By Rex Crum, MarketWatch
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Gains from LinkedIn Corp. and
Dell Inc. stood out among tech stocks Friday, as the overall sector
nudged into gains after being bogged down earlier on the latest
payroll and jobs data.
LinkedIn (LNKD) climbed more than 11%, to $236.57 after the
online professional-networking company reported
better-than-expected second quarter results late Thursday. LinkedIn
said its business performance was led by gains in new
memberships.
Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Youssef Squali raised his rating on
LinkedIn to buy, and lifted his price target on the company's stock
to $250 a share from $170.
In a research note, Squali said that while LinkedIn's shares had
risen 90% from the first of the year until before Thursday's
report, he supported raising his views on LinkedIn because it is
one of the "rare cases where a company keeps outperforming
expectations and where the long-term outlook keeps getting better
with every passing quarter."
Dell (DELL) climbed more than 5% to $13.64 a share after the
company agreed to a new buyout offer from Chief Executive Michael
Dell and Silver Lake. Under terms of the new deal, Michael Dell and
Silver Lake will pay $13.75 a share for Dell, pay a special
dividend of 13 cents a share by the time the deal closes, and
guarantee the company's third-quarter dividend payment of 8 cents a
share.
A special shareholder meeting on Michael Dell's offer to take
Dell private that had been scheduled for Friday has been postponed
until Sept. 12.
Apple Inc. (AAPL) rose by $4.03 a share to $461.28. On Friday,
the U.S. Justice Department and the attorneys general of 33 states
sought a court approval for a proposal that would require Apple to
terminate its e-book deals with the five major book publishers.
Yelp Inc. (YELP) scored more gains in the wake of its strong
quarterly results and 23% advance on Thursday. Yelp shares rose
almost 14% Friday, to $58.59.
Other gains came from Pandora Media Inc. (P), Facebook Inc.
(FB), Hewlett-Packard Co. (HPQ) and eBay Inc. (EBAY).
The Nasdaq Composite Index (RIXF) edged into positive territory
and was up by 3 points at 3,678. The latest data from the Labor
Department weighed on the market as the unemployment rate dropped
to a four-year-low in July, but fewer jobs were created in the
month than had been expected.
ValueClick Inc. (VCLK) shares were among the sector's biggest
percentage decliners, falling 17% to $20.81. The
Internet-advertising company reported disappointing second-quarter
results and gave a third-quarter outlook that fell short of Wall
Street analysts' forecasts. Analysts at Needham & Co. and
Raymond James both cut their ratings on ValueClick's stock.
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