Financial stocks lead an afternoon decline on Wall Street

A slide in banks and other financial services companies led a decline for U.S. stocks in afternoon trading Thursday, pointing the market toward its first weekly loss in five weeks.

Investors were poring over the latest batch of company earnings and economic news, including government data indicating that orders for long-lasting manufactured goods fell more than expected last month.

Sportsman's Warehouse sank 11 percent after the company released a disappointing forecast.

Shares in Office Depot and Staples vaulted on mounting optimism that a court will allow the office supply competitors to combine even though regulators oppose the deal.

KB Home rose 5.3 percent after the homebuilder reported strong first-quarter results.

Signet Jewelers rose 4 percent after the retailer posted solid quarterly results and its annual profit forecast was better than expected.

The Commerce Department said that orders to U.S. factories for long-lasting manufactured goods fell 2.8 percent in February, with a key category that tracks business investment dropping by the largest amount since December.

After a period of sustained gains, oil prices were headed lower again as concerns over excess supplies returned following the latest U.S. stockpiles data.