TECH STOCKS: Tech Sector Moves Higher Led By Dell, AMD

By Benjamin Pimentel

Technology stocks edged higher Monday morning, led by Advanced Micro Devices shares of which jumped at the opening bell after getting an upgrade from Citigroup.

PC maker Dell Inc. (DELL) also got a boost from an upgrade, after an analyst at Broadpoint AmTech raised his rating on the stock to buy. Dell shares rose 3.3% to about $15. The same analyst had upgraded Dell from a sell rating in March.

"Two factors that kept us at neutral despite our recent positive bias were the enterprise IT demand environment and downward mix shift in PCs," analyst Dinesh Moorjani wrote in a note to clients. "We are now more optimistic on the PC demand outlook and believe the downward mix shift has played out for the most part."

Dell reports earnings results for the second fiscal quarter on Thursday.

AMD (AMD) was up 9.2% after Citigroup raised its rating for the chip maker to buy from hold, citing "favorable risk/reward profile."

The semiconductor giant's gains helped propel the Nasdaq Composite Index (RIXF) to 2,034, for a gain of 0.6%. The Morgan Stanley High Tech 35 Index (MSH) was up 0.3%, while the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (SOX) added 0.7%.

Other gainers included Yahoo Inc. (YHOO), up 2.1%, and Cisco Systems (CSCO), up 1.5%. EBay was up 1.2% while Oracle was up 1.6%. Intel Corp. (INTC) Google Inc. (GOOG) and Amazon.com (AMZN) were up fractionally.