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From Briefing.com: 4:15 pm : Equities started the day on a mixed note before a broad sell-off sent the major averages to their session lows. The weakness started in the technology sector where a slew of companies lowered their third quarter guidance. After reaching their worst levels of the day, the key indices traded sideways until late day selling coincided with reports the U.S. Attorney in Manhattan filed a civil mortgage fraud lawsuit against Wells Fargo (WFC 35.12, -0.68). The company has since come out and denied any wrongdoing. As a result, the S&P 500 fell 1.0% while the Nasdaq underperformed with a loss of 1.5%.

The technology sector was the biggest laggard. Early weakness resulted from Apple (AAPL 635.85, -2.32) slipping as much as 2.0% intraday. However, shares of the tech giant proved to be resilient as the stock reversed and closed with a loss of 0.4%. Despite the intraday recovery in Apple, the rest of the technology sector was unable to reclaim its losses.

Technology bellwether Intel (INTC 21.90, -0.61) slipped 2.7% after Bernstein downgraded the stock from ‘market perform' to ‘underperform.' It should be noted that today's selling dropped Intel to its 52-week low.

Netflix (NFLX 65.52, -7.99) slid 10.9% after Bank of America/Merrill Lynch downgraded the stock from ‘buy' to ‘underperform' with a $72 price target. The downgrade resulted from valuation questions following the recent rally as well as concerns over the company's domestic streaming business and its international profitability. Today's selling follows yesterday's 10.0% rally which resulted from a Morgan Stanley upgrade.

VASCO Data (VDSI 7.34, -1.60) adds to the list of technology companies who cut their third quarter outlook. The stock sank 17.9% after the company lowered its third quarter and full-year 2012 guidance below consensus. The company commented on the lowered guidance by saying that "the lower than expected order intake in Q3 requires [the company] to lower [its] estimates of full-year revenue and related operating margins."

The energy sector was the top performer as crude oil advanced 3.3%. Within the complex, Gulfport Energy (GPOR 32.65, +2.22) gained 7.3% after reaffirming its 2012 guidance. The company continues to estimate 2012 production to range from 2.9 million to 3.1 million.

Coal stocks were broadly higher and the Market Vectors Coal ETF (KOL 24.35, +0.38) added 1.6%. Among individual coal producers, Alpha Natural Resources (ANR 7.28, +0.50) advanced 7.4% while CONSOL Energy (CNX 33.11, +1.38) and Peabody Energy (BTU 23.93, +1.29) saw gains between 4.3% and 5.7%.

Meanwhile, Penn Virginia (PVA 5.49, -1.04) fell 15.9% after announcing concurrent public offerings of 12 million shares of common stock and $50 million of depositary shares representing convertible preferred equity.

The Dow Jones Transportation Average slid 1.1% to break its recent streak of outperformance. Airlines were among the weakest components as they erased a portion of their recent gains. Delta Air Lines (DAL 9.89, -0.24) slipped 2.4%, while Alaska Air (ALK 36.43, -0.52) and United Continental (UAL 20.49, -0.41) fell between 1.4% and 2.0%. Out of the twenty transportation stocks, only Matson (MATX 21.36, +0.38) advanced. Shares of the shipping company settled higher by 1.8%.

Chinese internet stocks were under pressure after Credit Suisse downgraded Baidu.com (BIDU 106.48, -7.80) from ‘neutral' to ‘underperform.' In addition, the price target was lowered from $118 to $83. As a result of the downgrade, Baidu.com slid 6.8%, and traded at levels last seen in early September.

Other Chinese internet names also declined in sympathy. SINA (SINA 60.36, -0.77), Sohu.com (SOHU 39.58, -1.12), and Youku Tudou (YOKU 19.16, -0.36) all registered losses between 1.2% and 2.8%.

Tomorrow, the MBA Mortgage Index will be reported at 7:00 ET. In addition, the September Treasury Budget and Federal Reserve's September Beige Book will be released at 14:00 ET.

