By all appearances, the markets are remaining subdued today as we approach the closing bell. With about an hour left in the trading session, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI 1.56%) is up a negligible 12 points, or 0.09%.
Three tech stocks on the move
Technology companies are among the best-performing stocks today, with Intel (INTC 5.68%) and Cisco Systems (CSCO 0.49%) leading the blue-chip index higher. Shares in Intel are down nearly 20% for the year on concerns over slowing personal-computer sales and uncertainty in the market, courtesy of the fiscal cliff. Recently, however, they appear to have hit bottom, as many analysts and commentators have started suggesting that they've simply become too cheap to ignore with a dividend yield of 4.5%.
Meanwhile, Cisco's year couldn't have been more different. In the beginning of November, as one of our bloggers recently noted, the company reported 18% year-over-year growth in both net income and earnings per share. In addition, thanks to a series of recent acquisitions, many think even better times are ahead. As my colleague Dan Caplinger observed, "With many of its important segments starting to hit on all cylinders, Cisco looks primed to finish the year on a positive note and head into 2013 with tailwinds at its back."
Beyond these Dow components, shares of Apple (AAPL 1.93%) are also trading higher on the heels of comments from CEO Tim Cook and a report that another phone carrier will begin offering the iPhone. In two recent interviews -- one with NBC and another with Bloomberg Businessweek -- Cook confirmed that some Macs will be assembled in the United States starting next year. As Apple expert Evan Niu pointed out earlier today, this adds to a number of iPhone and iPad components that are also manufactured here, including processors and the Gorilla Glass from Corning (GLW 1.63%), which itself is a widely popular stock.
In addition, an agreement between Apple and T-Mobile USA has reportedly been reached allowing the latter to distribute the iPhone. T-Mobile was previously the only major U.S. wireless carrier that didn't offer the popular smartphone. According to Rene Obermann, CEO of T-Mobile parent company Deutsche Telekom, "We have now added the final piece to the jigsaw to boost the competitiveness of T-Mobile USA sustainably."
