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From Briefing.com: 4:30 pm : Late pressure left stocks to finish the session on a rather weak note, but the major indices were still able to settle in positive territory.

Gains were varied for the entire session as choppy trade made it difficult for stocks to put together any sort of sustainable relief rally in the wake of the stock market's three consecutive slides. Disappointing December existing home sales numbers didn't help either.

Existing home sales for December fell 16.7% month-over-month to an annualized rate of 5.45 million units, which is a slower pace than the annualized rate of 5.90 million units that had been expected.

The announcement caused a bit of a broad-based slip, but homebuilders saw the worst of it as their near 2% gain turned into a loss. The group recovered to finish with a 0.4% gain, though.

Materials stocks had been strong performers for most of the session. They were helped along by AK Steel (AKS 21.27, +1.08), which posted better-than-expected earnings for its latest quarter. However, the lack of market weight in the materials sector made it difficult to lead a broader recovery.

Telecom, which also lacks weight in the broader market, finished with the best gains of any major sector. AT&T (T 25.58, +0.19) and Verizon (VZ 30.68, +0.34) helped the sector put together a 1.1% gain. The two integrated telecom giants are due to report their latest quarterly results later this week.

Though their loss was fractional, health care was the only major sector to finish in the red. Managed care providers (-0.5%) proved to be a drag on the sector.

Volatility made a considerable pullback after it had surged in the previous week. Specifically, the Volatility Index, or VIX, fell 7.0% this session.

Trading volume was moderate as hardly 1 billion shares exchanged hands on the NYSE this session. Given the scope of last week's losses, many participants are waiting to see what stocks will do amid a larger batch of earnings releases and economic data.

Advancing Sectors: Telecom (+1.1%), Materials (+0.8%), Tech (+0.7%), Utilities (+0.6%), Energy (+0.6%), Financials (+0.5%), Industrials (+0.5%), Consumer Discretionary (+0.3%), Consumer Staples (+0.2%)
Declining Sectors: (None)
Unchanged: Health CareDJ30 +23.88 NASDAQ +5.51 NQ100 +0.4% R2K +0.2% SP400 +0.2% SP500 +5.02 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1312/2.14 bln/1379 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1755/1.05 bln/1289

5:02PM Silicon Labs asserts intellectual property rights (SLAB) 44.30 +0.22 : The co announces the filing of a patent infringement lawsuit against Quintic Corporation, a California semiconductor company, and its Chinese affiliate, in the U.S. Federal District Court in Austin, TX. The lawsuit alleges that the two defendants have infringed five patents relating to mixed-signal integrated circuits, specifically United States Patent No. 6,226,506, No. 7,035,607, No. 7,200,364, No. 7,199,650, and No. 7,355,476. The broad nature of the alleged infringement, spanning various aspects of their IC architecture, represents a significant misappropriation of Silicon Labs' market leading mixed-signal technology. Silicon Labs innovative radio technology is a result of years of R&D investment and is now in its fourth generation. The company's ICs have been adopted in consumer products worldwide including handsets, portable media players and consumer radios.

4:40PM Volterra Semi beats by $0.13, beats on revs (VLTR) 17.81 +0.34 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.34 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.13 better than the First Call consensus of $0.21; revenues rose 56.2% year/year to $34.2 mln vs the $32.2 mln consensus.

4:36PM Texas Instruments beats by $0.03, reports revs in-line; guides Q1 EPS and revs above consensus (TXN) 23.69 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.52 per share, $0.03 better than the First Call consensus of $0.49; revenues rose 20.6% year/year to $3 bln vs the $2.98 bln consensus. TXN reports Q4 gross margins of 52.8% vs Street Expectations 52.6%, Q3 was 51.42%. Co issues upside guidance for Q1, sees EPS of $0.44-0.52 vs. $0.43 consensus; sees Q1 revs of $2.95-3.19 vs. $2.83 bln consensus. Orders were $3.26 billion, up 75 percent from a year ago and up 5 percent from the prior quarter. Inventory was $1.20 billion at the end of the quarter, down $173 million from a year ago and up $86 million from the prior quarter. "TI's growth and improving performance reflect our focus on Analog and Embedded Processing. These are large, diverse businesses that give us access to the world's fastest-growing electronics markets. In the fourth quarter, demand was strong across end markets without the usual holiday slowdown. Throughout, we believe customer and channel inventories have been lean. With demand continuing to be solid and inventories well below historical levels, our outlook for the first quarter reflects the likelihood of sequential growth instead of the typical seasonal decline."

