* Fed hints at more easing
* Microsoft raises quarterly dividend, shares down
* Dow slips 0.3 pct, S&P off 0.5 pct, Nasdaq off 0.9 pct (Updates to midday, changes byline)
By Edward Krudy
NEW YORK, Sept 22 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks fell on Wednesday
in a tech-led decline after a weak revenue forecast from Adobe
Systems Inc
The Federal Reserve's cautious statement in the last session, which hinted that it may pump hundreds of billions of new dollars into the economy, also unsettled some investors who had adopted a more optimistic view of the economy as stocks have rallied in recent weeks. On Monday, the day before the Fed's meeting, the S&P 500 ended at a four-month high.
Adobe Systems Inc slid 20 percent to $26.39, making it the heaviest weight on the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq, after the software maker forecast lower-than-expected revenues, prompting analysts to slash their ratings on the stock.
"Clearly, Adobe was a disappointment," said Michael James, a senior trader at regional investment bank Wedbush Morgan in Los Angeles. "That is having some impact. The Nasdaq is underperforming the rest of the market, but I think a big part of that is Microsoft, too."
Microsoft Corp fell 2.8 percent at $24.45 after the company raised its quarterly dividend. But Microsoft's latest move to return cash to shareholders, frustrated by stagnant share prices, fell short of some investors' expectations.
The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 35.23 points, or 0.33 percent, to 10,725.80. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index fell 5.90 points, or 0.52 percent, to 1,133.88. The Nasdaq Composite Index lost 21.32 points, or 0.91 percent, to 2,328.05.
Chipmaker PMC-Sierra Inc also cut its third-quarter revenue outlook and said it sees gross margins at the lower end of its expectations, driving its stock down 7.1 percent to $7.24.
Gold hit a record at $1,296.10 per ounce and the price of the 30-year U.S. Treasury bond rose more than a full point as its yield slid to a three-week low on hopes the Fed may boost its purchases of Treasuries as part of a second round of quantitative easing. The Arca Gold Bugs index rose 0.4 percent.
"The Fed sort of left the market guessing on exactly how large or what their action would be," said Jeff Kleintop, chief market strategist at LPL Financial in Boston.
"The only thing that the market is convinced of is that the Fed wants to see more inflation, and that is triggering demand for inflation-sensitive assets like gold and commodities as a flight from stocks,"
The Fed explicitly stated for the first time on Tuesday that core inflation was running below policy-makers' comfort levels.
On the earnings front, cereal maker General Mills Inc reported slightly better-than-expected quarterly profit. The stock rose 3.2 percent at $36.80. (Reporting by Edward Krudy; Editing by Jan Paschal)