By Benjamin Pimentel, MarketWatch
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) ? Technology stocks retreated Thursday, as shares of eBay Inc. dropped sharply a day after the online auction site posted a disappointing forecast.
Shares of Google Inc. /quotes/zigman/93888/quotes/nls/goog GOOG -2.13% , Microsoft Corp. /quotes/zigman/20493/quotes/nls/msft MSFT -0.12% ?and IBM Corp. /quotes/zigman/230066/quotes/nls/ibm IBM -1.20% ?also fell as the three tech giants geared up for their quarterly reports due after the close.
But it was eBay /quotes/zigman/76117/quotes/nls/ebay EBAY -5.85% ?that was in the spotlight as the stock fell more than 5% after the company reported higher first-quarter profit, but posted a weaker-than-expected forecast.
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Michael Casey details three key stocks, including Google and IBM, to watch on Thursday.
The stock was downgraded to neutral from outperform by Macquarie Equities Research analyst Ben Schachter who said the company?s second-quarter outlook puts more pressure on eBay to meet its full-year forecasts.
Shares of Apple Inc. /quotes/zigman/68270/quotes/nls/aapl AAPL -2.67% slipped about 3% to $391.65, a day after dropping below the $400 mark for the first time since December 2011.
Two brokers cut their price targets for Apple ahead of the company?s fiscal second quarter report next week.
BMO Capital cut its price target to $460 from $580, saying the company ?faces a choice between pursuing growth vs. preserving margins.?
Janney Capital cut its ?fair value? target to $520 from $610, citing its belief that Apple?s ?near-term valuation multiple will likely remain pressured with continued downward earnings revisions, maturing smartphone product category, and limited visibility on new product innovation.? Both brokers continue to rate the stock as a buy.
Apple posted some gains early in the session on news that Verizon Communications /quotes/zigman/262341/quotes/nls/vz VZ +2.77% activated 4 million iPhones in the first quarter. Verizon, which reported a 16% gain in profit, saw its shares rise more than 3%.
Facebook /quotes/zigman/9962609/quotes/nls/fb FB -3.51% shares also sank 4% to $25.46, leading other social media stocks into the red. LinkedIn /quotes/zigman/5131883/quotes/nls/lnkd LNKD -3.42% also was down 4%, while Zynga /quotes/zigman/7720406/quotes/nls/znga ZNGA -1.24% was off 5% and Groupon /quotes/zigman/7720406/quotes/nls/znga ZNGA -1.24% gave up 4%.
On the upside, shares of Overstock.com /quotes/zigman/87370/quotes/nls/ostk OSTK +37.00% soared 33% after the company reported results, highlighted by a 19% gain in revenue.
The Nasdaq Composite Index /quotes/zigman/12633936 COMP -1.20% gave up 43 points, or 1.3%, to stand at 3,162. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index /quotes/zigman/1468249 SOX -0.90% was down 1%, while the Morgan Stanley High Tech 35 Index /quotes/zigman/6015481 MSH -1.72% gave up 2%.
/quotes/zigman/93888/quotes/nls/goog
US : U.S.: Nasdaq
Volume: 2.56M
April 18, 2013 4:00p
Market Cap$259.14 billion
Rev. per Employee$927,536
/quotes/zigman/20493/quotes/nls/msft US : U.S.: Nasdaq
Volume: 53.48M
April 18, 2013 4:00p
Market Cap$241.45 billion
Rev. per Employee$774,085
/quotes/zigman/230066/quotes/nls/ibm US : U.S.: NYSE
Volume: 4.80M
April 18, 2013 4:01p
Market Cap$233.68 billion
Rev. per Employee$240,663
/quotes/zigman/76117/quotes/nls/ebay US : U.S.: Nasdaq
Volume: 24.96M
April 18, 2013 4:00p
Rev. per Employee$460,667
/quotes/zigman/68270/quotes/nls/aapl US : U.S.: Nasdaq
Volume: 23.57M
April 18, 2013 4:00p
Market Cap$378.25 billion
/quotes/zigman/262341/quotes/nls/vz US : U.S.: NYSE
Volume: 17.95M
April 18, 2013 4:02p
Market Cap$141.60 billion
Rev. per Employee$631,658
/quotes/zigman/9962609/quotes/nls/fb US : U.S.: Nasdaq
Volume: 38.86M
April 18, 2013 4:00p
/quotes/zigman/5131883/quotes/nls/lnkd US : U.S.: NYSE
Volume: 1.98M
April 18, 2013 4:00p
Rev. per Employee$281,177
/quotes/zigman/7720406/quotes/nls/znga US : U.S.: Nasdaq
Volume: 28.04M
April 18, 2013 4:00p
Rev. per Employee$418,989
/quotes/zigman/7720406/quotes/nls/znga US : U.S.: Nasdaq
Volume: 28.04M
April 18, 2013 4:00p
Rev. per Employee$418,989
/quotes/zigman/87370/quotes/nls/ostk US : U.S.: Nasdaq
Volume: 1.60M
April 18, 2013 4:00p
Market Cap$271.03 million
Rev. per Employee$845,607
/quotes/zigman/12633936 US : U.S.: Nasdaq
Volume: 0.00
April 18, 2013 5:15p
/quotes/zigman/1468249 US : PHLX Ind Cur
Volume: 0.00
April 18, 2013 5:16p
/quotes/zigman/6015481 US : NYSE Glb Ind
Volume: 0.00
April 18, 2013 5:57p
Benjamin Pimentel is a MarketWatch reporter based in San Francisco. Follow him on Twitter @BenPimentel.
Source: http://feeds.marketwatch.com/~r/marketwatch/software/~3/tK0O1tqXw3Q/story.asp
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