4:33PM Apple beats handily on top and bottom line; guides Q2 EPS above consensus, revs above consensus (AAPL) 203.07 : Reports Q1 (Dec) earnings of $3.67 per share, $1.60 better than the First Call consensus of $2.07; revenues rose 32.0% year/year to $15.68 bln vs the $12.06 bln consensus. Apple reports Q1 sales of 3.36 mln Macs vs Street at ~3 mln, 21 mln iPods vs Street at ~22 mln, and 8.7 mln iPhones vs Street at ~9 mln. Co issues upside guidance for Q2, sees EPS of $2.06-2.18 vs. $1.77 consensus; sees Q2 revs of $11.0-11.4 bln vs. $10.37 bln consensus. Sees Q2 gross margin of 39% vs. 36.8% consensus. "The Company expects its gross margin percentage to decrease in future periods compared to levels achieved during 2009 and the first quarter of 2010, and anticipates gross margin levels of about 39% in the second quarter of 2010. This expected decline is due largely to flat or reduced average selling prices on new and innovative products that have higher cost structures that deliver greater value to customers and both expected and potential future cost increases for key components"... If you annualize our quarterly revenue, it's surprising that Apple is now a $50+ billion company," said Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO. "The new products we are planning to release this year are very strong, starting this week with a major new product that we're really excited about." *On September 23, 2009, the Financial Accounting Standards Board ratified Emerging Issues Task Force (EITF) Issue 08-1 and EITF Issue 09-3, resulting in the issuance of accounting standard updates ASU 2009-13 and ASU 2009-14. The new accounting principles result in the Company's recognition of substantially all of the revenue and product cost for iPhone and Apple TV when those products are delivered to customers. (Stock is halted)

4:11PM Zoran beats by $0.04, reports revs in-line; guides Q1 EPS above consensus, revs above consensus (ZRAN) 11.76 +0.27 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.01 per share, $0.04 better than the First Call consensus of ($0.03); revenues rose 24.9% year/year to $93.3 mln vs the $94 mln consensus. Co issues upside guidance for Q1, sees EPS of $(0.02)-(0.05), excluding acquisition-related amortization costs and stock-based compensation expenses vs. ($0.09) consensus; sees Q1 revs of $90 mln-$94 mln vs. $88.91 mln consensus.

4:05PM JA Solar announces Dr. Peng Fang as Chief Executive Officer (JASO) 4.91 +0.34 : Co announces the appointment of Dr. Peng Fang as chief executive officer, effective immediately. Mr. Baofang Jin will remain in his role as executive chairman and will work closely with Dr. Fang.

4:02PM PLX Tech beats by $0.08, beats on revs; guides Q1 revs above consensus (PLXT) 3.98 +0.19 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.09 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.08 better than the First Call consensus of $0.01; revenues rose 87.3% year/year to $26.6 mln vs the $23.8 mln consensus. Co issues upside guidance for Q1, sees Q1 revs of $27-29 mln vs. $23.61 mln consensus.

9:04AM MIPS Techs appoints Sandeep Vij to CEO (MIPS) 4.10 : Co announces that the MIPS Technologies Board of Directors has appointed Sandeep Vij as president, chief executive officer and director. Mr. Vij succeeds Interim CEO Anthony B. Holbrook, who will continue to serve as chairman of MIPS Technologies' Board of Directors. Mr. Vij brings to MIPS Technologies more than 20 years of senior-level management and marketing experience in the semiconductor industry.

1:37AM MEMC Electronic Materials and Conergy settle litigation; amend supply agreement (WFR) 13.19 : Co and German solar developer Conergy AG have reached an out of court settlement of a lawsuit related to a solar wafer supply contract between Conergy and MEMC Singapore Pte. Ltd. The terms of the amended contract include a significant reduction in the minimum quantity of wafers that Conergy must purchase over the remaining 8+ years of the contract, as well as a minimum market share commitment should Conergy's demand exceed the reduced quantities. The amendment also modifies the pricing terms to be based on market rates similar to other MEMC long-term solar wafer supply agreements. The settlement includes a payment to MEMC of an undisclosed amount.