By Benjamin Pimentel, MarketWatch
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Tech stocks put in a mixed
performance Wednesday, with Amazon.com Inc. among the gainers, and
Research In Motion Ltd. recording big losses as the handset maker
rolled out new devices and said it was changing its name to
BlackBerry.
Amazon's (AMZN) gains remained in the spotlight, as the
company's stock rose almost 5% to $272.76. Late Tuesday, the online
retailer reported weak sales but surprisingly strong operating
income for its fourth quarter.
RIM's (RIMM) , U.S.-listed shares rallied early, but then turned
south and closed with a loss of 12% at $13.78 following the
much-anticipated rollout of BlackBerry 10 devices at an event in
New York.
The company also announced that it was changing its name to
BlackBerry.
Facebook Inc. (FB) shares rose 1.5% to $31.24. The advance came
ahead of the social-networking giant's fourth-quarter results due
after the closing bell.
Chip stocks also posted gains, with Broadcom Corp. (BRCM) adding
16 cents a share to $33.87. Late Tuesday, the chip maker reported a
drop in profit and a weak outlook.
In a note, Bernstein Research analyst Stacy Rasgon wrote: "Yes,
it does appear that Apple shortfalls have affected Broadcom.
However, we note unexpected strength in Broadcom's wireless
business in Q3 and Q4.
"It is quite probable that some of the shortfall could be due to
overshipment of parts in the wake of what appeared to be fairly
rapid order cuts," Rasgon went on. "If true, this could be evidence
of 'choppiness' in the market driven by customer -mix issues,
rather than broader slowdowns in the smartphone market."
On the downside, shares of Apple Inc. (AAPL), Hewlett-Packard
Co. (HPQ), Cisco Systems (CSCO) and Oracle Corp. (ORCL) were in the
red.
The Nasdaq Composite Index (RIXF) ended the day down by 11
points to close at 3,142. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index
(SOX) and the Morgan Stanley High Tech 35 Index (MSH) each managed
a slight gain.
Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires