By Rex Crum
Many leading technology stocks turned south Monday as the sector gave up its early gains despite more positive reaction to both Amazon.com Inc.'s strong earnings report and Microsoft Corp.'s release of the Windows 7 operating system.
The Nasdaq Composite Index (RIXF) -- up by more than 27 points early in the session -- turned around mid-afternoon, falling 7 points to 2,147. The Morgan Stanley High Tech 35 Index (MSH) was also in the red while the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (SOX) managed to keep a toehold in positive territory.
The tech sector was caught up in a broad-market decline that was spurred on by negative sentiment about certain aspects of the banking industry.
Nearly every major tech stock was on the slide. Losses came from Apple Inc. (AAPL), Dell Inc. (DELL), Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO), Intel Corp. (INTC), Hewlett-Packard Co. (HPQ) and IBM Corp. (IBM).
Amazon (AMZN) still managed to buck the losing trend, as the online retailer's shares surged another $4.62, or almost 4%, to $123.15 as investors continued to react positively to the company's third-quarter reports in which it reported a 69% increase in earnings. Amazon also raised its forecasts for its crucial, end-of-the-year holiday-season quarter.
Microsoft (MSFT) shares also managed to gain ground, rising 83 cents to $28.88 after industry reports of strong sales of the new Windows 7 operating system, which was released on Oct. 22.
Marvell Technology Group Ltd. (MRVL) shares rose 50 cents, or 3.4%, to $15.09 after the maker of storage and communications semiconductors raised its third-quarter revenue forecast. Marvell now estimates it will report sales of $760 million to $775 million, up from its earlier estimate of $680 million to $730 million in revenue.