Technology Sector Bounces Back, Leads the Market in Thursday's Action

The S&P 500 Technology Sector, which was the worst performing area of the market in yesterday's trading session, is the strongest in today's action, currently up 0.9%.

The strongest performing stocks in the S&P 500 Technology Sector currently are:

1) LSI Corp. (NYSE: LSI): Shares of LSI are currently trading up 16% from yesterday's close to $7.47. After the bell yesterday, the company reported earnings which met analyst estimates, however provided guidance for Q3, which was well above expectations. LSI is expecting earnings of $0.11 to $0.17 per share versus estimates of $0.12 per share. The company was upgraded from Hold to Buy at ThinkEquity, and was reiterated as an Outperform at FBR. J.P. Morgan (NYSE: JPM) also raised its price target on LSI to $8.50.

The stock has broken above its 50-day simple moving average (one year daily chart) in today's session, and is nearing its 52-week high of $7.74, which was set on June 1st.

2) Symantec (NASDAQ: SYMC): Shares of Symantec are currently trading up 6.5% from yesterday's close to $19.61. The company reported Q1 earnings of $0.40 per share versus estimates of $0.37 per share. Symantec was upgraded from Hold to Buy at Wunderlich Securities, and was reiterated as an Overweight at J.P. Morgan.

The stock has broken above its 50-day simple moving average (one year daily chart) in today's session, and is nearing its 52-week high of $20.50, which was set on May 12th.

3) Motorola Solutions (NYSE: MSI): Shares of Motorola Solutions are currently trading up 5.3% from yesterday's close to $46.65. The company reported earnings (minus stock-based compensation and one-time items) of $0.57 per share versus estimates of $0.51 per share – a big jump from $0.01 per share for the same period last year.

The stock is nearing its 52-week high of $47.91, which was set on May 31st.

4) Citrix Systems (NASDAQ: CTXS): Shares of Citrix are currently trading up 3.6% from yesterday's close to $73.49. The company reported earnings of $0.57 per share versus estimates of $0.46 per share. Revenue came in at $530.8 million versus estimates of $522.8 million – a 15.8% jump from the same period last year. Citrix's price target was lowered to $72 at Citigroup. Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) upgraded Citrix Systems from Equal Weight to Overweight (price target at $88).

The stock has broken above its 200-day simple moving average (one year daily chart) in today's session. Shares have traded below their 200-day SMA in only two sessions (yesterday and today) over the past 52 weeks.

5) Cisco Systems (NASDAQ: CSCO): Shares of Cisco are currently trading up 3.2% from yesterday's close to $16.19. The company was upgraded from Neutral to Buy at Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS). Goldman analyst Simona Jankowski noted that “Cisco's customer franchise is still solid. Moreover, the structural issues it faces are largely contained to the switching business, which drives just one-third of sales.”

The stock is currently trading near the bottom of its 52-week range, and is 13% lower than its current 200-day simple moving average ($18.52 on a one year daily chart).

Weakness in the Sector: The following stocks are showing significant signs of weakness, despite positive overall Sector performance:

1) Akamai Technologies (NASDAQ: AKAM): Shares of Akamai are currently trading down 19.2% from yesterday's close to $23.82. The company reported Q2 earnings of $0.35 per share versus estimates of $0.36 per share. Akamai was downgraded from Overweight to Neutral by Piper Jaffray (price target was cut to $26). Citi cut the stock's price target to $27.

Shares are currently undergoing their largest one day percentage decrease in two years, and have hit a 52-week low of $23.64 in today's session. The stock is trading 22% lower than its 50-day simple moving average ($33.80 on a one year daily chart) and 41.4% lower than its 200-day simple moving average ($40.82 on a one year daily chart).

2) BMC Software (NASDAQ: BMC): Shares of BMC are currently trading down 8.3% from yesterday's close to $44.86. The company reported Q1 earnings of $0.72 per share versus estimates of $0.68 per share. Revenue came in at $502 million versus estimates of $506 million. Guidance for fiscal 2012 came in at $3.25 to $3.35 per share versus estimates of $3.27 per share.

The stock has broken far below its 200-day simple moving average (one year daily chart) in today's session. Shares have not traded below $45 since December 2nd.

3) Juniper Networks (NYSE: JNPR): Shares of Juniper are currently trading down 2.5% from yesterday's close to $24.04. The company was downgraded from Buy to Hold at Citigroup.

The stock hit a 52-week low of $23.77 in today's session, and has now plunged 25% since Tuesday's high. Shares are trading 25% lower than their 50-day simple moving average ($31.94 on a one year daily chart).