Stocks ended lower yesterday as investors took a breather after the recent rally. Home prices in 20 major cities fell to the lowest level since 2002, the index for January dropped 3.8% year-over-year, after a 4.1% drop in the month prior. The Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index for March eased to 70.2 from 71.6 in February. Healthcare companies were under pressure after Supreme Court justices offered sharply divided views on the controversial individual mandate provision at the heart of the 2010 federal health care reform law. Lennar rallied 4.7% after better-than-anticipated earnings. Walgreen added 1.25% after the co. reported second-quarter profit that beat expectations. The technology sector slipped into the red as gains in semis and optical-components companies were overshadowed by losses in Hewlett-Packard, which slid 1.1%. Networking stocks highlighted the tech sector’s early gains, with Juniper Networks and JDS Uniphase, each rising more than 3%. Gains were sparked by news of a merger between two optical component vendors, Oclaro and Opnext, which one analyst noted would mean consolidation in that market. Micron Technology traded up 4% after Jefferies analyst initiated coverage of Micron with a buy rating, citing the growth prospects in the memory-chip market, especially the rapid adoption of solid state drive technology. Implied volatility inched higher on moderate trading volumes.
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