US STOCKS-Wall St gains on tech, energy shares

Mon Oct 26, 2009 10:38am EDT
 
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* Oil, tech lead indexes higher

* Brokerages raise price targets on Microsoft

* S&P up 0.9 pct, Dow up 1 pct, Nasdaq 1.3 pct

* For up-to-the-minute market news, click [STXNEWS/US]

(Updates to midmorning)

By Leah Schnurr

NEW YORK, Oct 26 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose on Monday as energy shares climbed along with the price of oil, and Microsoft Corp boosted the tech sector after several brokerages raised their price targets on the company.

Dow components Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM.N) and Chevron Corp, (CVX.N) both expected to report results later in the week, rose 1.5 percent and 2.2 percent, respectively.

The S&P energy index .GSPE gained 2 percent, benefiting as crude oil futures CLc1 rose 1.1 percent to above $81 a barrel and the U.S. dollar slipped.

Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) climbed 3 percent at $28.87. Semiconductor stocks also buoyed the sector after Marvell Technology Group Ltd (MRVL.O) raised its third-quarter revenue outlook. Its stock was up 4.6 percent at $15.26. [ID:nBNG461837]

"Tech(s) have the wind at their backs right now," said Alan Lancz, president at Alan B. Lancz & Associates Inc in Toledo, Ohio.

"If you get an economic recovery like analysts are projecting, that's only going to bode even better for expectations. The momentum is definitely in areas like tech and even some other areas where we've seen strength, like materials."

Corning Inc (GLW.N) added 0.9 percent to $15.79 after the specialty glass maker reported a better-than-expected profit and forecast the market for glass for flat-screen televisions to grow by 15 percent next year. [ID:nN26178374]

The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI gained 89.93 points, or 0.90 percent, to 10,062.11. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index .SPX gained 11.12 points, or 1.03 percent, to 1,090.72. The Nasdaq Composite Index .IXIC gained 27.91 points, or 1.30 percent, to 2,182.38.

Declining stocks included Fifth Third Bancorp (FITB.O) and SunTrust Banks Inc (STI.N), which fell after veteran banking analyst Richard Bove said many regional banks may not show a profit until 2011 and downgraded both to "sell" from "neutral." Fifth Third fell 5.1 percent to $9.81 and SunTrust lost 3.7 percent to $20.21. [ID:nBNG499157] (Editing by Padraic Cassidy)

 

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