FINANCIAL MARKETS : Stocks Make Small Gains, Yields Firm in Light Trading

Stocks tiptoed higher Friday, taking some indexes further into record territory, as bond yields firmed and trading slowed to a crawl before the long holiday weekend.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose just 0.74 point to 5,762.86, finishing the week with a gain of 75.36. The blue-chip barometer, which set record highs Monday and Wednesday, was up nearly 37 points at the start of Friday’s trading, then trailed lower.

Broad-market measures were mostly positive, but the Nasdaq market was weighed down by the technology sector. Analysts said there was little motivation for new buying in a pricey market that’s already ridden a wave of encouraging economic reports well into record territory.

“It’s a meaningless day in terms of setting any agenda for where we’re going,” said John Cleland, chief investment strategist at Security Benefit Group in Topeka, Kan. “Everybody’s already on vacation and we’re taking a break.”

Although the market’s advance was modest, it was enough to break some records. The Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index rose 2.51 points to 678.51, edging Wednesday’s record high at 378.42.

The Nasdaq composite index, which had achieved a record high on Thursday, fell 0.85 point to 1,247.80 as investors secured some profits on some recent high fliers. Disk drive makers Iomega and SyQuest Technologies plunged after a weeklong rally based more on speculation than on news. Iomega lost 6 11/16 to 44 9/16, and SyQuest slid 7 to 10 7/8.

Among market highlights:

* LSI Logic fell 2 1/8 to 29 3/4 and topped the NYSE actives list after brokerage house Robertson Stephens cut its 1996 and 1997 earnings estimates for the company.

* CAI Wireless jumped 4 1/8 to 13 on news of its plans for a high-speed wireless Internet access service.

* Systemix soared 7 5/8 to 18 5/8. Sandoz offered to acquire, for $17 a share, the 27% of the gene therapy development company it does not already own.

By 4 p.m. in New York, the dollar was trading at 107.80 yen, up from 106.93 yen on Thursday and the highest level against the Japanese currency since April 18. The dollar also was trading at 1.5420 German marks, down from 1.5425 on Thursday.

Market Roundup, D4