Sluggish Indexes Still Manage 4th-Straight Week of Gains

Semiconductor stocks fell Friday while shares of telecom companies rose, leaving the major indexes little changed.

Intel, Micron Technology and Texas Instruments, which had helped lift the Standard & Poor’s chip index 19% in the past three weeks, sank Friday.

Verizon Communications was one of the biggest gainers in the S&P; 500 as investors bet declines over the last two months made them more attractive than stocks that have gained recently.

The S&P; 500 fell 1.85 points, or 0.1%, to 1,506.46. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 9.89 points, or 0.1%, to 11,192.63. The Nasdaq composite declined for the first time this week, losing 10.60 points, or 0.3%, to 4,042.68.

Sixteen stocks rose for every 15 that fell on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume was slow. Winners topped losers by 21 to 17 on Nasdaq.

For the week, the Nasdaq gained 2.9%, the Dow rose 1.3% and the S&P; added 1%.

This was the fourth-straight week all three benchmarks have risen--the first time since November 1998 they’ve had such a long streak.

Investors, optimistic that the economy can grow steadily for the rest of the year without spurring inflation and causing the Fed to raise rates, have scooped up technology stocks over the last two weeks, pushing the Nasdaq to a gain of 7%.

Some sold shares Friday to lock in their recent gains, traders said.

Intel lost $1.31 to $72.94, Micron Technology shed $3.56 to $89 and Texas Instruments dropped $2.50 to $67.13. The largest maker of semiconductor manufacturing equipment, Applied Materials, declined 88 cents to $84.69.

The S&P; telephone index jumped 2.5% after losing 20% since mid-June.

Verizon gained $1.63 to $43.25, extending Thursday’s 3% gain after the settlement of a strike by 87,000 Verizon workers. Qwest Communications rose $2.81 to $50.31, BellSouth gained $1.06 to $37.31 and WorldCom rallied $1.13 to $36.06.

In the bond market, the most active 30-year yield held near the lowest level in 15 months, its 3 1/2-month advance stymied as signs of faster economic growth fueled speculation that Treasury prices have peaked. The long-bond yield rose to 5.67% from 5.66% the day before.

Among the other equity highlights:

* Coca-Cola fell $1.94 to $56 after a Salomon Smith Barney analyst reduced her forecast for second-half sales, based on a recent trip to Japan and Australia.

* Northrop Grumman gained for a second day, advancing $1.88 to $78 after an S.G. Cowen analyst upgraded the stock to “strong buy” from “buy,” saying revenue growth at the No. 5 U.S. defense contractor is accelerating.

Other defense and aerospace stocks also rose, including Rockwell International, up $1.69 to $41.06.

Election year politics and federal budget surpluses could help defense stocks extend recent gains, analysts said.

* Level 3 Communications, which provides local and long-distance phone and data services, zoomed $4.69 to $78.75. A Robertson Stephens analyst raised the stock to “strong buy” from “buy” after a 43% decline from its March high.

* 4Kids Entertainment rose $1.63 to $21.38 as the company, which licenses the Pokemon characters, will replace SEI in the Standard & Poor’s small-cap 600 index.

* Lernout & Hauspie Speech Products fell $4.63 to $30.06. The maker of speech-recognition software named John Duerden to replace Gaston Bastiaens as chief executive as the company faces concern about its Korean sales.

* Among Southern California stocks, Irvine-based Meade Instruments rose $2.88 to $25.50, bringing its year-to-date gain to 79%. The telescope and binocular maker will replace Jones Pharma in the S&P; small-cap index after the close of trading Thursday.

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Market Roundup, C4