The U.S. Treasury will hold a $21 billion, 10-yr reopening.DJ30 -110.12 NASDAQ -47.33 SP500 -14.40 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 542/1.59 bln/1935 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 694/612.5 mln/2348

3:30 pm : Crude oil extended overnight gains as escalated tension between Turkey and Syria overshadowed the IMF cutting its global growth forecast. The energy component came off its pit session low of $90.08 per barrel and steadily climbed to a session high of $92.91 per barrel before settling with a 3.2% gain at $92.41 per barrel.

Natural gas dipped to a session low of $3.35 per MMBtu in morning action. However, a reversal took prices into positive territory and to a session high of $3.51 per MMBtu as investors reacted to forecasts of a slightly colder turn in computer weather projections. Natural gas lost some steam as it headed into the close but still settled 1.8% higher at $3.46 per MMBtu.

Gold fell into negative territory as a stronger dollar put pressure on the yellow metal. It tumbled to a pit session low of $1762.00 per ounce after trading as high as $1780.20 per ounce in early morning action. Gold eventually settled 0.6% lower at $1765.70 per ounce. Silver also slid to a session low of $33.57 per ounce but managed to erase most of the loss by afternoon action. It closed pit trade at $33.99 per ounce, or 0.1% lower.DJ30 -100.24 NASDAQ -47.30 SP500 -13.30 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 575/1335.6 mln/1871 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 745/381 mln/2294

4:30PM PLX Tech appoints David K. Raun interim president and CEO following resignation of Ralph H. Schmitt (PLXT) 5.55 -0.08 : Co announced that the PLX Board of Directors has appointed David K. Raun interim president and CEO, effective immediately, following the Board's acceptance of the resignation of Ralph H. Schmitt as president and CEO. Raun has held multiple leadership positions at PLX, including his most recent position as senior executive vice president and general manager. Schmitt plans to pursue a leadership role at a different company and will stay on the PLX Board of Directors to help with continuity through the expected acquisition of PLX Technology by IDT.

4:06PM SunPower announces it has invested in Diamond Energy (SPWR) 4.62 -0.03 : Co announces it has invested in Diamond Energy Pty, a privately-owned, alternative energy project developer and clean electricity retailer headquartered in Melbourne, Australia. Aligning with Diamond Energy will allow SunPower to offer more comprehensive and customizable clean energy solutions for customers in Australia. SunPower has acquired a minority stake of approximately 42 percent in Diamond Energy and under terms of the agreement has an option to increase its ownership percentage over time. SunPower will also assume a seat on the company's board of directors.

4:06PM Alcoa beats by $0.03, beats on revs; reaffirms long-term outlook that aluminum demand will double 2010 to 2020 (AA) 9.15 +0.02 : Reports Q3 (Sep) earnings of $0.03 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.03 better than the Capital IQ Consensus Estimate of ($0.00); revenues fell 9.1% year/year to $5.83 bln vs the $5.57 bln consensus. Alcoa sees global aluminum demand of 6% in 2012 (down from 7%); reaffirms long-term outlook that aluminum demand will double 2010 to 2020.

Additionally, Alcoa confirmed it has entered into a settlement agreement with Aluminium Bahrain B.S.C. ("Alba") resolving a civil lawsuit that had been pending in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania since 2008. Without admitting any liability, Alcoa agreed to make a cash payment to Alba of $85 mln payable in two installments. One half was made at settlement and the other half will be made one year later. The settlement amount is within the range Alcoa previously estimated as its reasonably possible losses, which it disclosed in its second quarter 2012 earnings announcement. Alcoa said the settlement with Alba represents the best possible outcome and avoids the time and expense of complex litigation.

Alcoa continued to turn in strong performance in Q3, despite market turbulence. Amidst challenging market conditions, Alcoa's upstream businesses achieved significant performance improvement in Q3, delivering $98 mln of combined sequential operational improvements across the Alumina and Primary Metals segments as higher volume, improved price and mix, and productivity gains more than offset cost headwinds.

