By Benjamin Pimentel
The tech sector sank into the red early Tuesday, weighed down by
declining semiconductor shares.
The session began on an upbeat note as Texas Instruments (TXN)
scored an upgrade from FBR Capital Markets, which boosted its
rating on the chip giant to outperform from market perform, citing
expectations of a robust holiday season.
"It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas," analyst Craig
Berger said in a note. "Our upgrade of TI, and our continued
positive stance on the chip sector, are both predicated on our view
that fourth quarter of 2009 holiday sell-through will be reasonably
solid."
But in Tuesday's trading, at least, many chip investors weren't
so sure.
TI was up 1.6% at last check, but other chip makers were in
negative territory, including Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), shares
of which traded down 2.8%, and Nvidia Corp. (NVDA), down more
2.5%.
The sector also took a hit as shares of Zoran Corp. (ZRAN)
plunged more than 9%. The chip maker, which issued a disappointing
outlook, was downgraded to hold from buy by Lazard Capital.
The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (SOX) fell 1.2%, while the
Nasdaq Composite Index (RIXF) sank 0.3% to 2,135. The Morgan
Stanley High Tech 35 Index (MSH) was off 0.7%.
A bright spot came from IAC/InterActive Corp (IACI) shares of
which jumped 2.8% after the Internet company swung to a
third-quarter profit.