Tech Stocks: Facebook, Apple fall; Netflix gains ground

By Rex Crum, MarketWatch

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) ? Tech stocks continued to muddle their way through afternoon trading Tuesday, with losses coming from Facebook Inc., Apple Inc., Qualcomm Inc. and Netflix Inc.

The Nasdaq Composite Index /quotes/zigman/12633936 COMP +0.02% ?fell 4 points to 3,187, and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index /quotes/zigman/1468249 SOX +0.40% ?and the Morgan Stanley High Tech 35 Index /quotes/zigman/6015481 MSH +0.19% ?each slipped into the red.

Apple CEO Tim Cook is addressing a Goldman Sachs conference Tuesday.

Facebook /quotes/zigman/9962609/quotes/nls/fb FB -2.20% ?shares shed more than 2% to $27.62 after Bernstein Research analyst Carlos Kirjner cut his rating on the stock to market perform, or neutral, from outperform. Kirjner also took down his price target on Facebook?s stock to $27 a share from $33.

In a research note, Kirjner said that mobile inventory and exchange issues were at the heart of his rating downgrade.

Apple /quotes/zigman/68270/quotes/nls/aapl AAPL -1.53% ?shares gave up 2% to trade at $470 after Chief Executive Tim Cook addressed a Goldman Sachs technology conference in San Francisco Tuesday. Also speaking at the conference are Yahoo Inc. /quotes/zigman/59898/quotes/nls/yhoo YHOO +1.79% ?CEO Marissa Mayer and eBay Inc. /quotes/zigman/76117/quotes/nls/ebay EBAY +1.01% ?Chief Executive John Donahoe. See: Tim Cook: Apple is not a hardware company.

Qualcomm Inc. /quotes/zigman/77257/quotes/nls/qcom QCOM -1.21% ?shares gave up almost 2% to fall to $65.98. J.P. Morgan analyst Rod Hall cut his rating on the communications technology company to neutral from overweight over the chances that smartphone adoption rates will begin to slow down by 2014.

Apple investors could see cash coming their way

Here?s how a plan from billionaire hedge-fund manager David Einhorn could create a windfall of cash for Apple investors. Photo: Getty Images.

Netflix Inc. /quotes/zigman/87598/quotes/nls/nflx NFLX -1.20% ?shares fell 36 cents to $177.60 after the company said it signed a deal with DreamWorks Animation /quotes/zigman/94726/quotes/nls/dwa DWA +2.85% ?to create its first original series for children. The show, ?Turbo F.A.S.T.? will debut in December and is based on the DreamWorks movie ?Turbo,? which premieres in theaters this summer.

Netflix?s newest content deal came one day after it lost out to cable TV network Starz /quotes/zigman/13671225/quotes/nls/strza STRZA +0.66% ?for the exclusive right to movies from Sony Pictures /quotes/zigman/197524/quotes/nls/sne SNE -1.95% . See: Netflix gains stalled as Sony extends agreement with Starz.

AOL Inc. /quotes/zigman/577531/quotes/nls/aol AOL +5.05% ?posted one of the tech sector?s bigger gains of the day, rising more than 4% to $37.78 and adding to Monday?s gains, which came after RBC Capital Markets analyst Mark Mahaney raised his rating on the online media company?s stock to outperform from sector perform.

/quotes/zigman/12633936

US : U.S.: Nasdaq

Volume: 0.00

Feb. 12, 2013 1:18p

/quotes/zigman/1468249

US : PHLX Ind Cur

Volume: 0.00

Feb. 12, 2013 1:03p

/quotes/zigman/6015481

US : NYSE Glb Ind

Volume: 0.00

Feb. 12, 2013 1:18p

/quotes/zigman/9962609/quotes/nls/fb

US : U.S.: Nasdaq

Volume: 51.78M

Feb. 12, 2013 1:18p

/quotes/zigman/68270/quotes/nls/aapl

US : U.S.: Nasdaq

Volume: 14.74M

Feb. 12, 2013 1:18p

Market Cap

$450.68 billion

/quotes/zigman/59898/quotes/nls/yhoo

US : U.S.: Nasdaq

Volume: 14.55M

Feb. 12, 2013 1:18p

Rev. per Employee

$353,657

/quotes/zigman/76117/quotes/nls/ebay

US : U.S.: Nasdaq

Volume: 3.76M

Feb. 12, 2013 1:18p

Rev. per Employee

$445,333

/quotes/zigman/77257/quotes/nls/qcom

US : U.S.: Nasdaq

Volume: 10.68M

Feb. 12, 2013 1:18p

Market Cap

$115.42 billion

Rev. per Employee

$769,060

/quotes/zigman/87598/quotes/nls/nflx

US : U.S.: Nasdaq

Volume: 3.46M

Feb. 12, 2013 1:18p

/quotes/zigman/94726/quotes/nls/dwa

US : U.S.: Nasdaq

Volume: 1.25M

Feb. 12, 2013 1:18p

Rev. per Employee

$335,311

/quotes/zigman/13671225/quotes/nls/strza

US : U.S.: Nasdaq

Volume: 1.05M

Feb. 12, 2013 1:18p

/quotes/zigman/197524/quotes/nls/sne

US : U.S.: NYSE

Volume: 1.60M

Feb. 12, 2013 1:18p

Rev. per Employee

$513,683

/quotes/zigman/577531/quotes/nls/aol

US : U.S.: NYSE

Volume: 5.32M

Feb. 12, 2013 1:17p

Rev. per Employee

$387,226

Rex Crum is a reporter for MarketWatch in San Francisco. Follow him on Twitter @mktwcrum.

Source: http://feeds.marketwatch.com/~r/marketwatch/software/~3/azv6XxEVTTg/story.asp

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