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Technology Stocks : Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Night Writer who wrote (416)	5/15/2002 11:59:32 AM
From: Night Writer	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 4345

U.S. techs wobble, broad market dips after rally (Updates to mid-morning) By Denise Duclaux NEW YORK, May 15 (Reuters) - Technology stocks wobbled near unchanged and the broad market ticked lower in mid-morning on Wednesday as investors weighed their next move after a two-day surge in the market. "One of the consistent factors in the market has been, if you believe there is an economic growth story, then you buy on those fear-driven lows," said Barry Hyman, chief investment strategist at Ehrenkrantz King Nussbaum. "That happened, but now can we sustain it? Only earnings and a continued strong economy will allow that to happen." Wall Street was cautious ahead of an analyst meeting to be held after the close by computer heavyweight International Business Machines Corp. <IBM.N>. Chip gear giant Applied Materials Inc. <AMAT.O> after Tuesday's close exceeded forecasts for new orders, building up investor hopes that the high-tech sector is on the mend. The technology-loaded Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> lost 2 points, or 0.12 percent, to 1,716, after dropping more than 1 percent earlier and then clawing back into positive ground. The blue-chip Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> fell 52 points, or 0.51 percent, to 10,245. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> shed 4 points, or 0.43 percent, to 1,092. The Nasdaq gained 7.4 percent this week, while the Dow has advanced 3.6 percent and S&P 500 has climbed 4 percent. Buyers swept into the market amid a leap in April retail sales, solid earnings from No. 1 retailer Wal-Mart Stores Inc. <WMT.N> and hopes -- later fulfilled -- for an upbeat report from Applied Materials. IBM, a Dow component, lost 90 cents to $84.58. New Chief Executive Officer Sam Palmisano will meet with Wall Street analysts for the first time since taking the reins on March 1. The meeting, which IBM holds in New York twice a year, comes as Wall Street is watching the technology sector closely for signs that corporations have indeed begun spending. Applied Materials, the largest maker of chip-manufacturing equipment, lost 29 cents to $26.35 after jumping more than 12 percent this week. The company beat earnings expectations and topped forecasts for new orders, suggesting a turnaround in the embattled chip sector. Computer maker Hewlett-Packard Co. <HPQ.N> fell $1.29 to $19.21. The Dow component posted a more than five-fold gain in second-quarter profit despite a 9 percent decline in revenues as cost cutting and strong printer sales made up for slow technology spending by consumers and corporations. Business software maker Computer Associates International Inc. <CA.N> fell 75 cents to $18.35. The business software maker posted a narrower net loss from a year ago, saying its shorter-term contracts boosted revenue by 6 percent and a lower head count helped drive down costs. Abbott Laboratories Inc. <ABT.N>, a pharmaceuticals and health care products maker, sank $3.54 to $48.20. The company said U.S. regulators had found that one of its plants failed to comply with quality standards. Abgenix Inc. <ABGX.O> lost 59 cents to $14.52. The company said it will drop development of one of its two most promising drugs after it failed to prove effective in treating the skin disorder psoriasis. U.S. consumer prices logged their largest increase in nearly a year in April, but many experts said inflation did not pose a threat to the fledgling economic recovery. The Consumer Price Index, a key measure of inflation, increased 0.5 percent in April, its biggest increase since last May as gasoline prices climbed. (( -- Wall Street Desk, 646-223-6112)) REUTERS * end of story *