Wednesday's Tech Winners & Losers

Updated from 12:36 p.m. EDT

Tech stocks were on the rise Wednesday, boosted by solid earnings and analyst upgrades.

Navteq(NVT) climbed 16.9% after the business software firm posted solid profit gains after the prior bell. The company reported net second-quarter income of $40.9 million, or 41 cents a share, compared to $23.8 million, or 25 cents a share, in the year-ago period.

The company also upped its full-year guidance. It now expects revenue of $780 million to $795 million and earnings per diluted share of $1.45 to $1.50. Analysts polled by Thomson Financial expect revenue of $747.8 million and earnings of $1.33 a share. Shares closed up $9.16 to $63.29.

FiberTower(FTWR) jumped 17.1% after announcing an agreement with Sprint Nextel(S) to provide backhaul services in seven of the company's initial WiMax launch markets. Sprint plans to roll out the service by the end of the year, followed by a rollout to almost 100 million customers by the end of 2008. Terms of the agreement with FiberTower were not disclosed. Shares gained 60 cents to $4.12.

Disc drive component maker Hutchinson Technology(HTCH) jumped 11.3% after being upgraded by three firms following a solid earnings report. Needham & Co. and WR Hambrecht both upgraded the stock to buy from hold, and Brean Murray upgraded it to hold from sell. Hutchinson gained $2.26 to $22.32.