In what is traditionally a weaker quarter, Alcoa's midstream and downstream businesses continued to turn in record performance. Global Rolled Products continued to deliver strong profitability despite European weakness, achieving record third quarter ATOI of $98 mln, up 3% sequentially, and 63% YoY. Adjusted EBITDA per metric ton for Global Rolled Products was a third quarter record at $395, and year-to-date record at $405, 72% higher than the 10-year average. Engineered Products and Solutions achieved a record adjusted EBITDA margin of 20%, a third consecutive quarterly record.

2:00PM Alcoa reaches tentative agreement on power contract for Intalco Works (AA) 9.20 +0.08 : Co announced that it has reached a tentative agreement on a long-term power contract with Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) for its Intalco Works aluminum smelter in Ferndale, Washington. The proposed contract, which runs through September 2022, will ensure power supply for the smelter and help sustain the economic impact the plant brings to the region. A 90-day extension to the current contract will be in place while a public comment process on the new contract is conducted, followed by a review by BPA. The contract is expected to be finalized by early December.

11:35AM Alcoa and Alba resolve civil litigation; settlement amount within range Alcoa previously estimated as reasonably possible losses (AA) 9.15 +0.03 : AA agreed to make a cash payment to Alba of $85 mln payable in two installments. One half was made at settlement and the other half will be made one year later. The settlement amount is within the range Alcoa previously estimated as its reasonably possible losses, which it disclosed in its second quarter 2012 earnings announcement. AA recorded a $40 mln charge ($15 mln after-tax and noncontrolling interest) in the third quarter in addition to the $45 mln charge ($18 mln after-tax and noncontrolling interest) it recorded in the second quarter. Alcoa estimates an additional possible after-tax charge of ~$25-30 mln to reflect an agreement between the shareholders of Alcoa World Alumina LLC regarding the cash costs of the settlement of the Alba civil lawsuit; such charge would be recognized in the event that a settlement is reached with the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission regarding their investigations. Alcoa and Alba have also resumed a commercial relationship and have entered into an Alumina Price Index-based, long-term alumina supply agreement, demonstrating a mutual desire to work together going forward and the significant value that Alcoa brings to customers in the region through superior quality and optimal logistics of its alumina.

10:21AM Apple drops 10% off all time close high (AAPL) 631.00 -7.08 : The stock is down for the fourth session in a row with it currently hovering just under the 10% loss level off its all time close high at 631 (session low 628.00). Note that its 100 ema is at 627. The next support zone of note if follow through develops is at 621/619 (62% of July-Sep rally, equality with first leg lower off Sep high).

9:40AM Semiconductor Hldrs ETF gaps down for second day in a row, fills late Sep bull gap at 31.25 -- session low 31.21 (SMH) 31.21 -0.33 : Support below is in the 31.11/31.03 area. Weighing on the sector are: INTC -2% (gapped down to new 52-wk low), ALTR -1.1%, LLTC -1%, MCHP -0.9%, BRCM -0.7%, NVDA -0.6%, XLNX -0.4%.

EXFO (EXFO) announced that its MaxTester copper/DSL tester series has been formally approved by three tier-1 North American telecom operators.

Cree (CREE) announced commercial availability of XLamp XB-D color LEDs and XLamp XM-L multi-color LEDs.

9:23AM Super Micro Computer sees Q1 rev at low end of guidance, below consensus (SMCI) 10.64 : Co issues downside guidance for Q1 (Sep), sees Q1 (Sep) revs of ~$270 mln vs. $279.54 mln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate (prior guidance $270-290 mln). Non-GAAP gross margin is expected to be ~13% vs. ests near 16%. The primary cause for the lower gross margin was the steep price drops for hard disk drives and memory. Margins on other products and components were stable to higher. The co anticipates that it will report non-GAAP operating expenses for the quarter in line with those reported for the prior quarter ended June 30, 2012. "Revenue for the quarter was up about 9% from last year and down slightly from our record last quarter despite challenges from a weaker global economy. The big price drops of HDD and memory, particularly late in the quarter, negatively impacted our net profit for the quarter as we adjusted to vendor contracts we entered into in the March quarter."

