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| Monday, May 22, 2006 |
Widespread losses in the chip sector weighed on technology stocks Monday as more concerns over the timing of executive stock option grants surfaced.
KLA-Tencor Corp., the No. 2 U.S. chip-equipment maker, and Trident Microsystems, a TV-chip maker, were among the biggest percentage decliners in the semiconductor sector as a Wall Street Journal article raised questions about the timing of certain stock options.
At a J.P. Morgan technology conference in San Francisco Monday afternoon, KLA-Tencor's chief financial officer Jeff Hall revealed the company it is the subject of an inquiry by the U.S. attorney's office. The stock tumbled $4.70, or over 10%, to $40.54.
Trident Micro, meanwhile, said its audit committee is reviewing its stock option grants. Its shares plunged $3.54, or 13%, to $23.79.
Also weighing on the sector was a separate report from Merrill Lynch that studied stock option grants in the chip sector from 1997 to 2002.
It said it saw favorable pricing for company executives at KLA-Tencor, Broadcom Corp., Marvell Technology Group Ltd., Novellus Systems Inc., Linear Technology Corp. and Maxim Integrated Products Inc.
Overall, the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index tumbled more than 20 points, or 4.5%.
Broadly speaking, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index fell more than 21 points, with Apple Computer Inc., Cisco Systems Inc., and Dell Inc. all losing ground.
The Morgan Stanley High Tech 35 Index and the Goldman Sachs Hardware Index both fell more than 3 points. |
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