Stocks in New York were mixed yesterday, with the Dow Jones industrial average barely halting a four-session, 400-point losing streak dominated by profit warnings from major companies.

The Dow closed four points higher at 8,937 after swinging from an early 65-point gain to a 70-point loss that put the bluechip measure below 8,900 for the first time in a month.

The Standard and Poor's 500 rose 1.05 to 1,140.80, but the Nasdaq composite index dropped 4.13 to 1,931.09, falling for a fourth straight day after a nine-session streak of record highs.

The NYSE composite index fell 0.36 to 576.32, and the American Stock Exchange composite index fell 1.06 to 718.66.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 3.75 to 435.58.