New York ? Prices on Wall Street tumbled Wednesday, as bearish brokerage reports for companies such as General Electric and General Motors prompted investors to dump stocks once again. The Dow Jones industrials fell 215 points to hit a five-year low.

“The real problem has been across the board, we’ve been getting earnings disappointments and downgrades,” said Charles Pradilla, chief investment strategist at SG Cowen Securities.

“GE is seen as a paragon of American companies,” he said. “The market was not in the mood to have GE taken down and punished in public.”

The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 215.22, or 2.9 percent, to close at 7,286.27, after rising 79 points on Tuesday. It was the blue chips’ third triple-digit loss in four sessions, sending the Dow to its lowest close since Oct. 27, 1997, when it stood at 7,161.20.

The broader market also finished lower.

GE fell $1.35 to $22 after Morgan Stanley lowered its 2003 estimate for the diversified company. General Motors dropped $2.59 to $31.01 after Lehman Brothers and Morgan Stanley cut their outlooks for the world’s largest automaker.

Analysts said investors have become increasingly nervous about the fragile economic recovery and tensions with Iraq, leading to six straight weeks of declines on Wall Street.

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Prices on Wall Street declined sharply Wednesday, as bearish brokerage reports for companies such as General Electric and General Motors prompted investors to dump stocks.

Airline stocks took a hit following a downgrade of AMR, parent of American Airlines, from Credit Suisse First Boston Corp. AMR fell 61 cents to $3.31, while UAL, owner of United Airlines, dropped 21 cents to $1.87.

SunTrust Banks declined $2.65 to $51.79 after reporting earnings that fell short of analysts’ expectations.

And J.P. Morgan Chase declined $1.15 to $15.45 on a downgrade from Moody’s, which expressed concern about the company’s investment banking and capital markets businesses.