NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks pared initial declines and the Dow briefly turned positive on Tuesday, led by gains in Home Depot after the home improvement retailer posted solid quarterly earnings.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> shed 9.02 points, or 0.07 percent, to 12,806.06. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> lost 2.74 points, or 0.20 percent, to 1,377.29. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> dropped 13.49 points, or 0.46 percent, to 2,890.77. (Reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak; Editing by Kenneth Barry)