TECH STOCKS: Groupon, Micron Notable Gainers In Off Day For Tech

By Rex Crum, MarketWatch

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Groupon Inc. and Micron Technology Inc. were among the few notable tech stocks to rise Tuesday as much of the sector gave up it its early gains and finished the day in the red.

Groupon (GRPN) pulled back from its high point, but still closed with a gain of 4.5% at $6.78 to add to the prior-day's gains. On Monday, Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster said recent checks show Groupon has increased the number of deals available on its site, and is taking more steps in its turnaround to become more of a destination for e-commerce consumers.

Munster said Groupon has increased the number of deals on its network to 200,000 from about 140,000 at the end of 2013, and he expects the company to reach 500,000 deals within three to four years.

Micron (MU) rose 4% to end the day at $32.50 a share after the memory chipmaker reported better-than-expected quarterly results late Monday.

Online radio company Pandora Media Inc. (P) edged up by 7 cents a share to close at $28.27. Canaccord Genuity analyst Michael Graham said that recent meetings with Pandora have given him "renewed confidence in Pandora's ability to exceed our revenue targets over time."

Apple (AAPL) ended the day down by 55 cents a share to close at $90.28 following reports that said the company is set to begin production of the so-called iPhone 6 in China next month. The newest version of Apple's smartphone will reportedly come out in two models, with screen sizes of 4.7 inches and 5.5 inches, and will ship in September. If such reports are true, the next release would fall in line with Apple's historical pattern of introducing a new iPhone in time for the annual Christmas and holiday shopping seasons.

If Apple does increase the size of its iPhone screens, it would add to the arms race that has developed around bigger screens for smartphones. Apple rivals such as Samsung and HTC have released phones with screens of up to 5.7 inches, and last week, Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) unveiled its Fire phone with a 4.7-inch screen.

Google Inc. (GOOG) shed $1.75 a share to close at $572.54 in advance of the company's annual I/O developers conference, which starts Wednesday in San Francisco. Google is expected to give updates on features of its Android operating system, and possibly show of smartwatches that run on Android.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index (RIXF) ended the day down by 18 points at 4,350, and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (SOX) shed 0.7%.

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