By Rex Crum
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Tech stocks ended November on a
down note Tuesday, with much of the sector closing in the red and
Google Inc. shares falling after reports it may be close to paying
as much as $6 billion for online discount retailer Groupon.
Various media reports said that Google (GOOG) may be close to a
deal for Groupon, which is best-known for its so-called "flash"
daily deals offering discounts on goods and services in various
cities around the U.S. Groupon tailors its deals based on where
visitors to its site say they area located.
Separately, the New York Times reported that European Union said
it's opening and antitrust investigation into Google's search
practices.
Google shares fell $26.40, or 4.5%, to close at $555.71.
Online retailers mostly retreated, with eBay Inc. (EBAY) down
$1.09 a share, or 3.6%, at $29.14 and Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) down
by $4.09 a share, or more than 2%, to close at $175.40 a day after
the online retailing giant's stock hit an all-time high.
Overstock.com Inc. (OSTK), however, rose 5 cents a share to
$15.42.
Seagate Technology (STX) was also in the red, falling 45 cents a
share, or more than 3%, to $13.41. Late Monday, the hard-disk drive
maker said it had terminated discussions with a group of
private-equity firms about taking Seagate private. Seagate also
said that its board of directors had authorized up to $2 billion
for share buybacks.
Declines also came from Apple Inc. (AAPL), Adobe Systems Inc.
(ADBE), Dell Inc. (DELL) and Intel Corp. (INTC).
One of the few notable gainers was Research In Motion Ltd.
(RIMM) , whose U.S. shares rose $2.84 a share, or almost 5%, to
$61.83. Jefferies & Co. analyst Peter Misek raised his rating
on RIM's stock to buy from hold and lifted his price target to $80
a share from $55.
Misek said RIM's new QNX operating system "will be a viable
platform for carriers and developers and a contender in the OS
wars."
Netflix Inc. (NFLX) shares posted their all-time highest close,
rising $6.98, or 3.5%, to end the day at $205.90. The amount of
company's video traffic is at the heart of a dispute between Level
3 Communications Inc. (LVLT) and Comcast Corp. (CMCSA)
The Nasdaq Composite Index (RIXF) fell almost 27 points to close
at 2,498, while the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index was off by
1.3%. For the month, the Nasdaq was down 0.4% and the Philadelphia
Semiconductor Index (SOX) rose almost 5%.