TECH STOCKS: Microsoft Gains Help Lead Tech's Advance

By Rex Crum, MarketWatch

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Microsoft Corp. shares led gains in the tech sector Friday, but big losses from the likes of Amazon.com Inc. and Pandora Media Inc. managed to leave a cloud hanging over the sector as trading progressed.

Microsoft (MSFT) edged up by almost 2% to $45.82 a share. On Thursday, Microsoft reported a fiscal first-quarter profit of 54 cents a share on $23.2 billion in sales, which topped analysts forecasts for a profit of 49 cents a share and revenue of $22 billion. Many analysts said the results are validating Chief Executive Satya Nadella's focus on cloud-computing strategies for Microsoft.

"The company laid out a strategy to become a more cloud focused and efficiently run company," said Keith Weiss. "[The] first-quarter results represent a positive indicator in Microsoft's ability to execute to that plan."

With Microsoft getting a lot of attention from investors, and Apple Inc. (AAPL) reaching a 52-week-high of $105.49, the Nasdaq Composite Index (RIXF) rose 14 points to 4,466.

Still, big losses from Amazon (AMZN) made their presence felt.

Amazon shares gave up 7% to fall to $291.76 after the online retailer reported a third-quarter loss of 99 cents a share on $20.58 billion in revenue, which fell short of analysts' forecast for a loss of 76 cents a share on sales $20.8 billion. Amazon also forecast fourth-quarter sales below Wall Street's expectations, and investors began to show signs of fatigue with the company's failure to maintain consistent profitability.

Touch-screen chip maker Synaptics Inc. (SYNA) fell by more than 12% to $64.19 a share. after the company said late Thursday that its quarterly results were hurt by weaker-than-expected demand for its products that are used in smartphones.

Pandora (P) fell by 13% to $20.15 after the online-radio company reported a a third-quarter profit, excluding one-time items, of 9 cents a share on revenue of $239.6 million. Wall Street analysts had forecast Pandora to earn 8 cents a share on $238.5 million in sales. However, the growth in Pandora's listener hours fell a bit shy of many analysts' estimates, leading to concerns about competition the company is facing from music-streaming rivals.

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