TECH STOCKS: Tech Stocks Fall; Microsoft Among Decliners

By Rex Crum, MarketWatch

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Tech stocks were broadly lower Monday, with the S&P 500's information technology sector declining the most among the index's ten sectors in early trading.

Microsoft Corp. saw declines after the company said it would acquire the maker of the popular "Minecraft" game franchise for $2.5 billion.

Microsoft (MSFT) shares slipped by 30 cents to $46.41 after it confirmed reports that it will acquire Stockholm-based Mojand, the developer of "Minecraft." Mojang will become part of Microsoft Studios, which also includes the developers of such popular game titles as "Halo" and "Forza." Microsoft is expected to use Minecraft's popularity to increase demand for its mobile devices.

Security software company Symantec Corp. (SYMC) was off by 2% at $24.08 a share. RBC Capital Markets cut its rating on Symantec to sector perform from outperform Monday.

Cloud-computing company Rackspace Hosting Inc. (RAX) gave up 4.6% to fall to $36.75 a share after analysts at J.P. Morgan Chase downgraded the stock to neutral from overweight.

Other notable declines came from LinkedIn Corp.(LNKD), which was down 4% at $215.85; Seagate Technology (STX), which shed 2.7% to fall to $59.35 a share, and Netflix Inc. (NFLX), down by 2% at $466 a share. On Monday, Netflix launched its online video-streaming service in France.

Apple Inc. (AAPL) managed to remain above water, rising 57 cents a share to $102.24. On Friday, Apple said it had received a record number of pre-orders for its new iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus smartphones.

The Nasdaq Composite Index (RIXF) fell 33 points to 4,534 and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (SOX) was also in the red.

(Read more about the day's market activity in Market Snapshot http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-stocks-futures-nudge-lower-as-investors-wait-for-fed-2014-09-15.).

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