Qwest Communications International Inc (Q)

[NovoMira]

Qwest, Sprint, Nokia lead advancers

By Jeffry Bartash, MarketWatch
Last update: 1:54 p.m. EDT May 1, 2009

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - Most phone stocks crept higher in Friday trades, led by Qwest Communications International Inc. and Sprint Nextel Corp., while shares of network equipment makers were narrowly divided.

In midday trades, Qwest (Q) rose almost 3% to $4, while Sprint (S) climbed 3.2% to $4.50. Sprint, the nation's third largest wireless phone company, reports first-quarter results Monday morning.

Earlier this week, Qwest reported a 37% increase in first-quarter profit as cost cuts offset a 6.6% decline in revenue.

AT&T Inc. (T) and Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) both rose less than 1%. In the equipment sector, meanwhile, Nokia Corp. (NOK) was the most notable advancer, up 1.6%. Qualcomm Inc. (QCOM) also increased slightly. Alcatel-Lucent (ALU) and Ericsson (ERIC) , however, both dropped about 0.6%.

Among key industry indexes, the Dow Jones U.S. Fixed Line Telecommunications Total Stock Market Index moved up 0.5% to 901 points. The index has ranged from a high of 1,352 points to a low of 732 points within the past year. The Dow Jones U.S. Telecommunications Equipment Total Stock Market Index rose 0.9% to 4,691 points.

The index has ranged from a high of 6,548 points to a low of 3,092 points in the past year.