Qualcomm Declines on Patent Ruling

Qualcomm shares fell Thursday on a negative patent ruling, while the Nasdaq Composite Index slipped as enthusiasm waned for the Federal Reserve's recent moves.

Cellphone-chip maker Qualcomm dropped $1.31, or 3.2%, to $39.67 on the Nasdaq Stock Market after an administrative law judge said that Nokia did not infringe on three of its patents. The decision strengthens Nokia's position as it negotiates with Qualcomm over the rights to use Qualcomm's technology.

Merrill Lynch, calling the news "a major negative," downgraded Qualcomm to "neutral" from "buy." "We are concerned that this major loss will inject more delays in the royalty settlement ...