Gap Inc rose US$0.92 to US$14.82 after reporting its first quarterly profit increase in more than two years. The largest US clothing retailer had third-quarter net income of US$0.15 a share. Analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call expected US$0.14 a share.
Kohl's Corp gained US$3.19 to US$66.90. The low-price retailer said third-quarter profit rose 33 percent and the company expects to record its seventh straight year of earnings growth of at least 30 percent.
Intel, the world's largest chipmaker, slumped US$0.41 to US$18.80. Merrill analyst Joseph Osha said stock in the world's biggest computer-chip maker is too expensive and lowered his rating to "sell." Its shares, which rallied as much as 43 percent since Oct. 9, sell for 39.5 times expected profit the next 12 months. The average for companies in the S&P 500 is 18 times.
Merrill also cut its ratings on Analog Devices Inc and PMC-Sierra Inc to "sell" from "neutral." Analog Devices, a maker of high-speed communications chips, slipped US$0.52 to US$28.94.
Dell slid US$1.12 to US$29.82. The world's largest personal-computer maker forecast fourth-quarter profit of US$0.23 a share on sales of US$9.7 billion, in line with the average forecast of analysts surveyed by First Call.
Veritas Software Corp tumbled US$1.50 to US$16.75. The maker of computer data-storage software said the SEC and Justice Department subpoenaed it for a probe into how an AOL Time Warner Inc. unit recorded advertising sales.
Veritas is furnishing information involving a US$50 million software license and services sale to AOL Time Warner in September 2000, the company said in a filing.
RSS