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Strategies & Market Trends : Technical analysis for shorts & longs -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Johnny Canuck who wrote (44974)	9/11/2008 4:55:29 AM
From: Johnny Canuck	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 70763

Market Scan Texas Instruments Holds The Line Melinda Peer, 09.10.08, 11:55 PM ET For investors concerned that companies may be delaying tech investments until macroeconomic conditions improve, Texas Instruments' release of third-quarter guidance that fell within analysts' expectations offered a measure of relief. The announcement alleviated concerns that technology spending would come to a screeching halt as financial companies continue to report massive write-downs related to the ongoing credit crisis. (See " Lehman's Under-Fire Sale" and " Battered Lehman; Downbeat Street.") Shares of Texas Instruments (nyse: TXN - news - people ) rose as much as 4.7% during Wednesday's trading session and closed ahead by 14 cents, or 0.6%, at $21.85. The Semiconductor Holdrs (amex: SMH - news - people ) exchange-traded fund gained 2 cents, or 0.1%, to close at $ 25.75. After the close of Tuesday's trading session, the semiconductor and educational technology company narrowed its third-quarter guidance to between 42 cents and 46 cents a share from its prior range of 41 cents to 47 cents a share. The company focused its sales outlook to between $3.33 billion and $3.47 billion from its prior range of $3.26 billion to $3.54 billion. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had been expecting third-quarter earnings of 44 cents a share and sales of $3.4 billion. Banc of America Securities analyst Sumit Dhanda maintained a neutral rating on the company despite the favorable report since, outside of a semiconductor upturn or a substantial upswing in the wireless segment, Texas Instruments lacks near-term catalysts. The scheduled update was an especially uplifting surprise since it came on the heels of a Sept. 5 warning from Nokia (nyse: NOK - news - people ) that its market share for mobile devices would fall from the second quarter's 40.0% share. Originally, Nokia expected market share to remain steady in the third quarter but price competition prompted it to lower its outlook. "Nokia's strategy is to take market share only when the company believes it to be sustainably profitable in the longer term," the company said earlier in the month, adding that it hasn't engaged in a recent industry pricing war since the short-term benefits wouldn't outweigh long-term negative impacts. "Given the negative sentiment across the semiconductor sector, and in light of Nokia's recent negative pre-announcement, we expect Texas Instruments' new guidance to factor positively for the shares," said Citi analyst Glen Yeung, who expressed surprise that the company's third quarter remained on track despite uncertainty in both the supply chain and the economy.