By Rex Crum
Technology stocks put in a roundly negative trading performance
Monday as most sector leaders closed in the red despite more
positive reaction to both Amazon.com Inc.'s strong earnings report
and Microsoft Corp.'s release of the Windows 7 operating
system.
The Nasdaq Composite Index (RIXF) -- up by more than 27 points
early in the session -- turned around mid-afternoon and closed with
a loss of 12.6 points to end the day at 2,141. The Morgan Stanley
High Tech 35 Index (MSH) was also closed in the red while the
Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (SOX) managed to eke out a small
gain.
The tech sector was caught up in a broad-market decline that was
spurred on by negative sentiment about certain aspects of the
banking industry.
Nearly every major tech stock ended up losing ground. Declines
came from Apple Inc. (AAPL), Dell Inc. (DELL), Cisco Systems Inc.
(CSCO), Hewlett-Packard Co. (HPQ) and IBM Corp. (IBM).
Amazon (AMZN) still managed to buck the losing trend, as the
online retailer's shares surged another $6.15, or more than 5%, to
close at $124.64 as investors continued to react positively to the
company's third-quarter reports in which it reported a 69% increase
in earnings. Amazon also raised its forecasts for its crucial,
end-of-the-year holiday-season quarter.
Microsoft (MSFT) shares also managed to gain ground, rising 66
cents to $28.68 after industry reports of strong sales of the new
Windows 7 operating system, which was released on Oct. 22.
Marvell Technology Group Ltd. (MRVL) shares rose 41 cents, or
almost 3%, to $14.99 after the maker of storage and communications
semiconductors raised its third-quarter revenue forecast. Marvell
now estimates it will report sales of $760 million to $775 million,
up from its earlier estimate of $680 million to $730 million in
revenue.