By Dan Gallagher, MarketWatch
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Tech stocks maintained their
strong gains by Tuesday's closing bell, fueled by a broad market
surge that lifted the Dow to a new high, as well as notable pickups
by Apple Inc. and Qualcomm Inc.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) closed up more than 125
points to a new high. The top-performing tech stocks in the index
-- Cisco Systems (CSCO) and Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) -- jumped more
than 2% while Intel (INTC) , AT&T (T) and Verizon (VZ) were all
up more than 1%. Read: U.S. stocks rally lifts Dow past intraday
record.
The Nasdaq Composite Index (RIXF) rose by 1.3% to close at 3,224
while the Morgan Stanley High-Tech Index (MSH) added 1.1% and the
Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (SOX) jumped nearly 2%.
Apple (AAPL) , the largest tech firm by market cap that is
nevertheless not included on the Dow component list, jumped more
than 2.6% to close at $431.14 in a move that reversed a four-day
slide for the stock that had clipped about 6% from its market value
since the middle of last week.
The stock benefitted from some positive analyst commentary prior
to the opening bell. Pacific Crest said its research indicates that
iPhone and iPad sales are tracking in line with their estimates for
the current quarter. UBS reiterated its $600 price target on the
stock, citing a "reasonable" valuation at its current level.
Groupon (GRPN) got a lift of about 4% to $5.63, after CFO Jason
Childs told an investment conference that the daily deals provider
is not contemplating major changes to its business model following
last week's ouster of CEO Andrew Mason.
Qualcomm (QCOM) shares jumped 2% to $67.97 -- putting the shares
to their highest level in nearly a year. The company raised its
quarterly dividend by 40% to 35 cents a share, and added a new $5
billion buyback to replace a previous $4 billion program as it held
its annual shareholder meeting.
Stacy Rasgon of Bernstein Research called the dividend increase
"the largest in recent memory" in an early note to clients, and
added that he believes the company has "room for more given the
[free cash flow] profile and cash position remaining."
Yahoo (YHOO) shares rose 1% to close at $22.95 after the company
was upgraded to a buy rating by Cantor Fitzgerald.
"While we're not holding our breath for a material improvement
in core Yahoo any time soon, we believe that a stabilization in the
company's underlying operations, material re-valuation of Yahoo's
Asian assets and a $1.5 billion active buyback are likely to
continue to drive the stock higher," wrote Cantor analyst Youssef
Squali in a note to clients.
Stratasys Ltd. (SSYS) , a maker of 3D printing systems, jumped
more than 6% in early trades but later cooled, closing down about
1%. Needham & Co. upgraded the stock to a buy rating, following
its fourth-quarter results from late Monday that included a
better-than-expected forecast for the year.
Professional Diversity Network (IPDN) priced its initial public
offering at $8 share, below the expected range of $10 to $12 a
share. The stock was down more than 4% to close at $7.67 on the
Nasdaq. The company, which operates online professional-services
networks in the U.S., sold 2.63 million shares and raised about $21
million with its IPO.
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