At 10:07 a.m. ET the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI was
down 429.73 points, or 1.39%, at 30,507.31, the S&P 500 .SPX
was down 50.36 points, or 1.31%, at 3,799.26, and the Nasdaq
Composite .IXIC was down 141.04 points, or 1.04%, at
13,485.03.
Starbucks Corp SBUX.O fell 5.5% after the coffee chain
reported a larger-than-expected fall in quarterly sales, as the
renewed surge in coronavirus cases in the U.S. kept customers at
home. Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc WBA.O jumped 4.9% after the
drugstore chain named the outgoing chief operating officer of
Starbucks, Roz Brewer, as its CEO. Videogame retailer GameStop Corp's GME.N shares surged
another 97.3% on Wednesday, as amateur investors continued to
pile into the stock that has skyrocketed nearly 700% over the
past two weeks.
Declining issues outnumbered advancers for a 5.36-to-1 ratio
on the NYSE and a 6.05-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P index recorded 24 new 52-week highs and no new low,
while the Nasdaq recorded 76 new highs and 15 new lows.