The stock market began the week on a bit of a wishy-washy note and the S&P 500 information technology sector was no different. Both were little changed by the sound of the closing bell, yet both saw things look better and worse during the trading day.
There wasn't a lot of definition in Monday's trading for the technology sector, which tossed and turned on some news items accented with the element of surprise. Key headlines in the latter respect included the following:
Hewlett-Packard (HPQ 36.87, +1.67) announcing it is going to split into two companies: one comprising its technology infrastructure, software and services businesses that Meg Whitman will lead as CEO, and the other comprising its personal systems and printing businesses that Dion Weisler will lead as CEO. The former will referred to as Hewlett-Packard Enterprise and the latter will be referred to as HP, Inc.
GT Advanced Technologies (GTAT 0.80, -10.25) filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The company is a partner with Apple (AAPL 99.62, unch) in a sapphire glass plant. Remarkably, Apple did not use GTAT's sapphire glass in its new iPhones, yet almost nobody saw a bankruptcy filing coming.
Unisys (UIS 20.84, -2.76) saying its Chairman and CEO, J. Edward Coleman, will be leaving effective December 1, 2014, with the board noting it was the right time to make a leadership change as it focuses on the company's growth agenda. Mr. Coleman joined the firm during the 2008-2009 financial crisis.
Samsung said it will spend $14.7 billion on a new chip-making facility as it looks to offset the pinch of increased competition in the smartphone space. This news sent rival Micron Technology (MU 32.57, -1.37) 4.0% lower. Samsung said, though, it has not yet been determined if logic or memory chips will be produced at the new plant.
EZchip Semiconductor (EZCH 22.17, -2.56) warned that its third quarter revenue will fall short of analysts' expectations due to weakness in orders and inventory adjustments across most of its key customers serving the carrier networking equipment space. This news followed on the heels of ADTRAN's (ADTN 19.21, +0.40) third quarter warning on Friday.
Corning (GLW) was a winning standout on Monday as it benefited from the news of GTAT's bankruptcy filing.
Yahoo (YHOO 41.52, +0.49) also gained ground as it remained a focal point of stories linked to speculation about other companies that may soon be looking (or be forced) to unlock shareholder value.
Intel (INTC 34.11, +0.08) added 0.2%, but that wasn't enough to offset Micron's weakness, which dragged the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index lower by 0.8%. The SOX Index is down 5.1% over the last month.
Market Data 
Markets 
AI
