NEW YORK -- U.S. stocks were mixed yesterday, as Intel Corp. led a Nasdaq rally after settling an antitrust lawsuit, and American Express Co. and McDonald's Corp. held back the Dow Jones industrial average's march toward 10,000.
The Nasdaq composite index soared 60.51, or 2.6 percent, to 2,397.62, its biggest rise since Feb. 11.
The Dow average was little changed at 9727.61, down 8.47, after a 268-point increase Friday that put it within 265 points of the 10,000 landmark. The Standard & Poor's 500 index gained 7.26 yesterday, to a record 1,282.73.
Elsewhere on the broad market, the Russell 2,000 index, a benchmark of small-cap stocks, rose 2.05, to 400.06; the Wilshire 5,000 index jumped 75.81, to 11,677.27; the American Stock Exchange composite index climbed 4.77, to 712.18; and the S&P; 400 midcap index added 2.47, to 367.43.
The Sun-Bloomberg Maryland index of the top 100 Maryland stocks lost 0.63, to 182.64.
Eight stocks fell for every seven that rose on the New York Stock Exchange, where 714.6 million shares changed hands.
Intel rose $5, to $119.625, after the Federal Trade Commission settled its antitrust suit against the world's largest chip maker without disclosing further details. The FTC had accused Intel of stifling competition by withholding technical data about its chips from computer makers who didn't agree to its business demands.
Novell Inc. soared $3.1875, to $23.3125, and was the biggest gainer on the Nasdaq. Shares in the maker of networking software could quadruple to $80 in five years if it can persuade computer hardware and software makers to use its directory-services technology, Barron's said Saturday.
Cisco Systems Inc. climbed $3.75, to $104.5625, and Dell Computer Corp. gained $2.3438, to $45.375.
Microsoft Corp. rose $4.0625, to $159. The world's largest software maker is expected to sign agreements for alliances with at least six Chinese electronics firms, and invested $15 million in closely held Reciprocal Inc., which makes Internet music software.
American Express, which sells mutual funds as well as credit-card services, fell $2.0625, to $116.5625, contributing the most to the Dow's decline, after rising 10 percent Thursday and Friday.
Among brokerages, Morgan Stanley Dean Witter & Co. lost $1.0625, to $97.875; Merrill Lynch & Co. fell $1.125, to $84.4375; and Lehman Brothers Holding Inc. dropped $1.50, to $57.9375.
Capital One Financial Corp. shares sank $2.50, to $133.3125, after PaineWebber analyst Gary Gordon cut his rating on Capital One to "attractive" from "buy," saying its price already reflected much of the earnings growth potential for the No. 7 U.S. MasterCard and Visa credit-card issuer.
McDonald's fell $1.875, to $45.25, after analyst John Ivankoe at Schroder & Co. downgraded the world's largest restaurant company to "perform in line" from "outperform."
Cnet Inc. increased $40.125, or 24 percent, to $208.125, as the provider of World Wide Web sites and television programming prepares to split its shares 2-for-1.
7thStreet.com shares gained $3.8438, to $8.8438, after the developer of Internet software for animated content and characters signed an agreement with America Online Inc., the No. 1 online service. 7thStreet.com rose 82 percent Friday.
Broadcom Corp. rose $12.75, to $66.50, after the leading broadband-communication chip maker said it will supply Northern Telecom Ltd. with a high-speed communications technology to allow rapid transmission of voice, data and video over telephone lines. Northern Telecom rose $1.75, to $58.8125.
CMGI Inc. soared $47.50, to $199.6875, on expectations that two companies in which the Internet venture-fund company has invested will sell shares to the public later this year. CMGI is in line to realize a profit of $1 billion from its stake in GeoCities, a provider of free Web pages that has 3.5 million active members, which is being bought by Yahoo! Inc. for $4 billion.
Staples Inc. rose $2.875, to $31.375, after the second-largest U.S. office supplies retailer said it will become GeoCities' exclusive office products merchant in a bid to boost sales to small companies. GeoCities rose $7.625, to $109.625.
eBay Inc. rose $21.75, to $171, on "post-split euphoria" over the Internet auctioneer's 3-for-1 stock split last week, said Lauren Cooks Levitan at BancBoston Robertson Stephens Inc. The company is profitable and the stock seems more affordable than it was before its split.
PMC-Sierra Inc., a computer-networking chip maker, rose $5.25, to $81.25, on takeover speculation. Intel Corp.'s purchase of PMC rival Level One Communications Inc. focused attention on the company in Burnaby, British Columbia, analysts said. PMC is up 122 percent in 12 months.
Exxon Corp. rose $1.25, to $70.9375, Anadarko Petroleum Corp. rose $1.625, to $33.125, and Schlumberger Ltd. climbed 75 cents, to 55.75.
Pub Date: 3/09/99