Stocks Rise Thanks to Chipmaker Deal
NEW YORK (AP) -- U.S. stocks are edging higher Monday as chipmakers jump on Broadcom's $103 billion offer to buy competitor Qualcomm. However phone companies are sinking after wireless carriers Sprint and T-Mobile said they've called off talks about a possible deal. Oil prices are slightly higher as investors pore over turmoil in Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil exporter.
KEEPING SCORE: The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 2 points, or 0.1 percent, to 2,590 as of 10:30 a.m. Eastern time. The Dow Jones industrial average added 19 points, or 0.1 percent, to 23,558. The Nasdaq composite gained 21 points, or 0.3 percent, to 6,785. All three indexes closed at record highs Friday. The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks picked up 4 points, or 0.3 percent, to 1,499.
CHIP, CHIP HOORAY: Broadcom made an unsolicited offer for Qualcomm worth $103 billion, or $70 a share, in a deal that could be the largest in the history of the technology industry if it's completed. Qualcomm stock has been battered this year as the company is stuck in a legal battle with its biggest customer, Apple. The iPhone maker has refused to pay any royalties to Qualcomm for some of the smartphone's features. Analysts said Apple might be able to stop the deal if it wants to, but regulators will also have to sign off.
Qualcomm jumped $1.77, or 2.9 percent, to $63.59 and Broadcom added $2.10 to $275.73. Both stocks have climbed since reports of the deal started circulating last week.
P[L1] D[0x0] M[300x250] OOP[F] ADUNIT[] T[]
Elsewhere, Skyworks Solutions gained $3.08, or 2.7 percent, to $116.27 and Qorvo rose $3.05, or 4.1 percent, to $76.89. Advanced Micro devices climbed 67 cents, or 6 percent, to $11.79 after the company announced a deal with Intel.
DROPPED CALL: Wireless carriers Sprint and T-Mobile dashed investors' hopes they would combine. On Saturday the companies said they'd called off merger negotiations for the foreseeable future because they couldn't strike an agreement that would benefit customers and shareholders. The two companies have been dancing around a possible merger for years and in recent weeks investors felt they might finally combine.
Sprint fell 92 cents, or 13.8 percent, to $5.75 and T-Mobile USA sank $3.07, or 5.2 percent, to $55.84. Elsewhere Verizon dropped $2.55, or 5.4 percent, to $44.87 and AT&T slid 64 cents, or 1.9 percent, to $32.66.
ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude oil rose 25 cents to $55.89 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, the international standard, rose 47 cents to $62.54 per barrel. Energy companies moved higher as well.
In an unusual shakeup, 11 princes and 38 senior officials and businessmen were arrested in Saudi Arabia over the weekend as part of a purported anti-corruption probe led by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Those arrested include Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, the billionaire chairman of the Kingdom Holding Co. Separately a high-ranking prince and several other government officials were killed when a helicopter crashed in the south of the kingdom.
EARNINGS: Luxury retailer Michael Kors jumped after its second-quarter profit and sales came in ahead of expectations. The company raised its forecasts for the rest of the year. Its stock gained $6.31, or 13.3 percent, to $53.93. Health care products company Henry Schein posted a smaller profit than analysts expected and said it expects weaker earnings growth this year. Schein stock lost $6.76, or 8.7 percent, to $70.88.
ANTHEM'S NEW TUNE: Blue Cross-Blue Shield insurer Anthem rose after it named a top executive from competitor UnitedHealth as its next CEO. The company said Gail Boudreaux will replace current CEO Joseph Swedish on Nov. 20. He has been Anthem's CEO for four years. Anthem added $5.67, or 2.7 percent, to $217.47.
BONDS: Bond prices were stable. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note remained at 2.33 percent and the yield on the 2-year note stayed at 1.62 percent.
CURRENCIES: The dollar dipped to 114.15 yen from 114.16 yen. The euro fell to $1.1583 from $1.1608.
OVERSEAS: In Britain, the FTSE 100 inched up 0.1 percent while France's CAC 40 shed 0.1 percent. The German DAX also dipped 0.1 percent. Japan's Nikkei 225 made a tiny gain and South Korea's Kospi dropped 0.3 percent. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index lost less than 0.1 percent.
(BE)