8:09AM Intersil sees Q3 rev below consensus (ISIL) 7.31 : Co issues downside guidance for Q3 (Sep), sees Q3 (Sep) revs -19% YoY to ~$151 mln vs. $159.74 mln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate. Weakness in the worldwide Personal Computing business was the primary driver of lower revenue in Q3. Intersil exited Q3 with over $300 million in cash and short term investments. Intersil's strong balance sheet and cash flow can continue to support the current dividend policy, even through cyclical industry downturns. Intersil will announce its Q3 financial results on Wednesday, October 24, 2012 at 1:45 p.m. Pacific Time.

CEVA (CEVA) and NXP Software (NXPI) have partnered to deliver an enhanced HD voice processing solution for the smartphone market

DSP Group (DSPG) and SoftAtHome announced that the cos have jointly integrated Digital Enhanced Cordless Technology Ultra Low Energy home security, control and automation solutions. Also, DSP Group and Comigo announced the launch of a jointly-developed home automation solution based on DECT Ultra Low Energy technology.

6:34AM LM Ericsson and STMicroelectronics (STM) comment on speculations regarding ST-Ericsson; says 'Both STMicroelectronics and Ericsson support ST-Ericsson' (ERIC) 8.93 : The two parent companies, together with ST-Ericsson, are currently working with an external advisor in order to ensure the best possible future for ST-Ericsson. Both STMicroelectronics and Ericsson support ST-Ericsson in its transformation work and remain confident that the company has a strategic position in the industry to enable the device ecosystem.

TSMC (TSM) announced that the readiness of 20nm and CoWoS design support within the Open Innovation Platform is demonstrated by the delivery of two foundry-first reference flows supporting 20nm and CoWoS technologies.

AMD (AMD) announced that a cluster of HP (HPQ) ProLiant BL465c Gen8 servers utilizing AMD Opteron 6200 Series processors has achieved the highest VMmark 2.1 score ever posted, representing a 40% increase over the next best score.

Freescale Semiconductor (FSL) announced the Kinetis KW01 wireless microcontroller, expanding its popular Kinetis MCU line with a device ideally suited for wirelessly networked smart energy applications.

Universal Display (PANL $36.64 +1.01) and Duksan Hi-Metal Company announced that the companies have entered into a master services agreement to enhance Universal Display's local presence and expansion in Korea. As the first initiative under the agreement, Duksan will provide manufacturing services for one of Universal Display's host products for certain Korean customers. Universal Display and Duksan will also explore additional areas for collaboration to better serve and support the needs of the growing Korean OLED industry.

Jabil Circuit (JBL $19.77 -1.20) reported fourth quarter earnings of $0.54 per share, $0.04 worse than the Capital IQ Consensus of $0.58, while revenues rose 1.4% year/year to $4.34 billion versus the $4.22 billion consensus. The company issued downside guidance for the first quarter with EPS of $0.51-0.62 versus the $0.67 consensus Estimate; sees Q1 revs of $4.3-4.5 bln vs. $4.51 bln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate. "Results for the fourth quarter were negatively impacted by a challenging new program ramp in our Specialized Services sector...Additionally demand remained weak in most of our business segments." Management also announced that the Jabil Board of Directors has authorized the repurchase of up to $100 million worth of shares of the Company's common stock during the next twelve months.

Yahoo (YHOO $15.77 +0.11) announced that Ken Goldman will join the company as CFO, effective Oct. 22. Goldman joins Yahoo! from Fortinet, a provider of threat management technologies, where he served as CFO. Goldman succeeds Yahoo! CFO Tim Morse, who has been with the company since June 2009. Morse will leave the company later this fall.

