LR Index Stocks Pummeled

The Light Reading index suffered a case of whiplash today, closing at 732.05, down 44.96, after being up as much as 60 points earlier. The turnaround came when the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) announced that it would leave interest rates unchanged, rather than lowering them as many had hoped.

Leading the news today was Ciena Corp.'s (Nasdaq: CIEN) announcement that it would buy Cyras, a metro optical switch company, in a stock deal worth $2.6 billion (see Ciena To Buy Cyras for $2.6 Billion). Ciena’s stock closed the day at 73.19, down 23.19 or 24.06 percent, on concerns that the deal will dilute its value.

Also contributing to the sell-off was SBC Communications Inc.’s (NYSE: SBC) announcement that they would be adjusting down earnings estimates, adding to a list of companies that have done so.

The big losers today, in addition to Ciena, were Avici Systems Inc. (Nasdaq: AVCI; Frankfurt: BVC7), down 18.34 percent; Avanex Corp. (Nasdaq: AVNX), down 17.97 percent; Finisar Corp. (Nasdaq: FNSR) down 19.85 percent; New Focus Inc. (Nasdaq: NUFO), down 23.61 percent; Newport Corp. (Nasdaq: NEWP), down 20 percent; and Sycamore Networks Inc. (Nasdaq: SCMR), down 20.32 percent.

Foundry Networks Inc.'s (Nasdaq: FDRY) quarterly profit warning, issued after the market closed, did not bode well for the networking sector overall. General market fears will likely linger tomorrow.

-- Matt Malina, research associate, Light Reading http://www.lightreading.com

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