A Nasdaq-100 exchange traded fund reversed morning losses Tuesday as the technology sector held up relatively well while the major stock indexes were in the red on worries over the U.S. debt limit.
PowerShares QQQ (NasdaqGM: QQQ) was up 0.3% in afternoon trade while the Dow and S&P 500 lost ground and analysts digested earnings from ETF components Broadcom (NasdaqGS: BRCM) and Netflix (NasdaqGS: NFLX).
Broadcom rallied nearly 10% after the chip maker reported quarterly earnings with an upbeat outlook.
“We maintain our buy rating and increase our price target to $44 on Broadcom, as the company delivered on all fronts – a strong third quarter top-line guide, tight opex control and improving gross margins,” Auriga analysts said in a note. “This should come as a relief to investors after two disappointing quarters.”
“Broadcom reported modest second-quarter results in line with our expectations, but gave investors a bright third-quarter outlook as it expects a bounce-back in business conditions,” added Morningstar analyst Brian Colello.
Separately, Netflix shares were off 8% in the wake of its quarterly earnings report.
“Given that the shares were priced for perfection, it’s not surprising that the combination of a revenue shortfall and disappointing guidance for the third quarter had the shares down,” said Dougherty & Co. analyst Steve Frankel.
“By no means are the wheels coming off the Netflix bus, but the recent pricing change introduces a level of uncertainty into the model and given the stock’s [high]current multiple … we want to see how the company navigates the pricing change before moving off our neutral rating on the shares,” Frankel said in a note.
PowerShares QQQ