Synnex (SNX $34.25 +0.00) reported third quarter earnings of $0.93 per share, $0.01 worse than the consensus of $0.94, while revenues rose 0.2% year/year to $2.58 billion versus the $2.59 bln consensus. The company issued downside guidance for the fourth quarter EPS of $1.02-1.06 versus the $1.18 consensus and revenues of $2.71-2.81 billion versus the $2.85 billion consensus.

Oppenheimer downgrades Texas Instruments (TXN $27.53 -0.30) to Perform from Outperform. While they continue to believe in the co's long-term "core" analog/embedded share gain story, TXN's "non-core" wireless business remains a headwind. Tuesday, TXN articulated a shift in wireless strategy, with plans under way to discontinue wireless (OMAP/connectivity) investment for smartphone/tablet. Wireless (~10% of sales) will likely see revs dwindle over the next several years as the business slowly unwinds, much as the baseband exit created material top-line headwinds. As it is the most broadly diversified co in their universe, they expect challenged global GDP will weigh on the core business near term. With upside likely limited, they are stepping to the sidelines.

10:55 am S&P Info Technology sector trading lower today and behind broader market
The tech sector is trading lower today, trailing narrower losses in the broader market. Semiconductors are showing relative weakness as well with the SOX trading 1.1% lower. Within the chip index, WFR (-2.1%) is a notable laggard. Among other major indices, the SPY is trading 0.2% lower today, while the QQQ is down 1.0% and the NASDAQ is trading 0.7% lower on the session. Among tech bellwethers, INTC (-2.0%) is showing notable weakness.

In tech earnings last night, SCSC (-4.6%) issued downside Q1 guidance. This morning, VDSI (-23.4%) issued downside Q3 guidance and lowered FY12 guidance, ISIL (-0.4%) guided Q3 below consensus, SMCI (-2.9%) reported that it now sees Q1 at the low end of guidance, and ORBK (-10.1%) lowered Q3 rev guidance well below the Street.

Among rumors, FB (+0.1%) will team up with retailers to test 'want button', according to reports.

In notable analyst upgrades this morning in the tech space, ALLT (+3.3%) was upgraded to Buy at Jefferies Among downgrades, INTC (-2.0%) was downgraded to Underperform at Bernstein, BIDU (-4.5%) was downgraded to Underperform at Credit Suisse and PRGS (-3.5%) was downgraded from Buy at Mizuho. ADTN (-0.7%) is the only notable name in tech scheduled to report quarterly results today after the close.

09:25 am Owens Corning shares fall 10% after company lowered its 2012 earnings outlook

Owens Corning (OC) lowered its 2012 earnings outlook, reflecting a weaker environment for its Roofing and Composites businesses. Full-year adjusted. EBIT for the co are now expected to be in the range of $280-310 million (down from $360-420 million) with the primary uncertainty through the remainder of the year attributed to roofing volumes. Preliminary third-quarter adjusted EBIT is $81 million (ests near $124 million). The company previously disclosed late second-quarter weakness in the U.S. roofing shingle market, which persisted early into the third quarter. While there was some improvement through most of the third quarter, shipments weakened following a mid-September price increase and are not expected to improve for the remainder of year. As a result, the company has lowered its Roofing revenue outlook for the full-year, now estimated to be approximately $2 billion.

Pricing improved sequentially in the third quarter on slightly higher asphalt costs. While fixed cost controls continue to be effective, the significant revenue decline in the second half of 2012 will result in margin compression. Despite the market weakness of the second half, the market outlook and competitive environment supports reaffirmation of the company's mid-term guidance of mid-teen or better EBIT margins. 2H12 Composites demand will be impacted by lower global industrial production, particularly in Europe, as well as by the weaker U.S. roofing market. The company's estimate for global glass fiber market demand growth in 2012 has been reduced to approximately three percent, compared to the long-term historical average growth rate of five percent. The co maintains its earlier guidance for the Insulation business of significantly narrowing losses in 2012.