TECH STOCKS: Amazon's Advance Heads Up Broad Tech Gains At Clos

By Rex Crum

It was a strong day for the tech sector Wednesday, as most big-name leaders rose, led by Amazon.com Inc. after an analyst upgraded the online retailer's stock.

Amazon shares (AMZN) rose $7.15 a share, or more than 8%, to close at $90.70 after Bank of America/Merrill Lynch analyst Justin Post raised his rating on Amazon's stock to buy from neutral. Post said the company is in a strong position to maintain its lead in the online commerce market.

With Amazon in the lead, the Nasdaq Composite Index (RIXF) rose more than 30 points to 2,133. The Morgan Stanley High Tech 35 Index (MSH) climbed more than 1% and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (SOX) also closed with a small gains.

Among leading tech stocks, advancers came from Apple Inc. (AAPL), Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO), IBM Corp. (IBM), Dell Inc. (DELL) and Hewlett-Packard Co. (HPQ)

However, Adobe Systems Inc. failed to join the rally, falling due to reaction to its latest acquisition plans.

Adobe (ADBE) fell $2.27 a share, or more than 6%, to $33.35 after it said late Tuesday that it would buy Internet-services company Omniture Inc. (OMTR) for $1.8 billion. Omniture shares surged more than 25% to $21.77.

Adobe announced the acquisition at about the same time it posted third-quarter earnings and sales that fell from a year ago.

Oracle Corp. (ORCL) was also in the red, giving up 53 cents a share to fall to $22.13 ahead of the software giant's quarterly report, due after the market close.