NEW YORK (AP) - The Nasdaq 100 index ended lower Friday, after Microsoft
Corp. posted sluggish sales of Windows software and investors mulled a
disappointing reading on consumer confidence.
The Reuters/University of Michigan consumer sentiment index fell to 62.6 for
April, marking the lowest reading since the early 1980s.
The index, which includes 100 of the largest nonfinancial securities listed
on the Nasdaq Stock Market, fell 6.00 points to 1,918.58. The broader Nasdaq
composite declined 5.99 points to 2,422.93.
Microsoft retreated $1.97, or 6.2 percent, to $29.83, following its
quarterly results.
Data-management company Fiserv Inc. shed $2.18, or 4.1 percent, to $50.80.
Memory chip maker SanDisk Corp. declined 94 cents, or 3.4 percent, to
$26.84.
On the rising side, a $200 million stock buyback lifted shares of Monster
energy drink maker Hansen Natural Corp. $2.06, or 6.5 percent, to $33.67.
Baidu.com Inc. gained $21.69, or 6.3 percent, to $363.69, after the Chinese
search engine operator's first-quarter profit surged and sales more than
doubled.
Steel Dynamics Inc. rose $2.18, or 6.3 percent, to $36.80.
Copyright 2008 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be
published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
|