The Dow and S&P 500 briefly turned higher while the Nasdaq pared losses in Friday morning trading, with Verizon results boosting telecommunications shares.

Concern over European bank stress tests kept a lid on sentiment. A publication of the methodology showed the bank stress tests only examined a portion of the banks' assets.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> was down 14.84 points, or 0.14 percent, at 10,307.46. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> was down 3.51 points, or 0.32 percent, at 1,090.16. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> was down 12.09 points, or 0.54 percent, at 2,233.80.

(Reporting by Caroline Valetkevitch; editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)