NEW YORK -- Stock prices managed some solid gains Monday despite another choppy session in which investors wavered between buying cheaper stocks and shying away from the uncertainty of the high-tech sector.
"We have been swinging from great emotions on both sides in the last two weeks," said Steven Goldman, market strategist for Weeden & Co. of the market's recent triple-digit rallies and tumbles. "Emotions are running high."
Analysts' downgrades of Intel and Texas Instruments reminded investors that many companies continue to struggle with slumping demand and the weak economy. However, investors also drew some encouragement from a positive earnings announcement from Amazon.com.
The market's major indicators alternated between gains and losses throughout Monday's session, continuing the volatility that marked last week's trading.
The Dow Jones industrial average ended the day up 54.06 at 9,845.15 but lost much of an earlier 141-point advance. On Friday, the Dow fell 127 points, just a day after the blue chips had gained 402.
The Nasdaq Composite Index climbed 25.35 to 1,745.71, while the symbol="sp500">Standard and Poor's 500 advanced 9.16 to 1,137.59.
As it wobbled Monday, the market focused on the tech sector after Intel was downgraded by Salomon Smith Barney and Texas Instruments' rating was reduced by Lehman Brothers. Intel (INTC) fell 43 cents to $23.20, while Texas Instruments (TXN) dropped 75 cents to $27.51.
However, the market also got a lift from Amazon (AMZN), which climbed nearly 34 percent, or $2.81, to $11.18 after announcing it expects to report a smaller loss and higher sales for the first quarter. Amazon said it expects to lose 22 cents a share, an improvement over the first three months of last year when it lost 35 cents a share.
The online retailer helped boost other Internet shares, including Yahoo (YHOO), up 83 cents at $15.64.
Amazon joined Dell Computer in surprising the market with better-than-expected news, allowing some hope that months of profit warnings and disappointments are starting to ebb.
Dell (DELL), up 8 cents at $24.89 Monday, said late Wednesday it was sticking by its first-quarter earnings expectations of 17 cents a share, inspiring Thursday's big rally.
"We're working through a process in which stock prices turn in better performances. It's a process, not a one-day event," said Kevin Caron, associate strategist at Gruntal & Co.
Slowly, analysts say, good news from companies and analysts will outweigh and overshadow the bad to move the market higher.
"I don't know where the point is where you can shrug off the bad news," said Goldman, the strategist for Weeden. "I think we are getting somewhat closer to the end."
While tech stocks dominated trading, stocks considered the market's safer havens were mixed.
Merck (MRK) rose $1.58 to $78, but Coca-Cola (COKE) fell $1.10 to $43.90.
Bank of America rose $1.01 to $50.60 while some other banking stocks declined.
For now, analysts expect the market to continue to fluctuate as investors grapple with bleak first-quarter earnings announcements and the likelihood that the slumping economy isn't expected to bounce back until sometime next year.
However, over the longer-term, Caron said, investors are optimistic that the market will improve, because the Federal Reserve has indicated it will keep lowering interest rates to help the economy recover.
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners nearly 2 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange where consolidated volume was 1.24 billion shares, well below Friday's 1.48 billion shares.
The Russell 2000 index, which measures the performance of smaller companies stocks, rose 7.01 to 441.67.
Overseas markets were mixed Monday. Japan's Nikkei stock skidded 4.1 percent.
In Europe, Germany's DAX index rose 1.5 percent, Britain's FTSE 100 advanced 1.1 percent, and France's CAC-40 climbed 0.9 percent.
